CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

The ruin of Dunbar Castle dominates the western end of the harbour in the East Lothian seaside town.  Very little remains of this very important castle in Scottish history but the walls still provide an imposing sight for visitors. The first stone castle is thought to have been built by Gospatric, Earl of Northumbria, after his exile from England in the late 11th century, following the Harrowing of the North, by William the Conqueror after Gospatric took refuge at the court of Malcolm III of Scotland.  The current fortifications date from the 13th century and were in use until the late 16th century with a long and bloody history that helped shape Scotland.   The harbour is still in use by fishing boats and pleasure yachts and cruisers and is also a focal point for the town with events taking place throughout the year.  Check out the Dunbar Harbour Trust website HERE CLICK HERE for more information on Dunbar Castle and Harbour on th...

In June, as a user of a wonderful Fujifilm Finepix X100 Black Limited Edition, I was given access to a X100S for a long term back-to-back test.  I did an initial report ( CLICK HERE ) on my findings on the improvements the 'S' offered and whether they were worth spending the extra £250+ over the standard X100, which is still available as the old stock is run out by retailers.  A month on and I thought I would report back on whether I had changed any of my initial impressions. Fujifilm Finepix X100S Fujifilm Finepix X100 Black Limited Edition In a word the answer is 'no'.  Don't get me wrong, the X100S is a wonderful camera and the extra 4mp on the sensor, the quicker start up and auto focus is well worth having but I still find myself reaching for my X100 when I go out and not the 'S'.  Why is this?  Well there are two reasons.   The first is the RAW files on the 'S' can't be opened by Photoshop Elements 11 but they can with Lightroom...

Another day and another beach in East Lothian!  We are so lucky with the choice of pristine sandy beaches within a few miles of our new home in Dunbar.  Seacliff is on the road to North Berwick and is accessed via a private road. There is a £2 charge for the car park but the beach at the end of the road is worth paying the fee.   A broad sandy beach with rocky outcrops at each end.  Bass Rock is just off the beach, which is home to thousands of seabirds.  At the eastern end of the beach is a large stone cross.  This marks the start of the Firth of Forth and the end of the North Sea.  Any ships that are to the west of this marker are official in the Firth and there are fees to be paid. There is a small harbour at the western end of the beach known as The Cregan and further round the headland Tantallon Castle stands guard over the next bay (More on The Cregan and Tantallon Castle in another blog). Seacliff is probably the best beach we h...

At the eastern end of Princes Street in Edinburgh and just off Leith Walk is the Old Calton Cemetery.  The cemetery opened in 1718 for the burial of tradesmen and merchants and was extended in 1767.  However in 1818 it was divided by the building of Waterloo Place and the larger part, which is the place I visited, includes a number of memorials to leading members of Edinburgh society. The obelisk by Thomas Hamilton remembers the political martyrs of 1793, who were 'transported' for sedition. The classical monument to philosopher David Hume (1711-76), seen in the top left of the images above, was built in 1777 by Robert Adam (1728-92). Other residents include painter David Allan (1744-96), Robert Burn (1752 - 1815), who had built the Nelson Monument on Calton Hill, publisher Archibald Constable (1774 - 1827) and sculptor Sir John Steell (1804-91). CLICK HERE for more information on the Old Calton Cemetery Image taken on Fujifilm Finepix X100S and ...

While in Edinburgh last Friday I spent a little time visiting the Old Calton Cemetery where several notable people from Edinburgh are buried (more on this in tomorrow's blog).  Walking up the steps from Leith Walk, my attention was immediately drawn to a statue of Abraham Lincoln.  On investigation this statue was mounted on top of a monument to the Scottish American soldiers who fought in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The Scottish–American Soldiers Monument depicts a standing figure of Abraham Lincoln, with a freed slave giving thanks at his feet. A bronze shield bears the old US flag, and is wreathed in thistles to the left, and cotton to the right. Two regimental flags lie furled, the battle being over. The black man holds a book, indicating that he is not only free, he is also now educated. This was the first statue to an American President in any country outwith the USA. It is the only statue of Lincoln in Scotland, and the only monument to the ...

To the east of Dunbar is a little harbour near the village of Skateraw and Torness Point. Looking west along the coast the Barns Ness lighthouse is visible in the distance.  Skateraw Harbour was one of a number of outlets for the districts rich limestone workings. It was built between 1799 and 1825 by two local farmers, Brodie of Thorntonloch and Lee of Skateraw, to ship limestone to ironworks in Devon and then return with coal. Prior to this it had been noted on maps that there was an anchorage in the area 'for barks in summer time.' The harbour went out of use between 1853 and 1892 - it was probably overrun by the sea. CLICK HERE for more on Skateraw Harbour and lime kiln Image taken on Fujifilm Finepix X100 and Fujinon 23mm f2 lens ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY CLICKING THE GOOGLE ADVERTS It doesn't cost you anything to click on an advert but...

This was the scene this evening taken from the hill above Dunbar Harbour and Dunbar Castle.  The image was taken on a Fuji X100 and is actually three images stitched together in Photoshop Elements 11 to produce a panoramic image. Image taken on Fujifilm Finepix X100 and Fujinon 23mm f2 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY CLICKING THE GOOGLE ADVERTS It doesn't cost you anything to click on an advert but we get a small fee for every click thru from Google and this helps support this blog - thank you for helping ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ALL IMAGES ARE THE PROPERTY OF MACLEAN PHOTOGRAPHIC AND CANNOT BE USED FOR ANY PURPOSE WITHOUT PRIOR PERMISSION If you like what you see on this blog please visit our  Facebook  page and click 'like'