CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

Walking down to Belhaven Bay this evening in some glorious winter sunshine (see it doesn't always rain in Scotland) to grab some test shots for my blog on the first three months with the Fuji X-Pro1 we spotted this kayak surfer paddling out from Biel Water to catch the waves as the sun set across East Lothian. The images were taken on the Fuji XP1 and 60mm f2.4 lens and then cropped slightly in PSE11. Kayak Surfing in East Lothian Paddling out to catch another wave for the ride back to the beach Timing it right to catch the wave Big waves in Belhaven Bay this evening You can make out the conoeist in the surf as the sun set on Belhaven Bay -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 - t...

In Glen Etive there is a dead tree overhanging the River Etive, which at this point is a series of beautiful waterfalls (see image posted on Tuesday HERE ).  The tree is a draw for many photographers as it frames the mountain and the river as it flows south into Loch Etive and then the ocean beyond. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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'

At the bottom of the long, winding road through Glen Etive is Loch Etive, a long body of water that opens out onto the sea at Connel Bridge by the Falls of Lorn and into Ardmucknish Bay.  In the late 19th Century Victorian tourist used to take a boat up Loch Etive to a landing platform at the estate at the head of the loch.  When I was last here in 2004 the remains of the old pier were still visible but on this trip the pier had been rebuilt to allow the foresters to load timber onto the boats to be taken down stream. We set up near the head of Loch Etive and took these images looking south down the loch. Nikon D800 - Nikon 17-35mm f2.8 - 0.6s @ f22 - ISO50 The following image was taken using the X-Pro1 and the Nikon 80-200 f2.8 and was attached to the camera using a Fotodiox Nikon to Fuji adapter.  I still impressed with the results from this combination and for £17 the Fotodiox adapter has to be my 'star buy' of 2013. Fujifilm X-Pro1 - Nikon 80-200mm f2...

One of the things I see a lot of photographers do when presented with a beautiful landscape is to grab the camera and take a picture standing up.  The camera will be either pressed to the photographers face or, more normally these days, with the camera / phone held out in front at arms length.  There is nothing wrong with this way of viewing the world, it's how we see it (ie normally between 5 and 6 feet above the ground), but a different point of view can change a picture dramatically. Rannoch Moor - Nikon D800 - Nikon 17-35mm f2.8 (@17mm) - 2s @ f11 - ISO100 The picture above was taken on Rannoch Moor. The Nikon D800 was attached to the tripod and placed into the water so the camera was almost level with the rocks.  The camera's live view screen was used to compose the shot and the shutter released using a remote cable. A word of warning. Make sure you had something tied to the tripod or camera and to your wrist when putting your gear n...

As a landscape photographer I love being out and about all year round but winter in the Highlands is quite special.  With a dusting of snow the mountain peaks look completely different than they do in the summer and the challenge is to capture this bleak landscape without losing the atmosphere. The following images were taken on Rannoch Moor and in Glen Coe. Images taken on a Nikon D800 or Fujifilm X-Pro1 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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 PRIO...

Another mono image from Sunday's trip out into the Highlands.  This is a four shot panoramic taken on the Fuji X-Pro1 and 14mm f2.8 lens.  The images were stitched together in PSE11 and then converted to mono using Silver Efex Pro2. Here is the original image in colour to compare - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 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'

At the start of this year I said I was going to produce more mono images in 2014.  While out and about in Glen Etive yesterday I spotted this scene that was just perfect for a long exposure mono image.  Using the Lee Big Stopper 10x ND filter on the Nikon D800 and 17-35mm lens I slowed the exposure down to 55 seconds to produce plenty of movement in the waterfall and in the clouds. Glen Etive is accessed by a single track road at the eastern end of the more familiar Glen Coe.  Glen Etive is not as busy as Glen Coe because the tourists tend to stay in the more famous part of the area and this leaves this beautiful glen for the people who know about it.   The road leads down to Loch Etive, which is a sea loch surrounded by tall mountains (more on that later this week). For more information on Glen Etive CLICK HERE -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THI...