CAPTURE NEW HORIZONS

While walking on the Isle of Lewis it is hard to ignore the rocks that line the shores of the beaches around the island.  The layers of colours are amazing and they are some of the oldest rock formations in the world, some are over 3 billion years old, and are known as Lewisian Gneiss. The rocks are beautifully marbled with layers of browns, greys, purples and pinks.  The patterns and colours were hard to ignore as we walked along the sand and the sizes varied from chips to boulders to whole cliff faces, it was an amazing sight.  The Lewisian Gneiss page on the Virtual Hebrides website gives a more detailed background: Lewisian Gneiss is metamorphic, in that volcanic heat and pressure has altered its structure somewhat, originally the rocks were like granite which changed as the Earth's crust became molten and they solidified, which is the reason you can see great variations in the way the layers are displayed, ranging from the white, to pale grey and even ...

As well as the dramatic scenery, the Outer Hebrides is renowned for its abundance of wildflowers and grasses, including many types of wild orchids that are only found on the islands. While I was taking images of the sunset at Tiumpan Head Lighthouse, I noticed the peaty ground was covered with beautiful orchids, which I have since found out are Heath Spotted Orchid, which has the Latin name Dactylorhiza maculata subsp ericetorum and is also known as Mogairlean Mòintich in the local Gaelic language of the islanders. With the X-T1 set up on the tripod taking long exposure shots of the sunset and the lighthouse, I used the X-Pro1 and the Fujinon XF60mm f2.4R macro to get some close up images of these beautiful flowers. For more information on the wildflowers of the Western Isles CLICK HERE   Images taken on a Fujifilm X-Pro1 + Fujinon XF60mm f2.4R macro ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------...

Yesterday the weather in East Lothian was very tropical for Scotland, with 24 degrees and bright sunshine, however just off the North Sea coastline the sea fog continued to linger.  By the afternoon most of the fog had cleared but some of it still lingered, producing some beautiful effects as the sun started to set. I headed down to the beach below Winterfield Golf Course to capture the sunset and the effects of the fog around the base of Bass Rock out in the Firth of Forth.  A passing container ship could also be seen passing on its way out into the North Sea, looking like a ghost ship in the mist. The sun continued to set, producing some magnificent orange and red reflections before turning to purples and blues as the sun sank below the horizon.   Images taken on the Fujifilm X-T1 and Fujinon XF55-200mm f3.5/f4.8R OIS with a Lee 0.9 ND Soft grad and for some of the images a Lee 10x ND 'Big Stopper' -----------------------------------------...

On the hill above the Red Bull Ring is a little hamlet where the hotel we stayed in is located and from up there the view across the valley is stunning.  The local church, St Stefan's, was a short walk from the hotel and I decided to get up to catch the sunrise from the flower meadow that surrounded the church and the houses. I set off up the track up to the church and started off by getting some close up shots in the pre dawn light.   I then headed up into the meadow above the church, which was a mass of long grass and wild flowers. The church was topped by a bronze dome that, as the sun came up, caught the light and with the mountains at the far side of the valley providing the perfect backdrop I set about catching the first light of the day.   For more information on St Stefan's Church visit the website HERE (in German) Images taken on a Fujifilm X-T1 and either a Fujinon 10-24mm f4, Fujinon 35mm f1.4 and Fujinon 55-200mm f3.5/f4...

One of the few problems I have with the Fujifilm X-Series cameras is the fact that it is difficult to take pictures using the brilliant fast prime lenses at the maximum aperture in bright sunshine.  There are two reasons for this; one - the fastest shutter speed is 1/4000s and the lowest ISO setting to record RAW files is 200. Using the 'Sunny 16' rules where in bright sunshine the shutter speed equals the ISO setting with the aperture at f16.  The lowest iso setting on the Fuji is 200, so the shutter speed in bright sunlight would be 1/200s at f16. So to use f1.4 on the 35mm Fujinon, a shutter speed of 1/32000 is needed, which isn't feasible.   So to get round this problem I bought a 52mm Hoya PRO ND filter, a three stop neutral density filter, which fits the Fujinon 35mm f1.4 and 18mm f2. With the Pro ND filter fitted the 1/32000 @ f1.4  becomes 1/4000 @ f1.4 or 1/2000 @ f2, which is achievable on the X-Pro1 and X-T1. During the auto...

The Red Bull Ring nestled in the Austrian Styrian Alps must be one of the most picturesque circuits in the world.  With the recent return of Formula One the facilities at the track have been upgraded and we are here this weekend with the European Le Mans Series. The hills and farmland are still close to the track and with the summer weather providing a beautiful sunset and sunrise that was captured at the top of the hill at the back of the circuit.  Hopefully we'll have more time this evening to explore the surround area in this part of Austria Images taken on a Fujifilm X-T1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVERTISERS ON THIS PAGE By clicking on the adverts you are helping support this blog - thank you. ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ...

Scotland boasts some of the best beaches in the world and the images are sometimes mistaken for more tropical locations in the Caribbean or Indian Ocean.   The white sandy beaches and bright blue seas have been attracting visitors to Scotland for generations and while these two pictures from the Isle of Harris in the Outer Hebrides, I have posted similar images from Mull and Iona in the past.   Even the beaches on the east coast of Scotland, from the Moray Firth, down to Fife and nearer to our home in East Lothian, are the envy of the world for the pristine sand and clear blue seas.  I never get tired of photographing them. The images on this page were both taken on the Fujifilm X-T1.  The top image on the Fujinon XF10-24mm f4R OIS and the lower image on the Fujinon XF55-200mm f3.5/4.8R OIS. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- PLEASE SUPPORT THIS BLOG BY VISITING THE ADVE...