Highlands in the Lowlands- Royal Highland Show

A couple of weeks ago- my friend Daz and I trundled off to the Royal Highland Show at Ingleston, the largest agricultural show in the country, a four day festival of all things farmy. We were indeed 'Dazzled' by just how much there is to see, and by the end of the day I was sorely wishing I had bought a two day ticket. Next year I shall do precisely this, and spend one day shooting and one day socialising! I did not have anywhere near enough time to begin to cover all the animals and stalls on offer. Still, we tried our best to explore the rows and rows of animals, eating our way round the show. There were literally THOUSANDS of animals there, and lots of different events throughout the day. 

I simply love Clydesdale horses, their sheer strength and size is not something you would associate with one of the most gentle of horse breeds. When I was younger there was a visiting centre in Fife called Cambo, with a cafe and playbarn. My mother also ran the tourist centre there for a while.  There were rabbits, pigs, goats, geese and of course, Clydesdales, and the children were encouraged to get up close to the animals to experience the country.

I took this image in colour, but I think that black and white betters the emotional charge of the shot.

I have been chatting to a friend of mine who is a photographer across the pond, and she is looking to maybe do some equestrian shoots- I spent a lot of the day milling around the horsey section of the show and thoroughly enjoyed it. I am in the process of organising a shoot at a prize stable yard very soon, so we may end up doing the same thing a thousand miles from each other! There are horses in just about every second field near my new cottage, so I'll be able to get plenty of practice in this week.

I thought this a sweet image of mother and daughter competitors. It's not that clear as I was very far away, but this type of documentary image is the type I enjoy best.

This little piggy definitely went to market.....

 There was quite simply, a wonderful selection of eggs and birds on show... I saw the largest and smallest chickens I had ever seen in my life. One was nearly as big as a swan, and one was like a hedgehog! Take a look at the chicken on the bottom left of this picture- one of the larger chickens that could probably see off a turkey.

Daz's mum loves to knit, and she is very good at it too. She made us some tremendous flourescent ski hats for our last trip to France, out of wool with reflectors in it so we glowed in the dark! We found the most delightful stall selling alpaca wool as soft as silk- and met the lovely proprietor Sue. Daz picked out a couple of yarns and a pattern for his lovely Mum- you can too! Highly recommended. http://www.alpacaloft.co.uk/
 

 little owls

 Well, I suppose that's enough 'yarning' on from me for now. TTFN

She Sells Sea Shells on the Sea Shore

KINGHORN HARBOUR

 I absolutely love the sea, it is my most very favouritist thing in the whole wide world. I love the smell of the air, the saltiness of the water, the rough texture your hands are left with after touching anything from the beach. To this day I find it incredibly hard to not take off my shoes when on a beach, to feel the beautiful fine grains of sand escape between my toes.  I grew up in a small fishing town called Cellardyke in the East Neuk of Fife, in Scotland, part of a collection of unique old fishing communities that all share an inherent beauty, a beauty that has been etched into the stone over hundreds of years which could never be replicated. Many of my childhood homes were but a stone's throw from the beach, quite literally. Some of them were even on the beach! There are some truly spectacular properties to be had along the Fife coastline, and I don't think the view across the water to Edinburgh and East Lothian can be bettered.

A couple of weeks ago I moved from the city centre of Edinburgh to a new house in west Fife, and we have also acquired a dog, so now was the perfect time to explore the beaches closest to our new home. First up was the beach at Kinghorn Harbour, small but perfect. The harbour is constructed of huge slabs of rock like all the harbours in Fife, and was full of small traditional fishing vessels, which used to be powered by oars but are mostly now powered by outboard. These little boats fish close to the coast for lobsters and langoustines, which the locals in the East Neuk refer to as prawns, in handmade baskets we call 'creels' (more commonly known as lobster pots).

I would be very tempted to take this wee boat- though I'm not sure how long it has been for sale judging by the weather beaten sign! A dream of mine is to retire to the coast somewhere and have a few creels of my own one day, so I'll be 'swimming' in lobsters for the rest of my days. 

Mostly Macro

The weather the other day was terrible- so I thought I would set myself a task to find some subjects within the house that may prove interesting to photograph. I also got a new Macro attachment for my lenses through the mail... I went for a really good glass version as attachments are not as brilliant as dedicated macro lenses, nor as easy to use, but the results are pleasing none the less.

Luckily, my new dog, a gorgeous 6 month old cocker spaniel who had been kenneled his whole life, had decided that I didn't really need the beginning of the book I had been reading. He's right, the introduction is boring anyway. Here it is after Merlin introduced himself to it's pages! I have taken a series of the bits of book to print and display next to each other.

A Very Kelly Wedding

Last week we had the pleasure of being guests at Jim and Michelle Kelly's wedding near Bathgate. The ceremony was led by a mad reverend, who had the guests in fits of giggles before the bride had even arrived. I think he would do very well indeed as a stand up at the Fringe this Summer. The day itself was a little wet, but that did nothing to 'dampen' (ahem) the spirit of the day. Michelle was a gorgeous bride, and the couple were very graceful hosts. This was the first wedding I had been to with my camera, and wedding photography is certainly not easy as it may seem. There are all sorts of concerns, mainly to do with the fact you can only possibly be in one place at any given time! I can definitely see the advantage of taking an aesthetically eyed chum along as an extra set of eyes.

Throughout the day I took over 600 photographs, and that was in between eating, singing and dancing! I shudder to think how many I would have taken if I was actually the professional, with no socialising to get in the way- easily thousands. Just imagining the weeks of editing is a daunting thought, it's a good job I enjoy my own company.... 

A Small Sample of Simplicity

Dearest readers, my sincerest apologies for not updating for a few weeks. Life has been incredibly busy with the last 10 weeks including major surgery, selling our home, our house purchase almost falling through, another trip to hospital, a 4 week stint in a caravan, 6 weeks with no internet, moving house (finally) and a new dog to name but a few things! Quite the busy time indeed. Our new home is a little cottage in the Fife countryside surrounded by farms. There are cattle and horses everywhere, and our our new farmer neighbours  have been wonderfully helpful and welcoming. Already we have experienced more sense of community in the two weeks we have spent here than the 7 years we spent in our beloved basement flat in central Edinburgh. It is incredibly peaceful, ideal for personal reflection and relaxation, a much better place for me to recuperate. The pace of life is slower, though not quite as slow as the south of Spain I might add, and I don't see myself ever moving back to the city. 

These pictures are selected from a series I was commissioned to shoot for the walls of a wine bar in Edinburgh. The brief was for black and white shots of Edinburgh. As always, I tried to approach my subjects from a slightly different angle, hopeful to have produced images with a little pizzazz, and a little less yawn. Hopefully the many visitors and tourists this particular bar in the Old Town receives will want to take a print or two of mine home with them as souvenirs!

 You may be marveling at how straight the park keepers of Princes St Gardens keep the benches. Well they don't! Lining up the benches you see in this particular shot took yours truly no less than 30 minutes of VERY hard work lugging and hauling these heavier-than-they-look bottom perches. At the other end of the benches you can see another photographer if you look closely. Upon passing by he noted his gratitude as he had been thinking of doing exactly the same thing! Pity he didn't think to help and start from his end though....

Bruce Munro's Field of Light

Bank of Scotland, St Andrews Sq. Branch

I have finally taken the plunge and said goodbye to my job and to hospitality! Last week I dove into the sea of self-employment and self-sufficiency, so I can spend a lot more time focusing on my photography. I am in the process of selling my flat in order to make a move to the country, where I am looking forward to the peace and quiet! Instead of sirens and shouting there will be birdsong and buzzing bees, encouraging a much calmer atmosphere in order to focus better on my work. I promised some night time shots, and here they are. This series of photographs was taken at a very special outdoor installation titled 'Field of Light' at St. Andrews Square, Edinburgh, by the artist Bruce Munro.

Silhouette of man stopping to ponder and watch the lights

A truly special way to light any space, the colours of the fiber optic stems change every now and again, flowing around the whole square in pockets. After a dull and boring winter, this was just the thing to lift some weight from people and encourage them to lose themselves to this beautiful flowing piece. The stems sway softly in the wind making it truly a living piece. 

I took my time experimenting with this shoot, and am rather proud of some of the visual effects I was able to achieve whilst playing with the exposure times and my new tripod. Every photographer needs a tripod! Without it my images would not have been anywhere near as clear. 

I am looking forward to what the springtime will bring with all the new life bursting through the ground and  animals emerging from their hibernation with sleepy eyes and bushy tails.

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