Photo of the Week 2022-08-29

 

It's over two months since returning from Scotland and I still have images to publish ! But I am getting close to exhausting the inventory of yet to be processed, yet to be released captures from the time in 'Alba'.

 

I've never been one to "dump" a large number of images on social media at one time, likely never more than 10, but I'd have to check back to be certain. More often than not, it's no more than a handful and often only one select image, particularly when I'm not showcasing a collection of images from travel or some other photocentric outing.

While working through my set of captures from Glasgow and the time at the Necropolis, I came across one in particular that I very much like. It was from the infrared converted EOS M and converted to B&W in NIK SilverEfex with my favourite high-contrast preset, it just jumped at me. So impressed, I called to the 'missus' and said, "This is a winner, this is an instant favourite, this will be a photo of the week for sure !" Now, it may be a winner to me, one of my favourites, but your mileage may vary ... let me know what you think.

' eternal rest '

Upon seeing this file processed in B&W, I was reminding of something theatrical, something animated, something from a graphic novel or animated video. I still haven't put my finger on just what that is but I have a feeling it was a scene from an animated video. Perhaps a cemetery scene from an animated Batman movie ... where the seated figure, a villain, rises and walks into the night ...  Oh my imagination ;-)

The colour version from another camera and lens combo is interesting in it's own right, just not so much as the IR B&W in my opinion.

  

 

Note: These images are of the grave and memorial to Charles Tennant, Chemist and Industrialist. Hi 'is' one of the more notable residents of the necropolis and namesake of Charles Tennant & Company still in the chemical business today. One does have to wonder at the inspiration behind some of these more unusual memorial sculptures ...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DJE

 

Photo of the Week 2022-08-22

' Cathedral from Church Lane Bridge '

Scotland Day 11 - We decided to visit Glasgow Cathedral on a day where the weather forecast was favourable before rejoining our tour group the following day.

 

The weather was warm, very warm in fact, and sunny. Great weather for Scotland and maybe a little too good. The trees and flowers decided contribute to a pollen storm and fire up my allergies to get my eyes watering and nose running. Between blows and wipes, I managed to grab some shots in and around the cathedral and adjacent necropolis.

 

We arrived here just before the cathedral was closing for the lunch hour so we decided to explore the exterior and walk over to the necropolis. This image was made on our way back after I had explored various vantage points looking back at the cathedral from the east side of Wishart St. I was looking for something unique, using a foreground element to enhance the composition. I found several location and I liked this one very much.

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2022-08-15

Three days after arriving in Inverness, we'd wrestled with what to do and where to go (where could we go) after contracting COVID sometime since our trip began ... and Glasgow won the lottery :-/

 

Relocating to a major urban centre and our planned departure city seemed the best choice and after enjoying the ScotRail system we were in Glasgow. Following the protocols in place we masked when required, social distanced and did our best to continue seeing the sights and experiencing Scotland on our own.

' reflection of an armadillo '

We had chosen a conventional hotel, with a relatively large room for the time we may have needed to be 'holed up' for any required isolation, and the Glasgow Marriott near the Clyde River was the winner. This put us close to the Scottish Event Campus (SEC) and some interesting architecture.

On Day 8 in Scotland, we were feeling well and local protocols allowed us to get outside for some fresh air so we plotted a walk down to and along the Clyde River to the area of the Clyde Arc, the SEC Armadillo, the OVO Hydro and Finnieston Crane, all interesting landmarks.

For the image above, I chose a tight composition of the Armadillo concert venue reflecting in the glass facade of the adjacent Crowne Plaza Hotel.

DJE

 

 

Photo of the Week 2022-08-08

 

In Scotland, on the way to Inverness, we stopped at the Culloden Battle Field Visitor Centre and explored.  Every time I visit the site of a battle, any battle, I am struck by the sense of loss. No matter what the side, what the cause, what the era, the human life lost through conflict, combat and conquest lingers in such places ...

' Mixed Clans '

 

It was no different at Culloden and the heavy skies moving in as we arrived added to the mood. Under threat of rain,we had to hurry out to the areas of the site where memorial cairns and grave markers dotted the landscape, and then the skies opened up. We did make it back to cover but considerably more damp that we would have preferred.

Not long afterwards, in true Sottish fashion, it cleared rapidly, blue and white dominating the sky and the sun shone bright overhead.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

DJE

Photo of the Week 2022-08-01

 

On our 5th day in Scotland, we departed Edinburgh for Dundee. Before crossing the Firth of Forth, our tour stopped at the Forth Bridges Viewpoint and during an all too brief opportunity, I hurried about attempting to do the sights justice ...

 

' The First over the Forth '

I was very pleased to be successful in capturing 6 handheld frames that would merge into the above panorama of The Forth Bridge (sometimes referred to as "The Forth Rail Bridge" to distinguish it from "The Forth Road Bridge").

' Fourth Road Bridge against the Queensferry Crossing '

I quickly worked to find a decent composition that would include elements of both road bridges.

 

' Inchgarvie under the bridge '

 

My research tells me this is Inchgarvie or Inch Garvie, a small, uninhabited island in the Firth of Forth. On the rocks around the island sit four caissons that make up foundations of the Forth Rail Bridge.

 

' Forth Road Bridge '

The Forth Road Bridge reopened in February 2018, after being closed for repair and refurbishment. It is now designated as a dedicated Public Transport Corridor, with access to motor vehicles other than buses and taxis restricted.

' Queensferry Crossing & Forth Road Bridge '

After successfully merging several images into a panorama of the rail bridge, I decided to crop this single frame to similar effect for this pair.

' Holy Cables Batman ! '

Elements of the newer Queensferry Crossing intersect with those of the Forth Road Bridge.

' Approaching the Forth '

This frame captured one of the local commuter trains on the south approach to the Forth Bridge main spans.
 

After feeling very rushed and uncertain of what I was able to capture in a short amount of time, I ended up being quite happy with the results once I could work in Lightroom and Photoshop to stitch and process the individual frames. The lead panoramic image of The Forth Bridge is my particular favourite and somewhat of a surprise, a welcome one, given the few minutes I had to get situated and grab all of the shots. The Forth Bridge had the longest cantilever bridge span in the world until the Quebec Bridge was completed in 1919 - I see a trip to photograph the Quebec Bridge in my future :-)

 

Soon to follow on my flickr, Facebook and Instagram feeds are a couple of vintage images of The Forth Bridge ... stay tuned.

DJE