And now for something completely different, as Monty Python used to say. Some images you haven’t seen. These were captured on my last trip back home to the UK The show the river Wye in Gilfach Nature Reserve at Pont Marteg, two were captured in Kenilworth, where my parents now live. The seaside promenade is in Aberystwyth Wales on a windy afternoon’s walk, great fun I had fish and chips with my brother just up near that headland on a park bench. All captured with the D3.

After photographing Alissa and Daniel’s wedding, the day after I went out to photograph a few images for myself. Here’s two, as you can see the weather was not the best, but as I’m a professional, no excuses, just deliver the goods.

There is nothing like being in the right place at the right time with the best equipment. If the landscape doesn’t move you, don’t bother photographing it because it wont move anybody else either. these three images are from Putty Beach on the NSW Central Coast of Australia.

Had another opportunity to use the big stopper again yesterday. This time up at Snapper Point in Munmorah State Recreational Park. I saw this scene as I drove down the road, it was a mere case of pull over get the gear out and find a good spot not to close to the edge, as it is a really good drop, take the readings and adjust 10 stops and shoot, even the little white boat was kind enough to stop for me until I was done. One thing about using this filter is, it tends to be on the cooler end of the scale as far as colour balance is concerned. So adjustment need to be done at the processing stage. I use Aperture 3, shoot everything in RAW so it’s not much of a problem. These day’s I hardly use photoshop as I find Aperture to be a really handy program, Photoshop comes out if there’s a stubborn image.

Two different images showing two different ecosystems. They were photographed two days apart and within a few miles of each other. One of the best reasons to live on the Coast, there’s a whole library of photographs out there where you dont need bright sunny days to create an image. You just need to get out and have a look around and, this time of  the year is one of the best. It’s not too hot, the colours of all the new plants are just beginning to put on a show and the weather is all over the place, making it challenging to come up with something other than a pretty postcard that has been photographed over and over. So put your walking boots on grab a rain coat, (just in case) and go for a walk.

Just processed this image from this afternoon. Shot on the D700 with my new piece of equipment I purchased while in the UK. Lee’ BIG STOPPER. Basically it reduces the amount of light getting onto the film by a huge 10 stop’s, since the reading on my Minolta light meter read, 125 at F16.5, to adjust I had to shoot at 8 seconds. Giving me the lovely milky white of moving water in broad daylight. It’s a little awkward to use as it does not like stray light at all.

Well I’m back to work, plenty of things to catch up on and follow through, but before I start I thought I would share a few more images from my trip to Wales and England. The  first three were all captured on the same day as my brother Glyn and me made our way though North Wales past Cader Idris to Barmouth on the coast and, Tal-y-Llyn lake. The last image is a shot of Kenilworth Castle again from a different angle, I didn’t manage to get the shot I was after as the weather was not playing ball, so it will have to be next time.

This was the view yesterday afternoon on top of the mountain before we drove down to Carno after a pint in the local. While shooting this image the farmer popped over to see what we were up to, he didn’t mind us being there so we spent a good 20 minutes talking.

What have I been up to these last few day’s? Well here’s a few shots I have managed to squeeze of on my countryside rambles with my brother Glyn. Glyn lives in a small 200 year old cottage in the beautiful green Mid Wales mountains. So I haven’t done much photography more of talking and walking. The images below are of Minllyn, Waen Oer and En-Rout to Cader Idris.

I popped up to Catherine hill Bay this morning, it was windy, cold and very grey, but I’m a Pro, so I had to shoot something. Climbing all over the rocks, but not getting too close to the edge as the swell was coming up a little to high at times, the rocks had this bright coloured lichen stuff all over the place and with the low grey cloud cover it made sense to photograph it as the colour became more saturated. It wasn’t a day for grand panoramas, but a more detailed landscape image, where, what was in the landscape is more important than what the place looked like. I will go back sometime to shoot more images as there was plenty of possibilities. Thanks Adam for telling me about this place.