The Golden Toe

Had a great time at the ceilidh last night, a bit of jigging, some spicy veggie haggis and home by 11.30 as we had to be up at 6, John is off on a sailing trip again.

I had a brilliant morning in Edinburgh. Linked up with fellow blipper and semi-professional photographer Rich Dyson
for some one-to-one tuition. After a coffee and a quick run over the theory, we went 'shootabout' down the Royal mile, over the North Bridge (past my old office from 1975-8, The Scotsman newspaper offices, now a hotel) and up to Calton Hill for a panoramic view of the city.

The photo is of the statue of John Hume, which is outside the Sherriff's Court. People going in rub its big toe for luck! I focussed on the top of the big toe to blur the rest of the image a bit. I managed to cut off a bit of his other foot - too many things to think about!!!

I wanted to learn more about aperture and manual modes, and once I got to grips with the principles (again!) I spent most of the time with the camera on manual, the first time I have actually taken any photos in full manual mode.

Rich is a patient teacher, and didn't bat an eye when he had to lend me some of his precious cleaning cloths when my tripod fell over and the camera hit the mud! Luckily I had a filter on so the lens wasn't affected.

Some things I learned:

You can still use autofocus on manual mode
It's all about light and lighting
It's not just about the gear
It is difficult to get everything right at the same time. Aperture, ISO, shutter speed, composition. I think it will take a lot of practice
You need to dress properly for being outdoors in the wind for a couple of hours
A pair of fishing gloves is useful, the fingers fold back
And disposable hand warmers are a big help
Landscape photography takes patience
My tripod is rubbish!

I have put a few more of today's photos on flickr, here

Thanks Rich, as Arnie once said 'I'll be back!'

I have a lot of blip catching up to do, but all evening to do it in. Have a great Sunday everyone, and give a big shout for Andy in the morning. BBC2 at 8.15am!