I visited Prague last year and had a great time with my wife shooting the Charles bridge and Astronomical clock. This time I had a chance to dig a little deeper, and go see some stuff off the beaten track. I’d done a little research and knew I wanted to see the Cubist museum at the House of the Black Madonna. Unfortunately, the Cubist Museum has moved to the National museum, so I didn’t get to experience it. Not a problem though as the highlight and intent of the visit was to see the spiral staircase. it’s a strange shape and...
read moreIt’s always tough going back to the familiar. I’ve lived in London before and been there many times over the years, but because it’s so familiar I’ve never gotten around to shooting it in detail. I did have a crack at it last year, freezing on a bridge over the Thames, but didn’t get what I was looking for. I did have another crack at it this summer, and I’m much happier with the results. I really like the shot above, but I got this one as well! I was lucky with the moon over the palace and I love the...
read moreIt’s often difficult when on a whirlwind tour, to find somewhere to shoot something of a city. I’ve just completed a visit to Argentina, going from a weekend in Buenos Aries to overnight stops in the towns of Neuquen and Conodoro Rivadavia in Patagonia. With small towns like these, it’s difficult to scout remotely. I usually use flickr and google maps to scout places and locations, but with places like these, there just isn’t much out there. So it’s down to luck and the kindness of my hosts. I was fortunate to...
read moreI’m pleased to become part of the 500px community. You can find my work here on 500px. This give you the ability to download a digital image for personal use, or buy picture printed on canvas for framing and hanging. Go and see what I’ve got posted there, like it and vote for it if it pleases you. More to...
read moreI was in London recently and going to a meeting. I had to take the tube and was standing on the platform in the tube station daydreaming when I suddenly realized what I was looking at. The combination of lights, rails, old brickwork and tile work. The people minding there own business, being whisked away to pursue their lives. I had my Fuji X10 with me, and just had time to snap this: It’s a bit noisy, but given it’s inherent technical flaws, I still really like the image. It’s a captured, unique moment in a timeless place....
read moreAt the beginning of this year I visitied Abu Dhabi with my Fuji x10. I got a second crack at the city recently, but this time with my main camera. I was staying downtown and had time to find a new vantage point. This time I went to Capital Gardens, a small park surrounded by the city. This park is well know for it’s ornate entrance, but I was after a shot to add to my cities project. More to...
read moreBasrah, Iraq. Not quite what I expected. I stayed at one of the better hotels in the city, surrounded by security forces. An Iraqi collegue offered to take me out and show me some of the sights, of course I jumped at it. We didn’t need to go far, just across the road to the banks of the Shatt al Arab, the famous waterway that downstream of Basrah seperates Irq from Iran. The hotel is the ex Sheraton, now the Basrah International Hotel. It has a tall concrete wall seperating the grounds from the banks of the river. The graffitti is...
read moreAs part of a tour I was engaged on, I visited, albeit briefly, Erbil in North Iraq (or Kurdistan). I was only there for one night, arriving late and leaving early, so not much opportunity to explore. There is the Hewler Citidel that I could see from the balcony of my hotel, tantalisingly beyond me capacity to reach on this visit. This is a pano shot from the balcony of the Divan Hotel. Stitched in CS5. It’s not my best, but I just didn’t have the opportunity to really get to the heart of this city. Getting into and out of North...
read moreAlthough I have a small selection of camera bags, I face a new challenge. I’m going to be doing a lecture tour and traveling to a lot of countries in a short time. I need to take my laptop with me, plus the usual photo equipment so I can grab whatever opportunity I can to shoot. I usually try to get a sunset shot of the city I’m visiting, so I always have a tripod. My base kit is the D700, 80-200mm, 24-70mm and 14-24mm, plus some filters. I always carry my iPad, and often a paperback for when the stews won’t let me use the...
read moreTaking the Orient Express, the legendary train journey from Paris to Istanbul, you would end the journey at the İstanbul Sirkeci station. The station was opened in 1890 and has the Orient Express resturant as part of the station. It’s a little faded, a bit worn and jaded, but has a charm that remembers the glory of the Orient Express. It’s a far cry from a modern expresso emporium like Starbucks, but for a station cafe, I think it holds it’s own. The pace is a little more relaxed, although the waterfall in the hall is a...
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