Amanda & David at Loch Lomond

I wanted to add this before the new year. I photographed Amanda and David at the Lodge on the Loch yesterday afternoon. They had a small but very emotional ceremony with only their children and Davids Mother present.


It was a lovely afternoon with them and although it was freezing cold outside, we managed to get some portrait pictures down by the Loch side.

I wish you all the best for the new year.

Nick

Clyde Sunset

A little late but I hope you have had a great time over the Christmas period.

I managed to get down the coast a little yesterday just south of Largs at Portencross. The weather has been sunny and cold here for the last few days so I thought I would find a good vantage point to watch the sun go down. The sun didn't produce too much colour in the clouds as it went behind the hills on Arran, but still enough to create a nice sunset image.


The weather is set to be very cold going into the new year. I have a wedding to photograph this afternoon at Loch Lomond, I hope the bride has a something warm to wear as the top temperature today is not meant to get much above freezing. Hopefully we will be still be able to get outdoors and use the Loch for some portrait pictures, which would be great in the dieing light later in the afternoon.

Nick

Ben Lomond & Loch Lomond

I was out at Loch Lomond the weekend before last looking for some late afternoon sun picture opportunities. I was down by the water side past Luss watching the last of the sun climb the side of Ben Lomond as it went down. I got some okay pictures but nothing to write home about. So I packed up and drove back towards Duck Bay checking the colour in the sky as I was going. I found myself eventually driving rather quickly as the setting sun off to the west was creating wonderful colours in the clouds above the Loch.
I hurriedly pulled my gear from the car and ran behind the Duck Bay Hotel and set up just in time to get the last few minutes of the suns influence with the clouds. The sun had long gone from the snowy tops of the hills but the amount of reflection that the snow was creating kept the hillsides from being to dark against the orange in the clouds.



I was using a Nikon D3 with a 24-70 lens fitted with a polarising filter and ND filter to help balance the sky and water exposures. I think it's a prity cool picture and considering I thought I was leaving Loch Lomond without any keepers, I'm prity chuffed to have captured this.

Nick

International Aperture Awards - Award winner

Another award, this time for my landscape work.
The International Aperture Awards is a competition open to any photographer, and spilt into several different categories. I entered only one image into the landscape category more interested in seeing how the judging works rather than actually thinking I would win anything. Five judges give each entry a score which is averaged out to produce a final score for the photograph. I scored 77 which was high enough for a bronze award.
I have uploaded the picture below, which is of Buachaille Etive Mor. The picture was taken early in the morning and was a bit cold to say the least. I had to break the ice in the river so I could achieve the reflection in the water that I was looking for.




If you would like any further information regarding my landscape work, please get in touch.

Wedding Photojournalist Association - Award Winner

Great news, I have had 2 photographs awarded in the Wedding Photojournalist Association Q3 awards. The WPJA is an international organisation of photojournalists and wedding photographers from around the world.
The first photograph taken at Achnagairn House near Inverness was awarded 4th place in the Reception category.
The judges commented."Of all the fireworks photos submitted, this was the best one. It has an uncluttered background, the fireworks are sharp and the couple are not smack center in the photo. Very nicely done".


The second photograph taken at Oran Mor in Glasgow was awarded 11th place in the Scene Setters category.
The judges commented. "A good overview perhaps from a remote camera. I wish the waiter at the bottom left wasn’t in the frame; he distracts".


If only I had taken the time to take the waiter out of the picture maybe it would have scored higher. It is these small details that make such a big difference in this caliber of awards.
Now you may be thinking that 11th place doesn't sound that great, but trust me it is. Only the top 20 photographs are awarded in each category, which are taken from thousands of entries from all over the world, so to get a mention at all is big deal.

If you would like to view all the awarding winning photographs please click here.

Nick

1st Photograph Collection Released

Well, I finally have the new Landscape Photography website up and running. If you are not familiar with the new site please click here to have a browse.
I have also launched the 1st set of 12 photographs that I will be producing every season throughout the year that will be available to purchase through the website. The first 12 pictures were taken at Loch Lomond, Rannoch Moor and Glen Etive.
The collections are open edition prints, printed onto either Hahnemuhle 308gsm Photo Rag paper and 190gsm Premium Photo Paper, for the highest quality prints available.
I will also be introducing contemporary framing products, as a start with this style of framing we have a 24 x 20 deep set frame with a 3mm high visibility acrylic and a frosted surround that gives a true depth to your the image.
With pricing starting at only £34 and whole collections at only £240, this is affordable photographic art.
If you would like any further information regarding the collections, please contact me.

Nick

Content coming soon.

I will be getting the new blog pages for the photography websites up and running as soon as possible.

In the mean time here are a few images taken this autumn.