Firemonkeyphoto

Just take the wide #20
neil posted in Travel on April 27th, 2008

This year I knew where the Beltane busk would be, so I was ready. Basically a bunch of Beltane performers do a free form show lasting several hours by the galleries at the bottom of the mound. This means drumming dance and fire for the public to raise awareness of Beltane and make a little money for the society. Spectators included bemused Japanese tourists and a stag party in drag. Last year I was caught by suprise and only had my 12-24mm lens. This time I took wide and long zooms plus flash and ST-E2. The latter being a little box that impresses me less and less the more I find out about it. It OK in a pinch but its not a good creative tool. Where are manual flash power settings and rear curtain synch?
As always it was a fun shoot, you can see bits of it 14:00-> sometime after 16:00 on the O2 memory project, a giant baked beans tin full of cameras that take minute by minute pictures making a 360 degree panorama.

Good climber / Bad climber #20
neil posted in Travel on April 26th, 2008

Spent this evening mainly sliding off rocks in the Wolfcrag near Bridge of Allan. Lots of mud on landings and wet rocks meant slippy slippy. The photos are of a low dyno from OK handholds and really slippy foot holds to the top of the climb. Fraser made it everytime, I could touch but could’nt grip, George the same. Bottom picture by Fraser.

Bogen/Manfrotto superclamp0
neil posted in Neil, phototech on April 25th, 2008

I have had a Bogen/Manfrotto superclamp for over a year now. It is worshipped by hundreds, maybe thousands as the best thing since wireless off camera flash triggering and TTL metering. I got it as it appeared on David Hobby’s initial “good strobist kit list” along with a whole bunch of other stuff I’ve been frantically waving at family, friends, clients & random passers-by since. It LOOKS fantastically useful. It grips really tight, it accepts umbrella mounts, flashes, magic-arms and all sorts of spangly things. Its like that random oddly shaped bit of your Swiss-Army-knife that looks like it does something complex and difficult really really well. Trouble is, I have’nt found out what yet.

Its not like I have’nt tried. I’ve tried to use it to attach things to a van, my bike, shelves and other things. I’ve dragged its lumpy ass around in my backpack for months as routine, but I still have’nt found out what it does.

It looks so well built and purposeful that I do believe one day I will. That day will be awesome. It will probably involve diving waterworld style from a helicopter on a bungee cord that is held onto a skid by aformentioned clamp to save the day and deal with all the bad-dudes in one fell swoop. Until then? It holds my pocketwizard bag onto my shelf, increasing shelf space by about 5%. Currently though its clamped to the rear seats of a friends van, its not doing anything, its just easier to carry that way.

Dinner0
neil posted in Travel on April 23rd, 2008

in a restaurant in Tooting, ordered by my good friend Rama. The bemused waiter standing behind. If you want stories, this is the man to talk to.

Good Climber / Bad Climber0
neil posted in Travel on April 19th, 2008

Images from a wee trip to Skye here.

George and Kathryn’s wedding0
neil posted in Photos, Travel, Kirsty, George and Kathryn's wedding on April 14th, 2008

I was best man for a good friend’s wedding last weekend. This is possibly the closest to being a bodygaurd I’ll get the chance to be in my life. It was kinda fun although I did’nt get sunglasses and an earbug and led no dramatic escapes through kitchens. I had my trusty sidearm, 1D with a 24mm prime for general snapping and the results can be seen here.