Projected Digital Image Competition

Last week at camera club saw the 2nd PDI league competition judging, in which i entered the maximum of 3 images. The 2 highest scoring images are taken into consideration for the league.

The 3 images were completely different. A colourful seascape, a mono scene from a civil war reenactment, and a nature shot of an Arctic Tern with a Sand Eel in it's bill. I personally thought they would score highest in that order from high to low.... However, it just goes to show that judging is very subjective and everyone's opinion is different. My Nature shot came in with 18/20 and the Colourful Seascape was awarded 17/20.

Although not a winner this time around I am very pleased with the scores.

As I have said before a camera club (or photographic society) is a great way to meet other photographers and exchange ideas as well as see what other people are photographing. Whilst social networking sites such as flickr are a great way of viewing other people's images, there is nothing like mingling in person. I personally found that joining a club has helped improve my photography no end as I am sure i have helped others to develop their craft.

To view more on our camera club competitions or find information on our club in general, see Crewe Photographic Society.

Photographers and their gadgets

Whilst you will hear some photographers saying that it is the person behind the lens that creates the picture and not the kit they use, there are some bits of equipment you cannot do without.

A good place to go to compare prices for camera gear that i refer to often is Camera Price Buster

One handy bit of kit is a neutral density filter. This helps to hold back the light so you can use a slower shutter speed. I particulary like taking photographs of seascapes and slowing down the shutter speed enough to give the water a milky effect and the sky a zoom burst effect. I have examples of these on my Coastal and landscape sections on Pepper Art

I currently use and would highly recommend the B+W 10-stop filter for seascapes and landscapes. However it gives a warming effect to your images. Lee have a version called The Big Stopper which gives a cooling effect, which I prefer. I ordered one of these at the beginning of June and it is yet to arrive! Lee have had major production issues for the last couple of years and the waiting time for orders on these filters is currently 6 months.

I borrowed a friend's earlier this year and took the following photograph with the Lee Big Stopper...

12 months plus???

I cannot believe it has been over 12 months since my last post. I didnt feel like i had much opportunity to get out with the camera last year and this just proves it! I started a new job which takes up a lot more of my time these days so photography has unfortunatley had to take a bit of a back seat. :(

The last competition of the season was very fruitful for me. I managed to win the knockout competition with the following image: -

This was taken at Llandullas beach in North Wales using a 10-stop neutral density filter, which allowed me to expose the image for a good few minutes!

Camera club season is over for us at Crewe Photographic Society and the chance to go shooting instead of the weekly club meet has arisen. I have managed to get out a bit at weekends too.

I have so far been on a couple of excursions and I'm happy to report they have been quite successful. I'm really pleased with the direction my photography is going at present and I just hope i manage to capture enough material for the coming season.

You will see some new images on my website.

This Dandelion Clock was basking in the dappled sunlight underneath a tree amongst these Bluebells. I love the colours!

THE BEAUTY OF A SUNRISE

It's 4.15 and my phone alarm is playing it's 'harp' melody. I picked this tune because it was less offensive than the usual BEEP BEEP BEEP of normal alarms... however, it is now associated with disturbing my slumber and so is equally annoying!

I just about manage to pack a chocolate bar, make a flask of that gorgeous friend I call coffee and shove a couple of rounds of toast into my mouth before my lift arrives.

We travel eastbound in the dark towards my favourite 'local' destination for photography and views of our english countryside know as The Roaches in The Peak District. As many of you will know, I spent a fair few trips at this destination last year and feel I still havent seen all it has to offer... and I'm not bored of it yet!

On the way there we are excited and talk about the mist we can see laying on the ground, almost fog-like, talking of hopes that it will still be around when we arrive at our desitnation, Hen Cloud. We also moan how tired we are and how bloody freezing it is despite it being warm in the daytime!

Finally we arrive and as soon as the car is parked, I spot my shot straight away. It just calls to me. I dont care what the others are doing... this is my individual location for my camera, my view, it's my tree... My Shot! And I'm gone.. bye guys... see you later!

http://www.pepperart.co.uk/

So I scale the farmer's rocky wall and barbed wire to race to my location (still bloody freezing - Minus 1 Celcius - but I dont care now because I have a purpose...A Mission!) and race to get into position for when the sun creeps above the rocky ridge of The Roaches and licks my subject with its beautiful golden gift of light, whilst still showing the Beast that is Hen Cloud in the background to one side, and the eerie misty valley towards Tittesworth Reservoir on the other. Perfection!

Visit my main website to see more stunning Peak District photographs.

North Wales

http://www.pepperart.co.uk/

At 4.30 am the alarm went off to signal a belated first trip to the coast was about to start!

This outing was to start in Colwyn Bae and finish in Llandulas on the way home (with a short stop at Macdonalds in between of course).

Itching to test out some new kit i'd recently invested in, I couldnt wait to unload the car and hit the beach as soon as I arrived.

I've processed and uploaded some shots from the weekend to my website. Be sure to check out the 'North Wales' and 'Creative' sections for the latest ones.

I love the milky water effect created through long exposures like the one above.

Thanks for looking.