The Fallen Leaf

Alrighty There People!

I love this picture, taken in the grounds of Harmony Gardens in Scotland.

The leaf's gorgeous greenery contrasts fantastically with the pebbled ground.

I just had to whip out the N95 to snap it up.


Image Details:

Name: 03.027.jpg
Date: 10/08/2007 14:38
Dimensions: 2592 x 1944
Size: 1.57mb

Comments, as always, much appreciated!

NEWS FLASH: LOGO REMOVAL

Alrighty There People!

Due to feedback received, I have decided to remove the copyright logo on my photos henceforth.

If anyone decides to steal my content, then I pity that person for not having the guts to ask for permission to use it.

If anyone would like to use the images, please contact me.

Thanks!

Chandelirious.

Out of Focus Iguana

Alrighty There People!

Another Tenerife shot coming up - this one taken in Loro Parque, the parrot sanctuary. I spotted this Iguana, sunning itself right against the glass.

I couldn't get a very good angle on it, then I forget to adjust the settings, and then there is the glare of the glass - all in all, I thought it would make for a rubbish picture. But when I got back, I was mildly surprised with the outcome. True, the Iguana is out of focus - but I think that that enhcances the image. I love it.

What do you think?


Image Details: Name: Tenerife 56.jpg
Date: 25/09/2008 13:39
Dimensions: 2592x1944
Size: 816kb

Comments, as always, more than welcome.

Mount Teide

Alrighty There People!

No doubt you are now well aware that I was in sunny Tenerife in September (but why oh why did I come back to Rainy Britain??!)

One of the trips that I took whilst there was a visit to Mount Teide, the active though dormant volcano in the Teide National Park (more info on the wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teide)

It was a beautiful day, but we had been warned to wrap up warm, and we dutifully complied. When we stepped off of the coach, the coolness of the mountain air hit us. Compared to the warmth of the beach, it was cold! We paid the 25 Euros each - yes, each - for the cable car ride, and took the 8 minute journey to the top (although technically it wasn't the top, you need a permit to get there.) We were warned that the temperature at the top was a Brit-like 6 degrees, with a -15 wind chill. Ouch. The air is also a lot thinner at 12,000 feet - and I suffered from this.

But the views were absolutely spectacular. Looking out across the ridge, we could clearly make out the rim of the crater that we had just driven across (a bizarre feeling), and the clouds hung low in the horizon.

Turning to look at the peak of the volcano was fascinating. The harsh, bleak, sandy colour contrasted greatly with the light blue hue of the sky. Of course, I instantly whipped out the N95, and snapped this image:



Image Details:
Date Taken: 29/09/2008 11:18
Dimensions: 2592x1944
Size: 1.50mb

What do you think?

Interestingly, the surrounding areas were used to film Planet of the Apes and some Star Wars scenes. I'll post a view from Teide later, but meantime, your thoughts on this are much appreciated.

Hadrian's Wall: North and South

For our anniversary, my wife and I went into Northumberland. We went to a few places - the grounds of Slaley Hall, a De Vere hotel with two 18 hole golf courses and it's own Japanese garden - it was beautiful, despite the fact that it was chucking it down with rain.

We also went to Allen Banks and Staward's Gorge, photo's from which I have posted earlier in this blog. From there, we headed North to Hadrian's Wall and Housesteads Fort. It was a bit of a disappointment really - and the weather was naff to say the least.

But we paid the money, and walked into the little museum/information centre to learn all about why the wall was built, and then moseyed on out to the ruins of the fort. There was just little low walls running everywhere, which had been marked as sleeping quarters, dining area, galley, etc etc.

Then this little scene caught my eye - it's the view North and the view South running along one of the boundaries of the Fort, and, crouching down, I pulled out the N95, and snapped these two shots.


This image is looking North

Image Details:
Name: 11072008188.jpg
Date: 11/07/2008 16:21
Dimensions: 2592 x 1944
Size: 0.98mb


This image is facing South

Image Details
Name: 11072008189.jpg
Date: 11/07/2008 16:21
Dimensions: 2592 x 1944
Size: 978kb

So what do you think?

The Maze of Glass - Kielder

Alrighty There People!

So one day in the summer I went up to Kielder in Northumberland. It's a fantastic area, with it's immense forest, humongous reservoir, and absolutely tiny castle...

A new feature to the grounds of the castle was a walk-through maze, which I was quite excited about, until I got there and saw it for myself. It, like the castle, was somewhat lacking in size. Constructed from local hewn stones, it was drab and grey.

Until you got to the middle, that is.

For in the centre of the maze, the surrounding walls were made of chunks of glass held in place by chicken wire. And in case that doesn't sound too cool, check out the picture that I took of it on the N95:


I must admit, I was quite taken with this shot. What do you think?

Image details:
Name: 26052008052.jpg
Date: 26/05/2008 14:26
Dimensions: 2592 x 1944
Size: 1.61mb

The Penguin

During my holiday in Tenerife, I had the pleasure of going to Loro Parque, initially a parrot sanctuary but now a full blown animal sanctuary/zoo, complete with Orca whales, dolphins, gorillas, tigers, and, of course, plenty of parrots. It also had a penguinarium, with many species of penguin.

I shot lots of pictures and video in the penguinarium, but the most striking, in my opinion, is this:


They way the penguin was coming straight towards me, the way you can see above and below the surface, the way the water is churned up in the background - for me, this is my favourite picture from Loro Parque. Your thoughts?

Image details:
Name: Tenerife 44.jpg
Date: 25/09/2008 12:16
Dimensions: 2592 x 1944
Size: 673kb