He told me to at least try blogging to tell people what I'm up to how I go about getting the shots I do and, indeed where I go to get em!
So here it goes, I'll start the ball rolling with a few walks and the odd review on kit I've done and update as we go, I'm sure I'll get better at it as I continue, and the content will improve so bear with me guys and girls...
So end of August I managed to actually get out and do some shooting, which due to our finances this year is a minor miracle! Unfortunately the weather did not co-operate and the sun only showed it's face for two days out of seven! That's the Lakes for you!
First three shots including the colour one which is a six shot stitched panorama are from the Langdale valley on one of the sunnier days, the final two are from a very dark and dreary windswept Roman wall near Housteads Fort, just to show the disparity in the weather we get up here, beaten back off the wall in the middle of August and the wind was freezing! Came as a bit of a shock to the system that, hope you enjoy the shots and I'll be back as soon as I have more to share, be patient, I'm not very good at this sharing malarkey but I'm trying...
Cheers Jules...
]]>
Brilliant low level walk that I thoroughly recommend to anyone, all the paths are good but the wind doth howl thru the valley, so wrap up out there! On the day of our visit, you basically couldn't see Blencathra as it was swathed in low hanging cloud all afternoon but this did not detract at all in fact it made it quite atmospheric, I make no apology for showing three similar views from the walk because I happen to like all three!
Route Map
Hats off to the Herdwicke...
To kick off the year here's a quartet of shots taken over the Christmas and new year period, a little brightness between the rainstorms!
Cheers Jules...
Ashness Bridge, this morning...
Cheers Jules...
]]>
Nothing at all wrong with going over images again in post processing and trying to come up with something a little different, as someone who pedals his wares over the interweb, I know that sometimes you have to inject something a little different into the melting pot just to see what comes out the other side. Much as the giant Sony Corporation have done with their DSLR's and CSC cameras over the last few years, sometimes you have to throw a lot of mud at something to see what sticks! I'm not a giant corporation but I do realise that some times I have to experiment a little...
Anyway to cut to the chase, I've been working on an image of the washed out landing stage at Ashness on Derwentwater, Don't know why but for some reason I couldn't leave it alone, I've worked on it for a few nights, scrapping it and then starting again and again and... Well you get the picture! So last niight I thought I had got the image to point where I was satisfied that it met the criteria of being both Different (For me!) and a reasonably commercial looking image. I put it up on the screen of my PC full size and went downstairs for a well earned cuppa and a veg in front of the telly, I have got into the habit of leaving my last image full screen on the PC, so that I can gauge initial reaction from my long suffering Partner and Photo Widow.
Oft I will get "Thats a nice picture" lofted down the stairs and I use her opinion as a yardstick on whether it's worth proceeding to put the image on the site for sale. However, this one did not get that far, I returned upstairs after a short while as something was bothering me about the image, something familiar something not right and as soon as I popped my head around the office door I realised what it was...
THE PITFALL?
I've damn near made, THAT IMAGE! Haven't I? You know the one?
Oh the cliché!
Back to the drawing board then...
Rant over!
Suffice to say we are flooded again and my home town is a bit of a mess really, I went for a wander around to review the damage yesterday. Bear in mind the flood waters have receeded a great deal now and the actual levels of the day before were far, far worse than they are now. The mopping up is now taking place all across Cumbria and Lancashire, with roads washed away and virtually no railways to speak of it's going to take a while to get us back on our feet again but rest assured we will, such is the reslience of the people from Cumbria and Lancashire.
I'll not say enjoy the pictures as there is little to enjoy but I'll put them up here as a reminder of what we are currently trying to overcome...
I usually like to kick off my Winter galleries with some snow but this year Mother Nature had other ideas!
I took all of these over the last week or so, culminating in a visit to Aira Force and Ullswater on Friday, unfortunately it seems this was only the "starter" and the "main course" would arrive on Saturday, bringing with it chaos, disruption and heartbreak.
The floods of 2015, are ongoing and no doubt you have been watching the news, "Terrible" or "Devastating" are too small a words to describe, it will take a good while to recover from this one I'm afraid...
Well like this! It's well worth a wander over to Braithwaite or Portinscale to have a wander along the road which, leads right under Catbells nose and around to Grange, a nice easy walk, with brilliant views, and easy on the authors peg leg (foot)!
]]>
]]>
Ashness landing is also underwater, the path around the Grange end of the lake at Manesty is impassable unless you have flippers and the link from Barrow bay to the Kettlewell car park is under about six to seven feet of water!
All pretty bad but the waters are now receeding and the rebuilding can begin in ernest very soon, if your on the way to the Derwentwater area, please take care and try to support as many of the local businesses as you can.
With that said on to a gallery of captures from Monday the 16th of November...
]]>
The falls at the rear of the hotel are the most visited attraction but there is much more to Lodore than that...
Lodore Falls
There are several walks to the top of the falls and you can then traverse along the Watendlath beck, which twists and turns above Lodore with varying degrees of white water and golden leaves at this time of year!
Next to the hotel
A selection from Watendlath beck
When you get back to the bottom your pretty much at another favourite of mine in the Derwentwater area, Barrow bay, on a good day, you get lovely views of Skiddaw and in the distance Blencathra but on this day it was persisting down and you could not see to the other side of the Lake, the rain was so heavy! Two things I took away from this day were, my waterproof jacket... isn't! However my X-T1 and 18-135mm are!
Ashness Landing
Cheers Jules...
]]>Quick walk on my recently crocked leg around the Catbells side of the lake last sunday! Leg sore, got wet but the views were totally worth it!
Enjoy!
Jules...
]]>
Been a while, so lets get some stuff out of the way as in the "life" part of the title...
Photography despite being my passion has had to take a bit of a back seat this last year or so, the reason? Well my Mum actually, she's now 94 and needs some help on a day to day basis, so I've stepped in to help out as much as I an allow which means there has not been much time for any photography but with that said, all is not lost!
I do get out sometimes! However due to my sciatica giving me some troubles I have to be oh so careful because my ankles keep turning over at will and on a high fell it's not a great idea. I'm damned if I'm going to end up being a statistic because of it, or for me much much worse, (Think embarrasssing!) to have to trouble the already overstretched rescue services to lift me off somewhere because I've fallen... again!
Like I say I do get out now and again but have to take it easy and follow easier trails nowadays, so we come to the "old familiar" part of the title, Derwentwater, I do very little photography around there and it's just that, "familiarity breeds contempt"! I get the bus into the lakes and every time I do I end up in Keswick, nothing wrong with that but it pretty much is the touristy capital of the Lake District N.P. I'm always just passing thru because of the crowds and off to somewhere less well trodden, in search of that illusive "keeper" shot. Well I had a few hours to spare the other day and it being Autumn and all, I had a bit of a sally around the Keswick side of the Lake from end to end, here in no particular order are some of the results...
And the last part of the title? Trials, well yeah it's never going to make you rich but that doesn't stop me loving it!
Jules...
]]>
Broke as usual! Didn’t even have the bus fare to the lakes, so I was sulking to tell you the truth, Stuck at home in Carlisle Waahhhh, not fair! (Spoilt Brat!)
Well yesterday was a beautiful day here in Cumbria, decided to just take a walk up town for a Deek aboot (Look Around!), and just for the sake of it, I took the Camera along.
I sat for a while watching the tourists, going about their touristy shenanigans, generally just looking around and taking pictures, so I thought I’d have a go too! I was really quite pleased with the results! I guess Hell ain’t a bad place to be… On a Sunny Day…
Enjoy!
Carlisle Castle
Carlisle Cathederal
Rickerby park
Tullie House
Red Door Tullie House
Cheers Jules…
]]>Or how to get a better shot!
The slate Mining caves above Rydal water are a favourite of mine in inclement weather, the rocks take on all sorts of great colours when they get wet, and as an added bonus you get to keep pretty dry, as long as you’re in the caves!
I frequently visit this one, and this is the kind of shot I usually come up with, today shown in moody B+W, looking through the cave to the sunlight beyond.
However I have always thought I could do better here, and on this particular day, Ann and I sat and had our lunch here and Ann (My long suffering Partner and Photography Widow!), had just got a new mobile phone was engrossed in getting it set up to her liking, so I decided to do a quick explore…
Since there was an opening at the rear of the cave, I thought I’d see if there was a way on to the roof of the structure and indeed there was! A little scramble and suddenly you get this, which I hope you’ll agree is a much more dramatic scene, the trouble is I cannot decide whether I like the colour or the black and white version!
So the moral and the lesson, is? Don’t settle for the standard shot, always try to get a better angle but please do not endanger yourself in doing so!
Here endeth the sermon…
Cheers Jules…
]]>
Leave the car park through the small gate at the far end from the road, turn right onto the footpath that runs alongside the River Cocker and follow it all the way to Crummock Water. WARNING: this path can be quite slippery, if it is, follow the forest track instead. You will end up in the same place which is: Lanthwaite Fish Ladder and the source of the River Cocker at the foot of Crummock Water. Take in the view it’s magical!
Grasmoor on the left and at its foot the little boathouse, put into some real perspective! Fleetwith Pike seemingly rising up out of Crummock water itself (In fact it is at the other end of Buttermere!)
From here, cross the bridge next to the Fish Ladder and follow the track running along the right-hand side of the Lake under Mellbreak, right up to Scale Bridge, then turn left into Buttermere. Simples!
WARNING No2: Gets boggy in wet spells and a little rocky, you are traversing the foot of a very large rock (Mellbreak) after all, there are run offs all over the place and boggy bits in abundance, the route therefore is an ever changing one but if you follow the route you can see you’ll be fine and as long as you stay by the Lake shore you cannot go in the wrong direction!
Don’t forget to have a look at the Iron Stone (Rannerdale Knott’s Mini Me) and Low Ling Crag on the way …
So anyway, last weekend I thought I'd better give my legs a bit of a stretch before having to do the Hospital thing, due to the fact that I am the personification of "Organised Chaos", we arrived late in the afternoon and it was hot, so this was probably not the best walk for an Asthmstic like myself but Hey ho!
From Grasmere: Start the walk by getting onto the Easdale Rd next to the Heaton Cooper Galleries and walk straight on past Goody Bridge Farm, then instead of crossing the little Bridge across the stream beside the Rd (Tis is the way to Easedale Tarn). Bear right and Keep going across the meadow following the narrow paved road to Lancrigg, where you enter a more sheltered, wooded area with the start to the walk thus.
Phone Pic Apology:
You soon hit the trail which is stepped and therefore quite hard up until about 250m.
However...
Great views over towards Easdale Tarn and Langdale!
After this it starts to flatten off into more of a traditional trail, which dog legs right then left and over the the top via the Lion and the lamb to the Howitzer, When you get to the Lion and the Lamb, pause and take in the view, on a clear day you can see Rydal Water, Grasmere, Coniston Water and Windemere from here!
It's a good trail, you can't miss it and it's difficult to get it wrong! Return simply by reversing the Route...
Caveat: If you have any sort of breathing difficulty don't do it on a warm muggy day like I did! The first 250m up the trail on the stepped part of the route is very hard on the lungs, it's steep, take little steps and above all, take your time!
Lake Views, Lion and The Lamb and the Howitzer
Cheers Jules...
]]>
Whitehaven to St. Bees
On the right day this is a great walk!
Start out at Whitehaven Harbour and make up the steps behind "The Beacon", from the top of "Tom Hurd" Rock you get a great view of the harbour and town.
Whitehaven Harbour
Looking back along Saltom Bay
Then it's on past Haig Pit and onto Saltom Bay, the site of AT Saltom, the World’s first deep sea mine, with Haig in the background and the harbour there is a bit of history in view here so take a moment to reflect...
Now onto the cliff path proper!
There are some parts of the path that get close to the edge along here, not for the faint hearted!
Moving away from Saltom Bay and towards North Head gives some great views looking back at Criffel, and on a clear day you can catch sight of some of the larger Solway Windfarms out at Sea!
Gorse overlook Saltom Bay
Colourful view of Criffel from North Head
Moving on from North Head brings us to the Lighthouse of the same name and in the late spring in this area you can enjoy some beautiful carpets of Bluebells on the Sea Cliffs.
Sea Belles
And finally around St Bees Head and South Head brings us down into the lovely town of St Bees
Seen here with the Spectre of Sellafield in the Background
St Bees
Cheers, Jules...
This is one of my favourites when we have a few hours to kill in Keswick, and there’s no real walk planned for the day, it gives great views and a bit of a workout at the same time!
It begins with an ascent of Walla Crag: a brilliant viewpoint over Keswick and Derwentwater. There then follows a descent to Ashness Bridge, thence Watendlath village.
From the top of Walla Crag
View from above Springs Farm
From Keswick Moot Hall, walk into St. Johns Street, and on to St. Johns Church, the road then becomes Ambleside Road. Just before the road begins to climb steeply turn right into Springs Road (0.5 mile) Walk to the end of the road to Springs Farm, after crossing a small bridge at the entrance to the farm the route bears past a stable block and then follows the course of Brockle Beck. Cross the bridge up to a gateway giving access to a roadway about a mile away.
Turn right and walk to the end of the road where another footbridge crosses Brockle Beck. On the other side is the start of a very distinct path which follows the line of a stone wall to the summit of Walla Crag. The summit cairn is a few yards behind the wall getting on for a mile away (you’ll curse me here as the walk up Walla is very steep and makes your lungs burn! Well mine anyway since I’m chronically Asthmatic! ). From the summit cairn continue South to the stile, take the left hand branch which follows the fellside (KEEP TO THE MAIN PATH!), which leads over Falcon Crag and down to Barrow Beck which you should follow downstream to Ashness Bridge.
Cliche Alert
Derwentwater
Better Half crossing Barrow Beck...
Follow the road from Ashness Bridge up and over the hill to Watendlath, (Easy). Or you can walk on the road for about ten to fifteen minutes, until you reach a gate which leads to the path thence a footbridge over the aptly named Watendlath Beck, giving access to the path which follows the course of the beck to the village about two miles away.
Watendlath Beck
Last shot before the incident below!
Reflection in Watendlath Beck
Well it would have been two miles away but not on the day in question! As we ambled along Watendlath Beck path heading towards the village we couldn’t help noticing some Highland Cattle on the beck shore, My Partner remarked “One of them looks pretty big!” I paid no heed as I was sizing up a Picture and everything goes out of the Window then of course! “Jules it’s a Bull!” she said. Then I looked up and sure enough it was a thousand or so pounds of Highland Bull, Horns and all staring at the two of us and scraping the ground with its front hooves! We beat a slow and deliberate but as hasty as we dared retreat back to Ashness placing a makeshift warning on the gatepost, and instead of Ice Cream at the Cafe in Watendlath, had a few nerve steadying Pints in the Borrowdale Gates Hotel!
Cheers Jules...
]]>This is a familiar walk with a twist, the twist being that it's actually better to take the (High) Road than the Trail for once! Here I've used Photo's from a winter and a summer walk for illustrative purposes but it's all doable in one afternoon
We Start at Honister slate mine...and take the road to the top of the Mine instead of the Trail to Haystacks/Great Gable, the reason for this will become apparent in the next Photos...
You see if you take the trail you don't get to see these magnificent standing stones at the top of the road which command a lovely view down to the Honister Mine Centre itself and the Fells beyond, got to be worth the detour! (Well for me anyway!)
As we get to the very top of the Mine we come across the odd sight of this old Wriggly Tin Shack seemingly holding back a mountain of slate!
Next it's around the bend in the last Pic to Dubb House and the point where the Trail to Haystacks and the road meet, so we’re back on track!
To the left of the House you can see the trail rising towards Innominate Tarn and Haystacks but first we go down the hill and cross the beck on the stepping stones (Rainfall permitting!)
Once across (hopefully dry!) there is a slight climb
Up towards Haystacks but nothing major, in fact it's really quite a pleasant stroll.
The view starts to open out and you can get some great shots of Buttermere and Crummock Water beyond.
Soon we reach Haystacks proper and there is a short edgy traverse around a rocky outcrop to get onto the fell itself, keep your concentration here and you'll be fine, it's easy enough in the dry but could be tricky in the wet! The summit is only a few hundred yards from here, (With its own Tarn) you can choose to head for the top or like me go back towards Innominate Tarn, for some watery shots involving some of the smaller and unnamed bodies of water that abound here, I tend not to go to the top of Haystacks these days as it's usually quite busy and not too conducive to Landscape Photography for this reason!
Then it's just back the way you came to await the Bus at the Slate Mine to whisk you off for a well earned beer in the Bank Tavern in Keswick (if you want!)
Cheers Jules...
]]>I really love this walk but it's not often that I am fit and able enough to do it! From the Youth Hostel at the top of Honister Pass about face and with the Hostel at your back head on up... And up and up! Fair old climb up to the large Cairn at the top of the Hill and you've reached Dale Head at 753 metres, Well done! Take in the view it's all worth it!
You can see right down the length of the Newlands Valley and on to Skiddaw and Blencathra in the distance, Brilliant!
Now make a right turn and follow the short ridge path (Hindscarth Edge) heading towards Robinson, this eventually becomes "Littledale Edge", there is a cruel twist here as you have to descend about 200 metres and then immediately climb back up them again to reach the Summit of Robinson. I won't kid you this makes your legs ache quite a bit and is not for the faint of heart! Eventually though the climb eases off and you can amble at an easy pace up the steady but more slight incline to the Summit of Robinson, which you can see to your left just as you crest the hill.
Smile and take in the view, that’s pretty much all the climbing done!
There used to be a fairly substantial Cairn up here but it's been made into a Windbreak which whilst isn't quite as iconic is a lot more useful! It's exposed up here and any break from the wind is welcome. You get a great view from here of Buttermere and Crummock Water and you can make out the Solway Coast on a nice clear day as was the case here.
After this it's all quite literally downhill to Buttermere Village, the path continues down and ever down across Buttermere Moss and High Snockrigg, luckily the views just keep on coming!
Eventually you round a corner on the path which reveals the Fish Inn (most welcome sight!) and the path meanders down the hill albeit steeply toward Buttermere Church. (Be careful, I've tumbled here! It really goes for the knees!)
Done!
Into Syke Farm for Ice Cream (must be tried!) or retire to the pub to regale of your Mountain Conquests.
Cheers Jules...
]]>
Angle Tarn is a very pretty little tarn on a natural shelf, near Patterdale. It’s very popular for wild campers, and its close proximity to the Coast to Coast path means it is frequently visited by walkers.
From the cottage (when you’re there you'll know what I mean!) turn left and then turn right over Goldrill Bridge. Follow the road to the end and round to the left. Turn right through the gate up onto the fell and head up the path to the right towards Boredale Hause. The path splits after 100 yards or so and you can take either path up to the Hause. We prefer the top one on the way up and the lower one on the way down! (We hate coming back the same way!) Continue up until you reach Boredale Hause.
From Boredale Hause head off to the right following the path over the small beck. Follow this all the way to Angle Tarn, take a path across a small bridge half cut into the fellside and half made of railway sleepers, looks and sounds more precarious than it is but it's well worth it as from there on you are afforded some lovely views of Helvellyn and Catseye Cam to name but two! Either way you go you end up in the same place so there is little to worry about here (No getting lost anyway!).
Major landmarks visible on the horizon are, from memory, St. Sunday Crag, Nethermost Pike, Helvellyn, and Catstye Cam.
Quite a selection!
Walking the Whitehaven to St Bees Coastal Path in reverse!
Or, St Bees to Whitehaven, Walking the Coastal Path…
My Partner and myself walk this path at least twice a year and always from the Whitehaven end but for a change we thought we’d walk it the other way around, photographically speaking for me, it was like a whole new journey!
Most of the views I recorded this time around I have previously missed, just because I was going the other way
So onward!
From the promenade join the Cumbria Coastal Way and follow it to cross the footbridge over Rottington Beck. The path climbs above the cliffs to South Head.
Cross the small stream and continue following the Cumbria Coastal Way as it climbs along the cliff top path to North Head, as a small diversion you can visit the lighthouse that tops the North Head, it’s only a couple of hundred yards added to your journey…
Continue on the path and follow it down to Fleswick Bay...
Beyond North Head the cliffs swing north east and the path follows them along an undulating course until it descends at Saltom Bay.
Continue to follow the Cumbria Coastal Path past South Beach to Whitehaven Harbour. Passing the Haig pit Museum and Saltom undersea Mine which can be viewed from the Cliff Top.
Great walk on a fine day, and the moral is? If you want something to look different view it the other way around!
Cheers Jules...
A personal review of the Fujifilm X-T1
Firstly, this is a very personal review of the above Camera that I was lucky enough to try out for a few weeks this spring, the views expressed are my own and pertain to me and me alone. Always remember that, your mileage may vary considerably from mine…
Ok then, what are we talking about here, let’s start with a couple of piccies of the beastie in question, instead of a detailed run down or spec sheet which is available pretty much everywhere on the internet, since this camera is oh so hot at the moment!
http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/x/fujifilm_x_t1/
So then we are looking at a CSC, (Compact System Camera) with a huge lovely viewfinder, a flappy screen an alloy Uni-body which you could mug people with! Looking pretty good then so far…
Disclaimer: I buy my kit, I have no affiliation with any Camera company, if I did I would sing their praises on the highest level as I’m skint but an out and out capitalist!
Onward...
Out of the box impressions
Very good, lovely build quality all the knobs switches and dials are clearly labelled and stiff but not too stiff, some lock others do not, there has been a lot of internet chatter about this and even a kick-starter campaign for an ISO Dial cover to obviate the lock but generally I have to agree with Fuji’s choice here. http://isounlocker.com/
I don’t spend a lot of time polishing my camera’s and tend to unbox them and leave then leave well alone until the battery has charged before I make any rash decisions as to whether I like them or not. 2 hr, interlude and were charged!
Switch on for an almost instantaneous start up and were ready to go, first look thru the EVF (Electronic Viewfinder) is a revelation, clear bright detailed and big, like a Full Frame DSLR, lovely.
The clicky dials on the top plate tug at the heart strings a bit and I can’t help but feel the designers of the Nikon Df, (Doesn’t function) http://imaging.nikon.com/lineup/dslr/df/ Should be forced to spend a bit of time at the Fuji design labs for a refresher course (Just Sayin).
So off out for the first bash in the field, shooting Jpeg and just generally having a play, all good fun, and really just shooting Landscapes for fun, rather than my portfolio. Using neutral density filters like I do a great deal is marvellous with a CSC, as the EVF ups the gain when you put on a ten stop filter and you can still see what you are doing unlike a DSLR when it all goes dark in there! Despite all the fun I get the first irk…
After the first day in the field I am left with a painful cramp in the right palm, takes me a while to figure out what it is but in the end, it’s down to the size and shape of the rear of the camera, I’m involuntarily holding the damn thing so tight I’m getting muscle spasms in the palm area of my hand, leaving my poor right paw like a claw! It’s not a DSLR, it feels different, and it takes getting used to, the other thing was every time I picked the X-T1 up, I hit the FN1 (Function) button on the front of the camera blocking out the viewfinder with the AF options instead of a view of the shot I was lining up in my head, to the rescue came the MHG-XT grip plate. http://www.fujifilm.com/products/digital_cameras/accessories/camera_cases/#handgrip One of several now available for the X-T1, helped relax my grip a little and gave my forefinger somewhere to rest that wasn’t directly on the FN1 button. The pain in my palm still has not completely gone, I may need surgery but is far more manageable than before, so the moral is… Get a Grip! Getting back home, I was excited to see the results from my new toy (To call the X-T1 a toy is a bit cheeky it’s a very serious camera!) Second problem and for me the killer, I am a Landscape shooter and every shot I took on my first outing was of Bluebells and other vegetation, I blame myself for not doing enough research here because the X Trans array on a Fuji Sensor apparently, (No apparently about it!) has real problems with Lightroom and you guessed it, vegitation! I’m an avid fan of Lightroom, I have invested a lot of time effort and indeed money on Lightroom and various filter packages for my post processing workflow, it did not take me long to see that I had a real problem here. I’m not going to delve into it too much here but it’s all over the internet if you look hard enough, and there is some pretty hurtful ranting and raving going on, on the same subject, so let’s leave it there shall we? It appears to be partly the de-mosaicing of the RAW file in Photoshop and Lightroom and the way the files are sharpened. A lot of time spent searching the net brought me here.
http://blog.thomasfitzgeraldphotography.com/2014/02/updated-x-trans-sharpening-presets-lightroom/
The man is a bit of a genius and has forgotten more about post processing than I’ll ever know, hats off to Thomas! His settings mitigate the problem somewhat but never take it away entirely and I’m not investing all over again in a new workflow, just for the sake of one camera, in the end that was the killer for my relationship with the X-T1 but I hung in there for around two months trying to learn other convertors and Processing Software but in the end I just don’t like them, I like Lightroom and thats that really!
There is one other problem that has been quite well documented regarding the X-T1 and that is the rear four way control D-Pad. It is just a tad too small and a little squidgy, you have to take the camera away from your eye in order to ensure that you have operated it successfully, with the camera to your eye, you miss changing focus point or whatever you have the controls configured to, just a little too often, just something to be aware of, I contacted Fuji UK about this and the grip problem, this was their response…
"Thank you for contacting Fujifilm UK, I am very sorry to hear of the problems you are having with your new camera. I think the best thing to do is to get the camera in and get it checked over, and we can ensure that you buttons are as good as they can be. I can confirm that we do not have a 'new' set of buttons like forums suggest but we can check that they are aligned properly etc.
I hope this information helps."
I have to say throughout my ownership of the X-T1 Fujifilm UK were nothing less than brilliant, there are plenty of Camera companies out there that could learn a thing or two here! (Nikon are you listening?) Well no their not but onward…
So despite what everyone seems to think there is no new magic set of rear control buttons for the camera but there must be a little room for jiggling the alignment in order to get the best fit, if you’re worried give Fujifilm a call, they are fab!
I have deliberately got the bad bits out of the way so I can end this ramble thru my thoughts on the X-T1 on a high, if you buy a grip there are only two things wrong and only one with the camera! The other I suspect lies firmly in the court of the Adobe Lightroom developers! So in the end the only thing wrong with the Fujifilm X-T1 is that the D-pad is a little small! Lets get that into a bit of real perspective, the camera is small. it's trying to be small, so maybe you need to compromise just a little? It's like buying a Fiat 500 and then complaining because it's not as roomy as a Range Rover! Everything else from the lovely viewfinder, build quality, autofocus (nearly on par with a Pro DSLR!), metering are truly top class. The real tour de force however is the colour, it's beautiful, like nothing else I have ever seen, for this alone you owe it to yourself to try a Fuji!
Caveat: You’ll need a few batteries as basically your using live view all the time just like any CSC, it’s a bit heavy on the juice!
So in the end, Nearly Fuji Nearly, the deal breaker for me was the compatability with Lightroom or rather the lack of it, I'm sure that will work itself out but I need to be able to work my files now, not sometime in the future. However in the future It will not take much for me to give up DSLR’s for one of these beautiful little CSC’s, the time of the DSLR is nearly done, maybe next time Fuji…
Cheers Jules...
We'll review as regards to the following, in that order because that’s the order in which I wrote it down.
Build Quality
Useability
Features
Image Quality
Price
First a Piccie so we know the wee beastie we are dicussing here!
1: Build Quality: Solid without being hefty, fits the hand "Like no other" Oops Sorry couldn't resist! Very comfortable to hold for long periods of time, everything fits flush. Just look at the tolerances on the flash housing, It's been very precisely put together, the one weak point could be the tilt/swivel screen, I keep trying to bend it the wrong way but it seems solid enough. If you go into a fire fight with the screen out you deserve what you get! Viewfinder will take some getting used to. It makes some odd White balance choices in low light and gets very grainy here too but it's an EVF and what can I expect, I will try to embrace it. Lens is quite nicely put together but I'd have liked to see a bit of metal in an F2,8 SSM. The Lens is very sharp wide open, showing lovely detail and Contrast, it has auto Lens correction in the A77 and so may not perform quite so well on older APSC Bodies, please be aware of this if you are not buying an A77 kit...
2: Usability: Very approachable despite there being a lot going on here, spent a day walking around the English Lake District with it and it didn't make me swear once, for a new (Second time around, Ex A900) user I think that’s not a bad show, nothing I could pinpoint as bad after such a short time. Battery life whilst probably good for SLT, is not up to DSLR Standards. If you want to try event shooting QUITE LITERALLY get a Grip!
3: Features: Well ten out of ten, I'm sure there’s a Kitchen sink in there somewhere, sure I'll think of something fault it on here after more time spent but the reason I think people find fault, Is that it gives so many features and gets you thinking about so many possibilities with those features. Nothing can be perfect but I haven't seen a Camera that offers so much in my 25 Years of Photography.
4: Image Quality: I want to hate it for being noisier than my Nikon D7000 (Now for sale!) but I can't! It's the first of its kind, new wave, has an incredible amount of detail in those files at low ISO's and performs very well up to ISO 1600, Where like my A900 did it drops off a cliff! It's 24Mp for God’s sake in a sensor half the size of my A900, yet it's as good or only a translucent Mirrors difference away right until ISO 1600. It loses a point for the JPEG engine which is not that big a deal to a Landscaper like me BUT the RAW's show how good it could be... Enough Said.
5: Price: Tricky as I'm still unsure as to where it fits in, If it's meant to be an enthusiast A700 replacement and so, 7D/D300s class then it's very good but if that’s where the A99 will sit (Do we know?) then it's a D7000 class and therefore a bit on the high side, even given the amount of technology involved. The price has to be attractive and Sony can't just rely on their name here.
Conclusion
So far, from the Web buzz the biggest fault seems to be that JPEG Engine, hopefully some more firmware will sort that out, come on Sony, you know you want to... Overall I'd give it a Nine out of ten, and I'm very stingy with my scores, ultimately it's a Camera that offers a huge amount of creative potential in an easy to use and approachable package, the Multistack image modes for low noise and twighlight/HDR are worth a special mention and lift Jpeg shooting a notch above what is traditionally thought possible.
Bravo Sony!
Cheers Jules...
]]>The problem is for a Landscape Photographer, that extreme wide Lenses make any background fade into the distance as to be almost invisible and any foreground feature can end up overpowering the view.
The problem is always one of balance and it is difficult to achieve, enter the Sigma 8-16mm F4.5-5.6 HSM. I have been determined to learn how to use these wide Lenses and currently they don't come any wider than this one. You can get an enormous amount of Real Estate in your Viewfinder with a Lens like this or you can get up really close to make a particular feature stand out.
http://www.sigma-imaging-uk.com/lens/wide-lens/8-16mm-f45-56-dc-hsm
On to the Lens in practical use…
The big bugbear of a Lens with such a protruding front element like this one does is the inability to use filters popular with Landscape photographers (ND/Grads/Polarisers etc) but with modern Cameras (I'm using a Pentax K5) you have a lot of dynamic Range and with judicious exposure discipline you can usually manage to capture a full range of tones, if not you can always bracket exposures and overlay them later in third party software. Colour can be tweaked to your heart’s content and a lot of Camera's are now starting to address Low ISO as well as high, my K5 goes down to ISO 80 and the new Sony A77 as low as ISO 50, Making up somewhat for the lack of a filter thread on your 8-16, if you can't live without them and there are times when nothing else will do! There are some aftermarket filter holders that will work with your 8-16, however they are not cheap and you have to really ask yourself if it's worth it? Only you can answer that one, you're on your own there!
http://www.formatt.co.uk/showimage.aspx?id=wf3000000682
The Lens is chunky, solid feeling with a built in metal hood, the Lens cap comes in two parts, a Lens cap??? And a large metal ring that slides over the petals of the hood, treat them as one part, leaving on the metal ring will only lead to wild vignetting! In use you soon get used to this and it just becomes natural to take off both parts at once, now onto the good stuff.
Sharpness, this lens is very sharp indeed! Right across the frame, I'll direct you to a formal review of the Lens by experts and better Men than me!
http://www.lenstip.com/index.php?test=obiektywu&test_ob=246
Distortion is also very well controlled for a lens with such a wide field of view and it's resistance to flare in direct sunlight is remarkable for a Lens with such a Bulbous front Element!
For myself as a Landscape Photographer, in the end the real beauty of this Lens is that allows me to bring into perspective large sweeping panoramic views in a way I have never been able to do before, and to cap it all off it's also a lot of fun! Top Job Sigma!
Easily my favourite Lens in my current bag of tricks...
Hope you enjoyed this less than technical review from someone who really enjoys his
Sigma 8-16...
Cheers Jules...
Enter the Fuji X-T1..
Pic Below: Copyright Fujifilm.
http://www.fujifilm.eu/uk/products/digital-cameras/interchangeable-lens-cameras/model/x-t1/
Now this is not a Fuji X-T1 review just an update of what's been happening lately, here at exaggerated perspectives.
So with that done on to a quick overview of my thoughts on the X-T1 and then a few of the recent captures with this beast!
First off it's solid but light, the two really just don't seem to go together but it is, around half the weight of the Pentax K3 but just as solid in the hand. Also I have found during the last three weeks or so with it that, there really isn't anything that it cannot do that the K3 could, the only downside to the Fuji system now as I see it is lack of Lenses but we all know they are working on it.
It is just as responsive as any DSLR that I have owned and the colours, oh the colours, nirvana!
I was lucky in that I got hold of mine just a few weeks after launch and my sample did not have any leak issues with the port covers that some samples have had, confirmed by Fujifilm UK as not being within this range I felt immediately heartened by this but all is not quite perfect. My sample has a squidgy D-Pad on the rear of the camera, because of the way the camera is designed it is difficult to operate the right hand quartile due to the proximity of the thumb grip, and It had some sensor dust on the APSC sensor but it came away with judicious use of a "Giotto's Rocket Blower". I left it there for a bit because I just couldn't put it down and that brings me to the real plus point of the X-T1.
Caveat: Over the last six weeks i have gotten used to the D-pad and my muscle memory seems to kick in here, I am getting very few "Misses" when operating the D-pad now, and Fuji UK tell me it is quite within spec and that THERE IS NO MYSTICAL NEW SET OF D-PAD BUTTONS OUT THERE! Right you've been told! Man uo and you'll get used to it!
I REALLY JUST DON'T WANT TO PUT IT DOWN! (Did i mention that already?) It has re-ignited my passion for Landscape photography and I want to be out there every waking minute with the X-T1! I can forgive it a little dust and even the D-Pad issues (Though I do hear that newer samples have been improved, C'MON FUJI! Don't do a Nikon, (Had a D600 for a year!) Man up and fix it, the world will love you for it!)
So far my few niggles with the Camera and calls to Fuji UK support have been nothing but helpful and informative, bravo Fuji! You are bucking the trend in UK customer support, fix the D-Pad and we can be bestest mates forever!
This is not meant to be one of those internet pieces that disses Fuji, quite the opposite, what I see in them is a company that is trying to be different and give customers what they want, not like other manufacturers who do not seem to listen to their clients/customers or are too big to care about the individual, Fujifilm Care!
For that they deserve your support and mine too for that matter! Not perfect but getting there, listening and evolving, come to think of it, I think I'm starting to evolve a bit too... Into an "X" Man!
Not going to wear my underpants outside my trousers though!
]]>
Anyway it was bitterly cold and blowing a gale (Always is!), not many signs of spring neither around the quarry nor in the boulder field on the valley floor below.
Cheers Jules...
All this walking the fells with a heavy DSLR and big F2.8 Lenses has got to stop!
And so it has…
I have turned to the Dark (Wild) Side and eschewed my DSLR for a Mirror less Camera, a Fuji X-T1 to be exact…
The feeling of liberation is incredible, even in my currently dilapidated state I feel the benefits, it’s taken me about a month to get rid of all the paraphernalia, of large rucksack Camera bags angle brackets grips and filters but I’m finally there!
Even in recovery from surgery I can still manage a hobble up a hill, as I did last week in my first outing with the new Camera up to Lily Tarn near Ambleside. The Camera and my current kit of three lenses weighs less than my old Camera body on its own, I just know my knees will eventually thank me! Plus my Ankles, my back, my asthmatic Lungs, my Arms, my… Well you get the picture!
Speaking of which here’s a couple of Lily tarns surroundings just a stone’s throw from Ambleside and a very pleasant and quiet little walk it is too…
In the last picture you can just make out Rydal Hall in the centre background, detail is great from the new Camera and the colour is amazing with no Post Production work at all.
“It’s not about the summit but the journey”. A phrase I’ve often heard uttered by those armchair warriors that have never In fact made it to a summit! However, Easedale Tarn proves that you do not have to get to the top to enjoy true Lakeland. Slap bang in the Centre of the Lakes the tarn is quiet and usually pretty peaceful, Certainly in comparison, with the relative chaos encountered in Grasmere! Easedale Tarn is set in a deep valley, scarred by a retreating glacier roughly 20,000 years ago and has left an excellent selection glacial erratics scattered like picnic tables right around the Tarn.
Start the walk in Grasmere, and follow the Easedale Road, heading northwest out of the village. At the sharp right hand bend in the road just after Goody Bridge take the Left hand path over the twee Slate bridge crossing the Easdale beck. Head towards Brimmer Head Farm, this eventually takes you to Sourmilk Gill, which is a belting sight when there is plenty of water in it! And up we go!
So LUNCHTIME!
Then a quick scoot from the end of Eadale tarn round the corner to Coledale tarn
Now for the hard bit!
Up the Steep trail between Belles Knott and Eagle Crag and up to the Pile of Stones…
After which it’s just a half Hour meander on some pretty boggy and indistinct pathways to Stickle Tarn, which on this occasion had managed to cloud in… S.N.A.F.U!
Turn around and go back until you reach Grasmere again or drop down into Langdale for a few swifties in the Dungeon Ghyll Pub!
Erm, guess which I did?
If you do decide to go back please make sure you don’t wake the Dragon!
Enjoy!
Cheers Jules...
]]>Anyway got out to Ambleside and did the short hop or is it hobble to Loughrigg and back via the terrace of the same name, as I said before I have lived here all of my life but in all of that time I have never seen clouds as black as those I witnessed yesterday...
1: Snow Capped Lingmoor from Loughrigg Tarn
2: Sunspots, Grasmere from Loughrigg Terrace
3: Bible Black, Grasmere and Dunmail Raise from Loughrigg Terrace
So we just had to drink all our friends beer and eat all their food, ho hum!
All I managed to do work wise was in a brief two hour window where it did not bucket down, when I walked down to North Queensferry and did the obligatory Forth Bridge cliché shots, so here they are in all their glory!
One extra from the journey home, from Calton Hill ooking down on Edinburgh via the Dugald Stewart Monument...
What a Tourist!
Cheers Jules...
I hope it's better where you are!
The weather has been so bad up here in the lake's for just about the whole of December, and so far January, Photo opportunities have been few and far between! I've taken my Camera out there with me on at least eight occasions in the last month and have taken only a handful of shots! Half the County seems to be underwater at the moment, the rest is covered in downed trees, got to have been one of the wettest ever?
This is one view From Elterwater looking over to the Langdale Pikes between downpours...
Shot was taken around 1 P.M. By which time the sun is already dipping behind the hills casting some long shadows and it's getting pretty warm, at least the light is! I shoot on "Natural" so to keep a good dynamic range but the colours are quite muted, I tried to bring them back to what they were at the time. Other half reckons that it's about right and she, is of course right about absolutely everything! I used a soft grad to hold the sky back so I could get the sunlight hitting the reeds without losing the glow above the Pikes, just got back into using grads much to the other half's disgust as she can't see why it takes me soo loong to take a picture in the first place. "You reckon you have the best Camera out there! Why do you need to put more things on the front of it then?" To be fair on her, I had watched a big rift in the clouds approaching from behind for about fifteen minutes, I hoped it would cross the sun and do something to liven things up, which it did...
I have been called out on at least three internet forums because the image is not natural or it's an HDR image, it's not and it's as natural as I can make it! It really does reflect the scene as it was at the time...
Just for giggles this is the only other shot I've taken in about two weeks!
White Moss woods near the Car Park and this is the Picnic area, benches submerged! Couldn't get the family of swans to stay still long enough for the ten stop Neutral Density Filter...
Cheers Jules...
]]>
Anyway, I digress form the important thing which is the Pictures! Enjoy the first fruits of my new partnership, all are available for sale from the gallery pages, many tanks for viewing.
Cheers
Jules...
Enjoy...
Cheers Jules..
]]>
Skiddaw About!
The past few weeks I’ve been itching to get out of the house and get out to the Lakes to get some pictures of the Autumnal goodness that’s out there! Home commitments, Lousy Weather, Mum sitting (She’s 92!) and a Sick cat have meant I just couldn’t get out! Until Sunday just gone, that is…
Anyway we decided to do a round of Derwentwater since the weather was so nice and a quick scoot up to the Bowder Stone via Grange but by that time, around two in the afternoon the sun was already starting to dip behind the fells and so dark long shadows and general murky blackness made us beat a retreat to the Bank Tavern in Keswick for a hard earned Peroni!
Hope you like pictures of a snow-capped Skiddaw!
Enjoy!
Cheers Jules…
Where's the Autumn? Still not here, took a walk from Grasmere to Ambleside yesterday, via Coate How and the Stepping Stones, there's still not much colour around, hope it's better where you are? Took in the disused Mine workings on the higher path to Ambleside which were strangely deserted yesterday...
Plenty of leaves on the ground at Nab Ghyll, nr Rydal but those on the trees are very much green. Took a walk along the "Coffin" route from Grasmere to Rydal and onto Ambleside, and a quick walk through the woods around Castle Crag and the Bowder Stone.
Give it another week and it'll be golden!
Cheers Jules...