‘Elf & Safety!

Panic set in at our Dundonald studio today, when this wee man came in for his photoshoot and just as he arrived the fire alarm went off! We thought it was an ‘Elf & Safety Inspection!’ But it wasn’t – it was Rueben, in for his second ‘Baby’s First Year’ photoshoot. He had a ball with the studio snowballs!

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Fujifilm X-T2, professional mirrorless camera, F=40mm, f/6.4 @ 1/125th sec, on ISO200, under studio lighting (flash)

Burning Waste for Heat

Following all the political controversy about the ‘Renewable Heat Incentive’ and the sudden proliferation of wood burners in deserted outhouses and barns, one bold company in the manufacturing industry has decided to recycle all its own waste wood shavings, by installing a furnace to provide the heat for their factory.  In the interests of investigative photo-journalism, I took a look into it, and here’s what I found…

Kiln

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New Image File Format for iPhone

Apple Drops its Jpegs.

If you’ve been moving files from your iPhone to your PC recently, you’ll have noticed that Apple are no longer saving or storing files as ‘jpeg’ on the iPhone.  Instead the file extension reads ‘HEIC.’  It stands for ‘HIGH EFFICIENCY IMAGE CODING.’ and it came with the latest iPhone update.  It’s not new, and iPhone didnt even invent it, but incorporating it into the new iPhone image software is seen by Apple as the way forward for the future, after all jpegs have been around the internet for about 25 years.

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St George’s Market, Belfast.

Rainy Day Photography

Saturday 9th September 2019 – the morning was wet, for heavy rain has been lashing the British Isles, causing flooding.  Thankfully Northern Ireland has been spared the worst effects, unlike parts of England, where flooding has ruined homes and even led to loss of life.  It’s too wet to go out on the streets, but I had a sort of a back-up plan.  In Belfast is an old Victorian Covered Market, ‘St George’s Market’ (built in the 1890s)  – and I thought a visit might bring one or two photo opportunities.

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I liked this image.  It was captured in RAW and converted to monochrome, then combined with the original colour image. The metal girders are converging on the sign, while the two people in monochrome are like bookends, giving the photograph a sense of completeness.  It’s interesting that the woman on the left is pointing at the sign.

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Kilwarlin and the Battle of Thermopylae

Kilwarlin Moravian Church and Thermopylae in Co. Down!

Kilwarlin Moravian Church was founded by John Cennick (He of Gracehill, Ballymena fame) in 1755. 

Click to see post about Gracehill

Kilwarlin is described on some internet sites as a ‘small village near Hillsborough, Co.Down’. The truth is that it is scarcely that, rather a ribbon development of homes along a very narrow country road, not wide enough for two vehicles to pass, and accessible only with great care.

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Commercial and Family Photographer