A New (Moody) Dawn
07/02/2016
I recently contemplated giving up photography.
That may seem unlikely, considering my obvious passion for photography (as this website evidences). I enjoy photography; the creative and artistic side is a counterbalance to my day job (as a scientist). I love the hunt for visual stimulation and quality. Photography complements my desire to explore, and enables me to record memory-joggers of the places, sights, and experiences of my journeys. However, a series of recent events left me questioning whether I wanted to keep going.
So what happened to cause me to contemplate an early retirement? Firstly, in September, I lost the most recent three and a half years of my photographic life via a hard drive failure. It was my own fault for not having a well-organised back-up system, but that makes it no less a blow. I have lost images of my experiences and travels in South Africa, my recent trip to India, and travels in the Highlands of Scotland and elsewhere [only a handful of lo-res images survive via the website]. Then, in Shetland (October), a slip resulted in my camera and lens left “beyond economic repair”. In December, on my trip to Wester Ross, carrying an already wounded and limited kit, I returned with yet another lens in too many pieces to even contemplate another trip to the repair shop.
In the wake of the recent loss of so many important photographs, and then my camera and two of its’ main lenses, I did consider whether I wanted to buy a new camera and replacement lenses and go again. As much as I have gained pleasure from photography, it has also taken a fair amount of blood, sweat and tears, not to mention freezing temperatures, baking heat, danger, discomfort, and lots and lots of time...(I am trying not to remember all the wasted and now-invisible hours spent processing images).
Having wondered, I then wandered, and soon realised that I would be permanently frustrated on my travels if I journeyed without a camera with an acute capacity to capture the world around me. And so, here we are, the Blog continues, with a new camera, the Canon EOS 5Ds R, in hand. Onwards to new horizons, fresh opportunities, and hopefully (at least on occasion) stimulating and thought-provoking future images.
I recently decided to continue with photography.
Below are some moody abstract images from around Kirkliston created with the new camera in hand.
Wetland rushes.
Darkly birch.
Sunrise amongst the undergrowth.
Moody trees.
The header image is of beech leaves against snow (click Blog if you cannot see it).
If the above Abstract images take your fancy, you can view more of my Abstracts with Trees images here.
.
That may seem unlikely, considering my obvious passion for photography (as this website evidences). I enjoy photography; the creative and artistic side is a counterbalance to my day job (as a scientist). I love the hunt for visual stimulation and quality. Photography complements my desire to explore, and enables me to record memory-joggers of the places, sights, and experiences of my journeys. However, a series of recent events left me questioning whether I wanted to keep going.
So what happened to cause me to contemplate an early retirement? Firstly, in September, I lost the most recent three and a half years of my photographic life via a hard drive failure. It was my own fault for not having a well-organised back-up system, but that makes it no less a blow. I have lost images of my experiences and travels in South Africa, my recent trip to India, and travels in the Highlands of Scotland and elsewhere [only a handful of lo-res images survive via the website]. Then, in Shetland (October), a slip resulted in my camera and lens left “beyond economic repair”. In December, on my trip to Wester Ross, carrying an already wounded and limited kit, I returned with yet another lens in too many pieces to even contemplate another trip to the repair shop.
In the wake of the recent loss of so many important photographs, and then my camera and two of its’ main lenses, I did consider whether I wanted to buy a new camera and replacement lenses and go again. As much as I have gained pleasure from photography, it has also taken a fair amount of blood, sweat and tears, not to mention freezing temperatures, baking heat, danger, discomfort, and lots and lots of time...(I am trying not to remember all the wasted and now-invisible hours spent processing images).
Having wondered, I then wandered, and soon realised that I would be permanently frustrated on my travels if I journeyed without a camera with an acute capacity to capture the world around me. And so, here we are, the Blog continues, with a new camera, the Canon EOS 5Ds R, in hand. Onwards to new horizons, fresh opportunities, and hopefully (at least on occasion) stimulating and thought-provoking future images.
I recently decided to continue with photography.
Below are some moody abstract images from around Kirkliston created with the new camera in hand.
Wetland rushes.
Darkly birch.
Sunrise amongst the undergrowth.
Moody trees.
The header image is of beech leaves against snow (click Blog if you cannot see it).
If the above Abstract images take your fancy, you can view more of my Abstracts with Trees images here.
.