Gannets of Muriwai

 Putting the XF 1.4x TC WR through its paces...

X-T1 with XF50-140mm f2.8 and XF1.4x TC - 1/2000th at f5.6 ISO800 at 196mm

The rugged New Zealand coastline west of Auckland is famous for its black sand beaches and Muriwai, a 60km strip between the thundering surf and the dunes, is popular with tourists and locals alike.  At the south end of the beach, Otakamiro headland is home to a small but accessible gannet colony where about 1200 pairs of gannets nest from August to March each year.

Lighting Up 2016

New Year Fireworks at Central Square, Hampstead Garden Suburb, London

X-T1 / XF16-55 @ 16mm / ISO200 / 6.5 sec at f/22

What better way is there to see in a new year than a fireworks display and with the "big" London display being a ticketed only event this year I headed to Central Square in Hampstead Garden Suburb where the residents association put on their own display to welcome in 2016.

Photography Live and Uncut

Episode #75: Simon Weir

I spent a very enjoyable hour last night as a guest on Paul Griffiths' show "Photography Live and Uncut". A prolific webcaster, Paul has recorded video interviews with photographers from all around the world and I was delighted to be asked to join him.

We go back many years to Nikon Owner meetings in London and have since both become avid users of Fuji's X System cameras - inspired by me, Paul even has an InfraRed converted XE-1...

The discussion ranges from my childhood photography to my work in classical music and my passion for black and white and especially infrared...

You can see a full list of Paul's other guests on the Photography Live and Uncut website

Wet & Wild with the XP80

Now please understand - I dont normally write equipment reviews and the XP80 isn't strictly an X series camera, but this little marvel deserves some serious praise!

I have just returned from the south of France where for the second year running I photographed at the classic yacht race Les Voiles d'Antibes as part of a Create Away workshop I ran with fellow Fuji user Serge Kruglikoff.  This year I thought it might be fun to have a waterproof camera to get some really "wet and wild" shots.  Nauticam produce a superb X-T1 hosing called the NA-XT1 - it is a full spec dive housing for the serious underwater photographer - and will set you back an eye watering £1500 - worth every penny if that is how you make your living but a little expensive for an experiment...

Embracing the Abstract

Creating images in the mind...

"Line of Trees" - Fujifilm X-T1 - XF18-135 @ 90mm - 1/110s at f/22 ISO200

This February I was once again in Yellowstone National Park running MagicIs photographic workshops with some really extraordinary people.  Over the two weeks I learned a little about nuclear physics, banking, metallurgy, reconstructive surgery, hitech roof construction, information technology, farming and how a 12 year old boy sees the world through a camera...

In return I showed them some of the most extraordinary sights on earth and endeavoured to give them some of the skills to translate what they saw before them into images - be they wildlife, landscape, or something more abstract.

Chasing the Wind - Les Voiles de St Tropez

At the start of a new year I often find myself looking back over the shoots from the preceding 12 months and in 2014 one in particular stands out: Les Voiles de Saint Tropez.

Les Voiles - literally "The Sails" - take place from April to October across the French riviera.  Each race brings together some of the most beautiful traditional wooden yachts alongside the most extraordinary modern sailing boats for a week long regatta in beautiful ports such as Antibes and Saint-Tropez.

Forever blowing bubbles...

Another set of pics from last months Marylebone Summer Fayre - this time of Lucas Wintercrane and his fabulous bubbles...

Lucas is a professional juggler, British champion unicyclist and lifelong all round circus performer who charmed the adults and children alike with his myriad of bubbles.