# What I did this summer... photographically



## MikeScone (Sep 26, 2012)

As I have done every even-numbered year since 1996, I took a group of Boy Scouts over to Scotland this summer for the International Patrol Jamborette in Blair Atholl, Perthshire. We did a week's touring, were at the Jamborette for ten days, and then I had four days to spend on the islands of Mull and Iona while the Scouts went home with their Scottish counterparts. The full story of the trip, with lots more pictures, is on my Blair Atholl 2012 website. 

But this is the Camera Corner, so let's look at a few of the pictures I took which I think are most interesting from a photographic point of view. 

One of the problems with cameras, and digital cameras in particular, is that they just can't take wide enough pictures to match the scene you want to capture. Your eyes tend to see a lot from side to side, but much less up and down. Pictures are closer to square (4:3 width:height proportion, for most cameras, 3:2 for DSLRs). I've found that taking two or three pictures and stitching them together into a panorama lets me show what I saw on the spot. 

This is the Ha'penny bridge in Dublin, a panorama made from two pictures:






Incidentally, many point-and-shoot digital cameras can shoot in "HD" mode, an aspect ratio of 16:9. That sounds good, much wider than high, but beware - in every case I've looked at, all that really happens when you switch to "HD" or "16:9" is that the camera ignores the top and bottom parts of the sensor. In other words, all you accomplish is to lose pixels you paid to get. Use the normal full-sensor 4:3 mode and crop in the computer during post-processing instead. You can never retrieve the parts of the image you didn't take. 

It's often useful to include something in a picture to give a sense of scale. You can say that an Austin Mini is, well, mini - but put a six-foot plus Scout next to it...





One of the high points of our touring was a ride on the "Jacobite" steam train from Fort William to Mallaig. For the Harry Potter fans in the group, that's the train which played the Hogwarts Express in the films. 

If you're taking pictures of a train from inside the train, there's an obvious problem. The solution is to wait for a curve, and lean out on the side of the train which is inside the curve. Stay close enough to the train to give a feeling of the length, and watch for interesting leading lines. This is the Jacobite going over the Glenfinnan Viaduct - can you see Harry and Ron in their Ford Anglia ahead of the train? 





When you're taking pictures from a moving vehicle, it's usually a good idea to use a fast shutter speed to minimize any blurring from vibration. However, rules are made to be broken - a slow shutter speed will blur details which are close to the train, while the train itself and distant details remain sharp, giving a nice feeling of speed:





I've mentioned the "rule of thirds" in other posts - divide the picture in thirds, vertically and horizontally, and put a point of interest on an intersection of the one-third lines. Here, the monument to the Highland Clans raised by Bonnie Prince Charlie in Glenfinnan lies on a one-third intersection, and the loch provides leading lines leading your attention through the glen toward the sea: 





As sunset approaches, wind dies, and that's a perfect time to look for reflections in water which might be too rough during the day. This is a lockkeeper's house on the Caledonian Canal:





Sunsets can be beautiful, but capturing an image which shows what you saw can be a problem. Digital cameras will try to correct the color to a neutral grey, so it helps to turn off automatic white balance - if the camera has a sunset mode, use it. Otherwise set the camera to daylight white balance, and the warm colors will be rendered properly. Exposure is also a problem, as pictures may be washed out. Try underexposing - most cameras have an exposure compensation setting. Try -0.5 or -1.0 and see how it looks. This is Saint Andrews Castle (another two-picture panorama):





Once the sun goes down, blue is the predominant color, which can contrast interestingly with the yellow or greenish colors of sodium vapor or mercury vapor street lights. This is St. Andrews High Street in the evening - again, leading lines and rule of thirds. 





The Mirror Maze in the Camera Obscura in Edinburgh gives me an opportunity to demonstrate "How to Hold a Camera" to take sharper pictures:




Note that the weight of the camera is supported by my left hand, under the camera, while I zoom or focus with my left hand. My right hand just operates the trigger, so the movement when I push the button doesn't move the camera at all. By keeping my elbows against my body, I've created a tripod - two elbows and my face - which keeps the camera steady. If you can, lean on something solid for additional support at slow speeds. 

You need to use every trick of holding a camera steady when you're taking pictures by the light of a single candle - this picture in the Edinburgh South Bridge Vaults was taken at 1/15th of a second:


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## MikeScone (Sep 26, 2012)

After Edinburgh, we were at the Jamborette, on the grounds of Blair Castle. 

I like looking for color contrasts in pictures. here, the orange tents lend interest:





Normally, you'll want to use a fast shutter speed to freeze action:





However, by using a slow shutter speed and moving the camera with a moving subject (called "panning") you can blur the background while keeping the subject sharp, which gives a great feeling of speed:




The trick with panning is follow-through: keep on panning after the shutter releases. If you stop when you push the shutter, you'll get blurred pictures. 

Framing - using something to surround the subject - can be very effective. While this can be done with a literal frame (a window or something like that), you can also do it with foliage or shadows:










Campfires can be very tricky exposure situations. The fire itself is bright, but there's not much light on the faces of the campers. In this picture, I chose to let the fire get "blown out", in order to show the Scouts better. I was also able to adjust the lighting a bit in Photoshop (Image|Adjustments|Shadows and Highlights). 





The Jamborette ends with a candle ceremony, in which each Scout and leader holds a candle while the Blair Atholl song is sung - which presents other photographic challenges. This is where a large-aperture "prime lens" is helpful - in this case, a 50mm f1.4 - to gather all the possible light. 





I had to work with PhotoShop to get this panorama of the candle ceremony to come out right. The candles needed to provide most of the light, while not letting the campfire and floodlights become too bright. I used "Levels" to bring up the lighter parts and make the black trees truly black, and "Shadows and Highlights" to darken the lightest areas and bring out detail in the darker areas. I like the result.


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## MikeScone (Sep 26, 2012)

Finally, a few pictures from Iona and Mull. 

Catching rainbows is mostly a matter of timing - if there are showers in the area, but the sun is out, look in the direction opposite the sun. If you see a rainbow, go for it - this is another situation where trying a few different exposures can be useful. Try -0.5 and -1.0, and the slight underexposure might darken the sky enough to emphasize the rainbow. Include foreground details for additional interest. This is taken from Iona, looking back toward Mull. 





Lighthouses are interesting subjects, but I like to include a boat in the picture if I can. This is Eilean Musdile light in the Sound of Mull:





Using a wide aperture (low-number f-stop) can reduce the depth of field (the amount of the image in focus from front to back). This allows the subject to "pop" out of otherwise distracting details. 





Rule of thirds and leading lines, yet again - this cat followed us down the road from the Nunnery on Iona:





I like looking for color and texture - there's no particular subject to this picture, it's just a study of the rugged terrain of the Ardnamurchan Peninsula, taken from the water on a wildlife watching boat tour. 





The "rule of thirds" covers putting a subject on one-third lines, but there's also the "80/20 rule", which says to put the horizon in a landscape either 80% up from the bottom or 80% down from the top. In other words, make the picture 80% sky or 80% land. This panorama is the Sound of Mull with the Rubha nan Gall lighthouse near Tobermory on the Isle of Mull. 





I just love this picture, of Tobermory Harbor. Everything seems to come together - the foliage for framing, leading lines of the harbor out to the Sound of Mull, the color contrast between the houses, the white clouds and the blue water and sky, and the reflections. I think it's my favorite of the trip.


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## Samara (Sep 26, 2012)

**** but you're good O_O !!


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## Blue eyes (Sep 26, 2012)

:goodjobAbsolutely beautiful photos!

And what an opportunity for the boys to take a trip like that! It's great that you are able to not only take this trip, but also take it so frequently. 

Having 3 boys of my own, I know what an unforgettable trip this must be for each of those scouts.

(One of my boys is also into photography & nature. In fact, at 17, he self-published a book on wildlife in the AZ Sonoran desert using his own photos. He just started college this year)


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## Ellie (Sep 26, 2012)

Amazing!! Very jealous of your trip.. looks like you had a great time.


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## BunMommaD (Sep 26, 2012)

Beautiful pictures! I can not wait to go back to Scotland next year. And that train, we MUST find it and go for a ride on our next visit!


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## lauratunes12 (Sep 29, 2012)

What camera do you have? I have a poopy point-and-shoot right now and am saving for a DSLR. I love the pictures you got!


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## missyscove (Sep 29, 2012)

Gorgeous photos, Mike; thanks so much for sharing!


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## agnesthelion (Sep 29, 2012)

Wow. Beautiful pictures and a beautiful trip! I would love to see those places!! I wonder if those boys know how lucky they are 

Thanks for sharing. You definitely have an eye for photography, which I don't have at all!


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## Nancy McClelland (Sep 29, 2012)

Great pics, maybe, someday, we'll finally get to go there.


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## Hyatt101 (Sep 29, 2012)

I LOVE photography! Amazing photos! LOVE LOVE LOVE!


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## MikeScone (Sep 29, 2012)

*lauratunes12 wrote: *


> What camera do you have?


These were all taken with a Nikon D7000 DSLR, almost all with an 18-200mm zoom.


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## MikeScone (Sep 29, 2012)

*BunMommaD wrote: *


> And that train, we MUST find it and go for a ride on our next visit!


It's the "Jacobite" - you can find the details on the West Coast Railways website. If you can do it, I definitely recommend it. We did the afternoon trip, which leaves Fort William around 2:00 and gets back about 8:30, with a two-hour layover for dinner in Mallaig. It worked out very well, there are lots of good places to eat (we just bought takeout fish and chips and ate at a little picnic area near the pier) and you've got plenty of time to wander around the town.


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