Iceland Trip 17

Whilst being shown around my partners home of Iceland, I decided to capture a few videos of our time there and edit them together. It's a truly beautiful place of total extremes and well worth the visit. We spent a short time in Reykjavik before taking a road trip North to the snæfellsnes peninsula and then returning to see the golden circle.

Unfortunately, the weather was pretty changeable so wasn't ideal for filming but a good memento of the trip. I return to Reykjavik at the end of the month to work for the summer so hope to share with you some more experiences. 

Pottery

A little while back I was lucky enough to visit Loch-an-Eilein, a pottery studio nestled in the beautiful setting of The Cairngorms. Run by the very accommodating Penny Weir, she offers single beginners classes where you can turn up and have a go at creating some pottery of your very own. Having never worked clay at a wheel before, I wasn't expecting too much in the way of results. However over the day with plenty of  encouragement and cups of tea from Penny, managed to throw 5 vessels that I am more than pleased with. Here are some photos of the finished glazed and fired pieces, including a bowl, small dish, a closed form, a jug and a quirky lipped olive dish. I would more than recommend a visit to see her, for both the friendly welcome and expert tips. Check out her website here www.penspots.co.uk

A Crooked Shop

So here's an interesting update that I wanted to share with you. Some of my Cityscape designs have gone down well and are attracting a bit of attention, so I've decided to start my very own Etsy shop to start selling them. It started off just as a project to document the places I had visited in the year, so i'm quite chuffed to have this up and running. I'm currently working on a couple more to add the shop which I hope to put up soon. If you have a spare couple of minutes why not check it out by clicking the link below.

A Crooked Shop

Tilt Shift Minatures

Whilst in Bristol, I took a tour of the Wills memorial building and took a few snaps from the tower that over looks the streets.The views produced some really interesting perspectives and gave me an excuse to do a bit of post editing trickery. Using a lens blur in editing software I've attempted to emulate a tilt shift technique that gives the image an appearance of a miniature model. I think the results are really interesting, some have turned out more successful than others but it's enjoyable turning Bristol into a tiny town. Other shots included are from the Clifton suspension bridge overlooking the Avon.

A Trip To The Highlands

Recently took a trip to the beautiful city of Inverness in the highlands of Scotland. I very much enjoyed all the delights it had to offer, taking in the sights of Loch Ness, whisky tasting and caleigh dancing. I don't pretend to be a professional photographer in any way but I love the medium and taking snaps (particularly panoramics as you can see). Here are a few of the favorites that I wanted to share.

 

 

 

Boxtrolls

 Finally managed to get around to watching the latest Laika stop-motion film Boxtrolls. Not only is it a brilliantly crafted film but it got me thinking about the medium and the sheer amount of effort involved. The amount of planningt is enormous, from props to lighting to direction. There is a seemingly endless list. It's for this reason I have the utmost respect for people working in this medium (a medium I hope to one-day further work in).

When you look at the incredibly detailed backgrounds and props, that aren't even the focus of the shot you realise that it is a labour of love and that people choose to keep the stop-motion process alive not because it's easy but because it's challenging, yet all the more rewarding.

There is a great scene at the end of the credits shown below which throws into focus the brilliant and often absurd nature of choosing to animate in stop-motion.

Scotness Monster

A friend of mine has recently moved to Inverness in the highlands of Scotland, and as a leaving present I've been diligently sewing for what seems to be (quite literally) an age and made her a "Scotness Monster".

Full credit for the template go's to the people at
http://www.welivedhappilyeverafter.com/2013/11/lochnessmonsterstuffedanimal.html
There are many other great ideas on there which I would highly recommend.

The scale is reduced to 50% of the original.

Hopefully it will go down well and for future reference, I shall be promptly investing in a sewing machine!