Bentley Continental GT Speed

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The Bentley Continental GT Speed is fastest road going Bentley with a top speed of 205mph – not that we reach such speeds when shooting of course!

The Scotsman Motoring Supplement - Click on the image to view large.

The Scotsman Motoring Supplement - Click on the image to view large.

Happy Birthday Forth Rail Bridge

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On the 4th of March 1890 the longest bridge in Great Britain, the Forth Rail Bridge (the one at the back) was opened by the Prince of Wales. Construction started on the bridge in 1883 and took 7 years to complete using 10 times as much steel as the Eiffel Tower. The 1.5 mile bridge was the longest single cantilever bridge span in the world at the time and was deliberately chosen to look strong, because four years before the Tay Bridge collapsed.

Fuji X10

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Last year I bought a Fuji X10 (which is a premium compact camera) to take on holiday when it wasn’t practical to carry the full DSLR kit. However, I still wanted something that would be capable of taking a decent landscape shot on the odd occasion when I’m caught without my main camera. This was one such morning when I was passing the Forth bridge and saw some nice sunrise colours developing. The sun was actually rising well off the the right of this frame but the colour was reflecting of the clouds in all directions. I literally stopped the car on the promenade at South Queensferry, jumped out and captured this hand held (no tripod or filters) and was back in the car and on my way within minutes. Definitely one of those occasions when it’s better to have something with you rather than miss the opportunity completely.

Forth Rail Bridge, South Queensferry

Forth Rail Bridge, South Queensferry

Binns Dawn

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It seems like the whole of Britain has recently been covered with snow except for the Edinburgh area this winter, so I’m having to look for winter shots from previous years that I haven’t processed yet. This one is from a dawn shoot at the Binns Estate in West Lothian.

Snow Tracks

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Got up early on Sunday morning hoping to catch the sunrise as it had been a clear night with cloud spreading from the west in the morning forecast. This is usually a good recipe for good sunrise colours but the cloud came over a bit quicker than anticipated and I got caught up in a light snowfall instead. I pass these trees on my way to work most days and had been meaning to shoot them for ages, however, I always felt it needed a little bit of snow just to lighten the field and highlight the tracks.

Bo'ness Hill Climb Revival 2012

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This was taken at the Bo’ness Hill Climb Revival 2012 and won Gavin Hoey’s September photo challenge in which the theme was Planes, Trains and Automobiles. Gavin is a freelance photographer, and writer, you can read more about why he picked my image on his website: www.gavtrain.com

The track at Kinneil in Bo’ness was first used in 1932 for speed hill climbs and numerous meetings were held until the outbreak of the Second World War. Racing started again in 1946 and in 1947 it held the inaugural RAC British Hill Climb Championship. Throughout the 40′s and 50′s crowds of up to 10,000 came to watch British motor racing stars including a young Jim Clark driving his successful Le Mans Lotus Elite.  However, crowds began to dwindle and the final meeting was held in June 1966 after which the track was abandoned. To celebrate the 60th Anniversary of the inaugural RAC British Hill Climb in 2007 a reunion event was organised at Kinneil which proved to be the catalyst for the Hill Climb Revival now in its 5th year. You can find out more about the event on the BHCR website: 

www.bonesshillclimb.org.uk