Snowdonia, Wales and Photography Workshop

It's Friday the 13th-spooky!
Well, the day has been quiet so far but still time for an axe murderer! Just been to Snowdonia to do a workshop with Linzi and her clan. Great time, great company and great place. Some beautiful landscape in Snowdonia and we had an amazing experience where we got lost in a forest while photographing a beautiful sunset on Anglesey but luckily had a full moon and a grizzly bear to ask for directions. Good job it wasn't the 13th! Here are a few shots.

More Cuba photos

Been very busy retouching my Cuban photo's and still loads more to do! Post production is damned time consuming. Had a bit more hassle with my computer. If you transfer data from one Apple to another it can mess up serial numbers. I lost my Aperture serial number but because I had proof of purchase they gave me a new one. If you also have a similar problem find out more at:

http://support.apple.com/kb/HT1861?viewlocale=en_US

Sold a photo of Tower Bridge to be used as a jigsaw puzzle which is a first.

Viva Cuba!

Just got back from 7 days in Cuba-thanks Steve and Fan! It was great to be with you. Hope it's not too cold in Canada Fan!! A special hello to Shannon too! Havana is great, a photographers heaven. There are simply photo's on every street corner. The old architecture, the vibrant people, the 50's American Classic cars, sunshine and narrow streets all add up to great photo opportunities. It was remarkably safe, yes a few people wanting money but they never got heavy when none was forthcoming and always had a smile on their faces. The main problem was the car exhaust pollution (old Russian engines) which was quite nasty and a bit annoying but not enough to put me off going again, hopefully real soon.
Definitely recommended to go. It is changing and 'beautiful' decaying streets are being renovated (for the better in my opinion) but don't worry it will take many many years to finish. Now just got 60Gb worth of cards to wade through!

apple mac problems

Well, I've just got my computer back from Apple. What a fiasco! The dvd superdrive has failed twice before and after 2 weeks in 'hospital' they brought it out and it failed again in front of the manager. Fair enough they did refund the entire amount and I ended up buying a new computer and screen and they were very sorry and in the end helpful but Apple are not reliable anymore which is bad news considering the high cost of purchase. A friend also had a problem and the shop said before Intel processors were fitted they never had one back for repair but now get loads back. I just don't see it being economically viable anymore. Perhaps 2 pc's next time-one as a backup would make better business sense? My beautiful old G4's are now obsolete thanks to the swap to Intel processors and Adobe not supporting them with CS4.
Oh for the old film days when life was so much simpler!! I spend more time on IT than on my photography now!

visit to the Natural History Museum, London

Had a delightful trip to the Natural History Museum yesterday. Really interesting place to visit for photography and learning. The architecture, especially the details are beautiful. Nearest tube is South Kensington. Mid week will probably be quieter. Signing off for Christmas, so Merry Christmas wherever you are!

abstract art in Photoshop®

Had a hard drive failure, (my backup's backup!) so I am pulling my hair out at the moment. I am now burning huge amounts of dvd's which I have concluded is the safest way to archive. Never had a dvd failure in 10 years. So I now have 2 copies on hard drives and dvd disks also. It's a pain but necessary. One day solid state technology will be so comforting.
Anyway, a few more photographs- these have been manipulated in Photoshop using Layers and Blend Modes. It's good fun experimenting and the foggy trees are part of an ongoing series, some of which can be seen on my website.

www.timgartsidephotography.com

workshop holiday to bryce, zion, utah and monument valley

Working on a trip to Mid-West USA for next May 2009. I will be going to Bryce, Zion, Monument Valley, Canyonland, Antelope Slot Canyon and Arches. Did a similar trip last year and it was an amazing experience so next year I am hoping to take a few people on a photo holiday with a workshop type feel to it. If interested please visit my website www.timgartsidephotography.com for more info or email me at timgartside@ymail.com. The shot here is from the amazing Monument Valley which is run and owned by the Navajo people.

The other shot is from the Lake District in England and was taken in October 2008 during the autumn/fall period. It really is a beautiful place to visit at any time of the year.

www.timgartsidephotography.com