Silent Sunday

Scrabo Tower, Newtownards Co Down

The main image at the top was taken from a plane on a training flight out of Ards airfield. For clarity, I was not the one flying, but instead was a very cramped passenger squashed into the back of the small plane.

This is one of only a handful of useful shots taken whilst up in the air. It's difficult to adjust camera settings in a tight space, whilst being jostled about and avoiding sun flare and reflections from the plane window. I also suffer from a touch travel sickness when trying to read in a moving vehicle- so had to take a break for a while. Thankfully didn't need to use the complimentary sick bags.

The route the instructor took us was from Ards, towards Donaghadee, then over Bangor and towards Belfast along the edge of Belfast Lough then completing the loop back to Ards.

It was good to get up in the air and to be traveling (relatively) slow enough to get a unique perspective of the land normally only seen from ground level.

You can purchase flight lessons directly from Ulster Flying Club, which make great presents for friends and family and if you're lucky enough you could be one of the 2 passengers allowed and get yourself some photos.

   

Silent Sunday

Focus Photography NI

Focus Photography NI is a blog set up to share and discuss photography, with a particular focus on Northern Ireland (NI).

Whilst from time to time I will discuss the technology behind the camera, perhaps referring to new models, features found on cameras or equipment it is not principally a camera equipment review or advice blog. I believe that Photography does not need to be about the camera, but who is behind the camera.

It is a platform to discuss photographs, techniques, locations, presentation and anything else that comes under the Photography umbrella.

We have a beautiful country on our doorstep, with green fields, ocean views, mountains, lakes, towns, cities, villages and of course the people. Let us capture Northern Ireland, show off it's strengths, its beauty and show the truth about our wee country.

Of course, given the world wide audience of the internet, it will not and does not have to be exclusively about Northern Ireland, and welcome discussions from further afield.

Feel free to leave a message or find me on Twitter @Photofocusni

Tell Me a Story.

They say the camera never lies. 

This phrase never did hold true, even before the digital generation. But a camera can tell a story.

The Photographer decides what he wants to include, or exclude, from his shot, what he wants the viewer to see. Angles can be exaggerated, objects cropped, imperfections airbrushed. He chooses to tell his own story.

We, as the viewer, cannot tilt or look behind a photograph to see what is around the edges. We cannot fast forward to see what happens next, or rewind to know what happened before. When we look at an image we see the Photographers story. What he saw, what he wanted to see, what he wanted tell.

But if we pick up a camera, it becomes our story. A means to capture a memory, track change, or to record an image for someone else to see. We become the Photographer, we tell the world how we see things. We can express ourselves, take what we see and tell how we feel. We can shoot a subject, not to show what it is, but to show what it could be. As Ansel Adams said, "you don't take a photo, you make it". 

Go today, take photo's and tell your story.