Alex Haig's Photo Blog

A weekend in South Spain - Part 2/2

On the last day of the weekend we decided to leave Spain and travel to Gibraltar. I had never been to a British Overseas Territory before and it was quite strange seeing so many familiar sites, such as the road signs and the high street shops, set against the blue Mediterranean Sea and palm trees in the beating equatorial sun. We took a tour of the Rock of Gibraltar where we could see Spain to the north and Africa across the water to the South. We saw Gibraltar’s famous Barbary macaques, the ships in the sea, the city around the rock and the historical military sites on it.

We also visited St. Michael's Cave inside the Rock of Gibraltar. It was strange and refreshing to experience the cold and damp after the hot sun we just stepped out of. The cave is strikingly and strangely lit. After entering, the cave opens into a cavern which has been set up with tiered seating to function as a concert hall. I can only imagine it must be amazing to hear music played in there. Beyond this hall the cave extends like a wide tunnel and loops around on two levels until you find yourself at the exit and your eyes have to adjust to the bright sunshine again. It’s an amazing place.

A weekend in South Spain - Part 1/2

Some good friends invited me to join them for part of their holiday in Spain. We stayed in an amazing villa on top of a hill about an hour’s drive into the mountains from Malaga near a town called Alozaina. We spent the first day making the most of the pool and barbeque at the villa. On the second day we went for a 5 mile walk on a route called ‘Henderson’s Railway’, which follows the railway and river leading out from the town Benaoján in a valley between the hills. The walk was very scenic and a great opportunity for photos.

Sea Life!

Today we visited the Sea Life Sanctuary in Hunstanton. I've finally got out with my camera again. I found it difficult to get some good shots, but I guess it's been a while and I'm out of practice! It's a nice place to visit. The green sea turtle and the seals were espcially cool to see.

Bettws!

To briefly explain, I had a weekend in Wales with some friends to celebrate one of their birthdays. I stayed in Bettws, but also visited Lly Clywedog. During a walk around the lake, I took a few collections of photographs and have processed them into very large panoramic images.

A few hours in Toulouse

After a meeting, a colleague and I found ourselves with a few hours in Toulouse to kill before a flight. As part of a strike the taxis were not going into the city so we took an equally long journey in a taxi to a train station where we caught a light rail train to the city centre.

We found ourselves outside the Capitole building where and hung around for a bit. We didn't realise at first, we'd had been in the square outside the Capitole building the night before when we had been looking for a bar (in the end we found a nice American style place called Pub La Notte in Rue Pargaminieres). There seemed to be marching processions in each street for people on strike for one thing or another. We saw the teachers strike, the taxi strike, some protest for or against AirBus and possibly students on strike too, although it’s hard to tell with students. We took a wander down to and long the river Garonne, where we stopped for a drink. Then we walked back up to the city and caught a bus to the airport.

Overhall Grove

This morning it felt like the first real day of Spring. Not only was it a little sunny, but, for the first time in ages, it was as warm as it looked. Kelly and I decided to stretch our legs at Overhall Grove, a local Wildlife Trust area.

American Cemetery In Snow

I find the American Cemetery and Memorial in Cambridge a moving place to visit. There is a great sense of both pride and loss, which makes me grateful for the stability I enjoy. It was interesting to visit it in a new season. I didn't get great photos because I ran out of battery power at the beginning of my visit.

A photo break at work

I stepped outside earlier today to get some air and I took the chance to have play with my xmas presents, a tripod and polarising filter. The pond was frozen and it was fairly picturesque. When I got back in and saw the images it was interesting to see the difference between the photos with and without the polariser. In many cases the photos with the filter were better. Certain parts of the images, like the trees in the middle of the images below, seem to have a warmer glow. However, I've also noticed some kind of lens flare just to the top right of the building in the image with the polariser. The differences are most striking when the images are viewed large.
Without Polarisation	With Polarisation
I also had a go at controlling the depth of field by controlling the arperture. The leaves on the plant shown below were folded almost like a flower or maybe it was a flower, in any case it was interesting enough for me to use as a subject.
Wide depth of field	Narrow depth of field

Snowy day at work

Being hideously unprepared for snow, my journey to work was epic and gruelling, but I made it in alive! At lunchtime most people stayed inside, but Phil and I headed out with our cameras. The virtually deserted and undisturbed snow covering made the science park very picturesque.

Four men in a boat in Cambridge

I'd been promising Selvan I'd show him around Cambridge for a long while and a day came when we were both free to meet. Good fortune had it that Tim was keen to do something that day too and once we were in Cambridge I managed to get Zahari to pop out to join us too. After meeting we had a wander around town and then a look around King's College.

After seeing just about everything there was for tourists to see of the college we found our selves standing on a bridge thinking what to do next and watching people on punts crashing into each other. We all agreed we had to have a go.

I took the guys to a punting place down the river where you could get a boat without being accompanied. Frankly the boat looked very small for four grown men, but after seeing others doing it I thought we were going to be quick learners and find it very easy. It was in fact very difficult and really hard work. Actually pushing and steering the punt with the pole (I'm sure there is technical term, but pole will do) was second in difficulty only to changing drivers. The boat had no stability and any imbalance of weight quickly started the boat to roll. This meant that squeezing past each other was something of a group acrobatic feat. Tim was convinced that my lumbering, brute force and ignorance approach to punting was only going to end in my submergence, but despite coming close I, like all the others, remained inside the boat.

We then decided the best way to finish off a civilised day in Cambridge was to go bowling and get some fast food. In the end, even though it was probably a good idea to call it a day, Tim and I decided to go see UP:3D at the cinema, whilst Selvan and Zahari sensibly made their way home. Extending the day was not regrettable though, it turned out the film was good and the 3D was well worth seeing.