Uploads from Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)

The Watch House

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 09:14:08 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

After seeing one of Anita's Instagram shots of this watch house at Old Hartley i had an hour to kill after work so popped down with my IR cameras as it was a nice sunny day. I took this shot with my 590nM Nikon D70 then messed with it in PS swapping channels and adding a few localised Hue/Sat layers.

The Watch House on Rocky Island has an interesting history..... This ones for Allan England :D

Take a look at the shipwreck charts of British waters, and you will note the North East coastline has the dubious honour of having the most. The 19th Century was a time of great trade with ships laden with salt coal and glass and of course smuggled contraband such as tea, brandy and tobacco.

It was becoming clear that with increasing disasters at sea, and with so many lives being lost just a stone's throw away from the safety of shore, something had to be done.

At a public meeting held in North Shields' Town Hall on 5 December 1864, it was decided to raise a corps of volunteers to assist in coastal rescue.

The Watch House - Rocky Island's museum
Step up the volunteers

Seaton Sluice Volunteer Life Saving Company was formed in 1876, and was issued with the all important Manby Mortar.

Captain Manby (1776-1854), a lifelong friend of Admiral Horatio Nelson, developed this means by which a line could be fired from shore to off-shore wrecks.

A rope was attached to a steel ball and then fired over the vessel in distress. The line was then used to pull a small boat out to the vessel. The vessel could then be pulled ashore with the casualties safely within it.

This proved to be a successful method of life saving, and the Seaton Sluice Company earned many honours for their selfless endeavours.

One of their most notable feats of courage came on the 28 October, 1880 when two ships were wrecked off the shores of Seaton Sluice.

The Dutch galliot, "The Trebedors", had run fully into the rocks at Crag Point. The courageous rescue of some of the crew attracted awards for some of those involved, and one such honour was given to Thomas Langley in 1880 by the Royal Humane Society.

Hartley Hero

The citation for the Royal Humane Society's Bronze medal reads:

"Thomas Langley, 1.30pm 28 October 1880 off the coast of Durham near the village of Seaton Sluice.

During a violent gale of wind, a Dutch Galliot was seen steering low onto a dangerous reef. Being warned by signal, she attempted to change her course, broached to and was hurled onto the rocks - but the Captain was swept from the rigging and drowned, leaving his wife and child with two seamen in a helpless condition.

The saviour (Thomas Langley) volunteered to be lowered from the top of the rocks (60 or 70ft high) to the wreck by means of a whip-line. He succeeded in reaching the ships deck and with a spare line, he established the usual means of connection with the rocks and saved all hands, being last to leave the ship".

The company continued to be either called into regular action or put on standby through the 1880s. They played an active role in rescue, weather watch and intelligence gathering.

They also went on the win the Newcastle Chronicle Challenge Cup for drill records 11 times. But in 1966 the SSVLC became an Auxiliary Coastguard Station, and in 1982, they mustered for their equipment for the last time.

So, for the SSLVC, with its motto of "Deeds not Words", the lasting memorial for their illustrious work is the museum in the Old Watch House here on Rocky Island.

The museum is open on Sundays between 2.00pm and 4.30pm every Sunday from June to August, inclusive. Disabled access will be in place for the summer of 2006.

Grasmere Lake

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Wed, 05 Jun 2013 12:30:26 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

On our trip to Grasmere one of the walks we took had us walking around the East side of the lake and through Penny Rock Wood to a small gravel beach. I took this long exposure which conveys pretty much the weather while we were there, grey & gloomy. That said we had an amazing time!
Our hotel can be seen at the opposite side, The Daffodil recommended by Mike Ridley, thanks sir ;)
No chance of lovely reflections as the water was quite choppy!
Im quite proud of the fact on our first lake walk we ended up on Grey Crag and Alcock Tarn which is an ascent of 360m from the hotel. Grey Crag can be seen jutting up from the right hand fell if you follow the closest rock in the foreground straight up :)

REally loved this place and have so many other walks we want to do now ive done a bit more research. We're already planning our return visit :D

www.daffodilhotel.co.uk/

VIP @ 1 o clock.....

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Tue, 04 Jun 2013 12:20:46 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

On mine & Claires Anniversary trip to York i sneaked in a few cheeky shots of the York Wheel which was in our Hotel Grounds with both my Infra Red Sony F717 & normal DSLR.
This shot was taken using my Sony with a 850nM Infra Red Filter and Hoya ND8.
The shot is in the comments box on my previous upload but after some nice comments both on here and FB i thought i would give it its own spotlight :)
We went on the wheel and both of us were rather skitzy i must say! The wheel is 60m high but pretty pathetic compared to the mahoosive London Eye which stands at 135m! Think i'll give that one a miss! :D

Rotation

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Sun, 02 Jun 2013 03:45:57 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

For our 8th Wedding Anniversary the wifekins & I booked a night at York Royal Hotel and 2 nights at Grasmere and handily this big wheel was in the grounds of the York Hotel so while Claire was in the shower it wouldve been rude of me not to dive down and get some Long Exposures in right :D

Due to the size of the wheel and the limited space around it i thought a 10-20 shot from up close would suit it best so i set up under it on the grass. I screwed on my 6 stop Hoya filter then stacked my Lee Holder onto that, a scary practice as if it gets stuck youre fooked!
After composing i added my Lee Big Stopper and dialed in the old Bulb setting.
It was tricky getting long exposures of the wheel as it keeps stopping to let people on to keep it balanced. That said i have some interesting shots where its blurred but with the carriages showing lol
We had a great couple of days in York and Grasmere was just brilliant! Thanks to Mike Ridley once again for the info :)
Cant wait to go back and we're looking at places now for my birthday in August :) We did a few walks, one of which was an Ascent to Alcock Tarn with panoramic views of Windemere, Coniston and Skiddaw to name a few and walking is something we both want to take further so i'll be investing in some OS maps and i defo want a walking pole :D
I didnt realise how close the lakes are to each other lol

Slight fail on our break was after taking this shot i set my camera in the room for a timelapse while we were out and set it to jpeg but bloody forgot to change it back! I only realised when i opened a shot with PS and it didnt go into Adobe Camera Raw. Gutted :[

Joe's Pond {Explored}

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Sat, 01 Jun 2013 02:58:05 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

After asking friends on Facebook about ponds & lakes in and around the North East and being overwhelmed with great locations i decided on this one, Joe's Pond at the Rainton Nature Reserve in Houghton-Le-Spring. It had high surrounding foliage and a few little jetties that looked interesting so Claire & I ventured out with me armed with both my IR Nikon D70 and my Sony F717 with 720 & 850nM filters. Heres one of the first shots i took using my Nikon, a 2 shot panorama.

After using a DNG profile to correct the WB in PShop i swapped the red & blue channels then used various adjustments such as Levels. I then also used selective adjustments on the foliage & sky.

Location

Mount Pleasant Lake Infra Red {Explored}

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Thu, 30 May 2013 01:32:34 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

There was a break in the weather recently and the sun was out so i visited a small lake near Houghton Le-Spring just off the Washington Highway. It is located in the James Steel Park which includes a walk which stretches along the side of the River Wier. Its a lovely spot with water lilly's stretching out from the fishing bays.

I took this panorama (10 shot i think) with my Sony F717 using a Hoya R72 & Hoya ND8. I stitched them in CS6 using Photomerge then used an action ive created to switch the red & blue channel and also do some adjustments.

Some info on the area

Sycamore Gap

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Thu, 23 May 2013 10:04:36 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Heres another Infra Red shot taken at Sycamore Gap on Hadrians Wall from my recent trip. I had to drop right down near the sheep poop for this one lol. Although it may look like a fisheye shot to people who havnt been i took this with my 18-200. The tree is in a steep dip between Once Brewed & Steel Rigg.

I watched a program about the wall the other day and one of the theories about why Hadrian ordered it to be built was because he had 8000 soldiers in the area and was worried they would become troublesome and possibly mutinous so by building it this would keep them busy!

Location

Sycamore Gap

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Fri, 10 May 2013 06:25:10 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Heres another Sycamore Gap shot from my last visit to Hadrians Wall where we walked from Steel Rigg, around Greenlee Lough and back. This shot was taken with my 590nm IR converted Nikon D70 which one one of three cameras i had with me that day lol
Processing wise i swapped the red & blue channel then ran it through Silver Efex Pro 2. I had to clone out a few people most notably Claire who was sitting infront of me! She took it well when i showed her the original then this lol
I also cropped square as it seemed a nice comp.

Sycamore Gap

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Mon, 06 May 2013 09:27:59 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

After doing a walk last week West of Once Brewed on Saturday Claire & I planned to go the opposite way passing Sycamore Gap then heading North just before Housteads on a circular walk that passed Greenlee Lough. After waiting for the masses to pass by i took this shot after trying a few long exposures that didnt quite look as good as I felt the clouds were better stationary. Ive seen this comp a few times most recently in Jimmy Reasons stunning sunset shot so thought i'd give it a bash. Due to my shot being taken mid day there wasnt much in the way of colour so mono it had to be. I used my Lee 0.9 Soft Edge Grad on this shot but also added a grad in Adobe Camera Raw at a 45 degree angle to accentuate the cloud formations. I also made a 50% gray layer and burned the stone blocks on the path to give them a bit of detail.
Its amazing how many people pass through here when you stop for 20 minutes!
After this we headed West and continued on the walk which literally killed the pair of us! 2 wrong turns (i blame the map :P) had us walking more like 10 miles and we both ended up with sunburn/stroke believe it or not. I have to say once you leave the wall it gets quite boring scenery wise but i appreciate the National Park mustve spent a lot of money in making the route what with the legthy boardwalk just past Greenlee Lough.

Greenlee Lough Walk

Jimmys shot at Sunset

The Lone Tree

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 07:38:28 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Ive seen this tree in Anita's stream but wasnt sure it was enroute on our circular walk from Once Brewed to Cawfield Quarry but i was over the moon when i came over the hill and there it was.
As i was with wifekins there was to be no stopping every 5 mins and using the 10 stops etc so this was a handheld without filters etc.
Processed in Silver Efex Pro 2.

Just noticed my shutter speed, wow... dont think ive ever been in that zone :D

Approx Location stolen from Neets Stream :D

Steel Rigg - Hadrians Wall

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:31:25 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

On the start of our circular walk from Once Brewed to Cawfield Quarry and back we had just headed up to the wall from Once Brewed car park and this was the 4th & last shot i took with my IR converted D70 before the bloody battery ran out... Epic Fail on my part lol.
So early in the walk but too far to return to the car for my spare which was in my 2nd bag :[
What a wonderful place this is, defo somewhere you need to visit if you havnt already :)
If you havnt been before that light coming through from between the crags is Sycamore Gap where the Robin Hood tree is :)

My exact shooting position

Cawfield Quarry IR

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 10:57:59 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Please view LARGE
On Saturday Claire & i visited Hadrians Wall where we did a circular walk from Once Brewed to Cawfields Quarry and back using the Northumberland National Parks 'Rangers Favourite Walks' Guide.
Cawfields is a former quarry cutting dramatically through Hadrians wall and the underlying Whin Sill dolerite bedrock.
Hadrians Wall actually stops dead on the top of the point seen in this shot so its just aswell we didnt follow it up the other side lol!
Its a dramatic spot and somewhere that has great potential for every type of landscape photography wether day or night.
As my D70 IR camera had died a death early in the walk i thought i'd give the D5000 another bash with my Hoya R72 IR Filter. Due to its strong IR blocking filter i had to run into nearly 4 minutes exposure which actually helped as i wanted to flatten the water out and get some nice cloud movement. It was my only chance to take proper tripod/filter type shots as we were primarily out for a walk but we had stopped for a bite to eat on the grass here so i had to take advantage right? :D
As i already knew from my previous efforts with this combo False Colour is out of the window so mono it is!

This place is really great as is the whole stretch from Once Brewed and its one for the list if you havnt been before.

Where its at

Live Webcam

Rangers Favourite Walks PDF

Looking East...

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 10:57:59 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Please View LARGE :)
Claire and i had decided on doing a 7 mile circular walk on Hadrians Wall after getting a Northumberland Walks brochure off Bill from the B & B at Kielder we stayed in on my recent Observatory visit. The walk took us West from Once Brewed along to Cawfield Quarry then South across the Military Rd and back though the countryside until you arrive back at Once Brewed. The cloud was looking awesome in the morning so i grabbed both my D5000 and IR D70 hoping to get some great shots on the way. Ive only been from Once Brewed to Sycamore Gap twice in the past so was really intrigued to see what awaited us to the West.
I wasnt disappointed as the scenery is amazing! Its a very hilly walk but that all just adds to the beautiful views as the wall meanders over crag after crag. I took this shot from Caw Gap looking back towards Whinshields Crag, the highest point along the entire wall at 1132 ft above sea level.
I have to say i loved walking along this stretch but didnt enjoy the blasting wind that went up my left nostril and down my throat haha!
As you can see the cloud didnt fade and was far better than on my last visit where it was grim as fook! lol
Unfortunately i only got 4 shots with my IR D70 before the bloody battery died! I had left my 2nd bag in the boot with the spare in :/

Since the map function on here is so crap heres a better idea of where i stood ish :)

Bolam Lake Super Colour IR

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 10:11:36 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Dived up to Belsay Hall & Bolam Lake today since the sun was out :D

This is a 4 shot pano using my Nikon D70 converted to 590nM.

I swapped channels then did some selective adjustments to the sky and foliage.

Blyth Beach Huts @ Blue Hour

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Wed, 17 Apr 2013 10:37:31 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

After a text of Mick i chucked the gear in the car and drove down to Blyth where we decided to have a look over at the Piers for sunset. Weather seemed canny with a high tide albeit a low one at 4m but on arrival to the coast it wasnt ideal... No clouds in our vicinity, strong winds and a pancake flat sea! Not to be defeated we hastily headed onto the pier where it was even worse wind wise which i suspected from past experiences. After a few failed Long Exposures we headed back to land, i took a few shots of the new red poo pipe while Mick walked along it to get a better vantage point. This was the highlight of the trip in fairness and Mick has the balance of a mountain goat :D
The light dropped fast so we jumped in the cars and drove along to the carpark where the beach huts are and took a few shots there.

Check out Mikes Stream :)

The Jump Off

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Tue, 16 Apr 2013 09:25:06 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

A while back i visited the Angel of the North with my 2 IR cameras as the sun was out. After taking a few shots with my Sony F717 i decided i would try my Samyang 8mm Fisheye on the converted D70 to see how it handled with hot spots. To my surprise it was great, the complete opposite of what i expected due to its huge bulbous front element.

As there was the usual rabble of tourists around the base the only way to shoot was up! In this shot i was pointing the camera pretty much straight up hence the lens flare which i kinda like. I love the fact the angel looks like its about drop out of a plane or something.
I converted to mono and added a white vignette in Silver Efex Pro 2. I suppose this was an experimental shot... one of those where youre just going through old stuff and see something you fancy having a mess with.

Camera - Nikon D70 Converted to 590nM by Pro Tech Repairs.

Hareshaw Linn

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Tue, 09 Apr 2013 09:06:41 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

After visting Kielder for the Astro Master class at the Observatory on Friday night we took up Bill's (from Eals Lodge B&B) recommendation and visited Hareshaw Linn in Bellingham on the way home. It a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and includes a 1.5 mile walk through a Dene with many waterfalls with this Linn at the end.
Its heyday was in the 19th Century when it was a centre for iron. Hareshaw Linn was the site of two blast furnaces established in 1833 by Messrs Bigge and Partners. At the peak of its operation it also contained 70 coke ovens, 24 large roasting kilns for calcining the iron ore, a range of coal stores, a blacksmiths shop, wagon shed, stables and stores.The iron works were in continuous production until 1848.

Ten years later the plant was auctioned and many of the buildings demolished.The dam that you pass on the walk supplied water to power the Hareshaw iron works.

This 30ft fall is particularly great for photography but is situated under a precarious rock ledge with Icicles hanging above you so i was a bit nervous while setting up! Claires face was a picture standing there lol
The walk is stated as Easy but i found it quite a trek lol Its defo one to add to your list if you havnt visited before. The wood is quite untidy for photography as theres a lot of trees that have fallen from the high banks making the compositions cluttered.
For these shots i used my Hoya ND64 filter.
Hareshaw Linn

The Tower...

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 14:13:47 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Heres another shot from Fridays Kielder Observatory Astrophotography Masterclass. This is one of the Telescope openings which rotates under the rising Milky Way. Also if you look inbetween it and the bottom right corner you can see the Andromeda Galaxy and also the panSTARRS Comet.
It was pretty special seeing the sky at night from this super dark location and hopefully the first of many :)
Please check out Mike Ridleys shots from the same night...

Turbine under the starry sky at Kielder Observatory.

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 11:00:08 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Well after many postponments to the Kielder Observatory Astro Photography Masterclass i eventually managed to get there this Friday, the first of a 3 night event with a couple of friends Norma & Mick. Many of a group of us had pulled out after the original event in early feb was cancelled due to bad weather.
Luckily this time the snow had gone (just) so we were hopeful of a good night! Forecast said partly cloudy till after midnight ish but as i drove around Kielder Reservoir at 10pm i was blown away when i looked up at the sky, So many stars it was it unreal! We had a great night at the Observatory managing to see the Andromeda Galaxy and also the panSTARRS Comet which is visible at the moment. There were experts on hand to help out and also go through everything from the basics to pro stuff. The Astro Trac panning rigs looked very interesting i have to say!

During the night i have to say i struggled with focusing and also confirmed what i already knew in that my D5000 isnt up to much with regards to this type of stuff... As soon as you try and push the ISO past even 800 the images are noisy as hell! Focusing wise going with Infinity just didnt work with my Sigma 17-70 whereas it is pretty good on my 10-20. This is the most difficult thing i find with Night Photography but im hoping to conquer it.

Claire and I decided than rather me driving home at 4 am and her being stuck in the house alone on a Friday night we would book into a B&B near Kielder and make a short weekend of it.
I have to tell everyone that this B&B was awesome! Its called the Eals Lodge and is a restored 18th Century Coach Inn between Bellingham & Kielder ran by husband and wife Bill & Pauline. They are the most hospitable and friendly couple i think ive ever met and they have a great knowledge of the areas. If you ever need a place to stay dont hesitate! Everyone on Trip Advisor agrees aswell :)
On arrival we went to The Pheasant Inn for food which was really nice then on the Saturday morning after a cracking Northumberland Brekkie provided by Bill we headed into Kielder for some trekking and photography. Also on the way home later that day we visited Hareshaw Linn in Bellingham upon Bills recommendation. This is a great place to visit for a walk with a beautiful waterfall at the end with great photography opportunities.

Eals Lodge B&B
Kielder Observatory
Hareshaw Linn
Walk Details

Mosaic (Explored #212, April 4th)

nobody@flickr.com (Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29)) — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 09:37:00 -0700

Phil 'the link' Whittaker (gizto29) posted a photo:

Hit 'L' :)
As the cloud was looking just right on BH Monday i dived down to the new set of University buildings opposite St.James Park to take more architectural long exposures. This is the student accommodation building called Central Link. It has a great mosaic finish which is actually brown and looks great when the light is hitting it.
I converted the shot to mono using various layers for the sky and building and used the Polygon Lasso Tool to make my selections around the building which i find so much better than the Quick Selection Tool which gives you a jagged edge along the pixels.
For the shot i used my Hoya ND64 and NDX400 screw on filters giving 14.6 stops in total. In this bright light that equated to 134 seconds @ f10. The clouds were bombing along which helped...

On the opposite side of the road here the Newcastle Breweries are totally gone and work on the next phase is well under way so hopefully by 2014/15 there should be even more interesting tall buildings to shoot, something i find we lack in Newcastle but then i need to spend more time looking up! :D

Newcastle University Science Central