The Green Isle of the Great Deep

Neil Cormack, originally uploaded by ccgd.

Neil is a weel kent face around Easter Ross - both through his work, and as he is the Vice Commodre of Invergordon Sailing club.

He is a hell of a nice guy, and also happens to be my cousin.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 8:27 PM | Permalink | Comments

Sailing home, originally uploaded by ccgd.

at the end of the day.

Robert and David.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 7:25 AM | Permalink | Comments

Alex's rig, originally uploaded by ccgd.

Sailing past on Saturday morning, the Ocean Guardian, at the Invergordon service base. First time alongside for 30 months, she is getting a pretty major refit, which includes a complete new port side crane.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 6:51 AM | Permalink | Comments

Old radio valves, originally uploaded by ccgd.

Radio Valves from the 40's on my workbench.

Why the radio valves, and why am I blogging this?

Well I took this shot about 4 years ago, when I just got back into photography, and was playing about with indoor black&white shots. The Valves are from a large collection of WW2 radio parts that my Dad took back from the far east in 1945/46 on returning from his war against Japan.

I now have them, though they are totally useless, but have of course a serious nostalgistic value.

Old shots on flickr tend to sleep quietly, unless someone else notices - and this case its a Harvard Business Blog, using this snap to illustrate an article about on-line marketing.........

Strange things happen on line, and your photos turn up in the weirdest places.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 8:15 PM | Permalink | Comments

Sutor Creek Mosaic, originally uploaded by ccgd.

Some of my photos you can see on the walls of the Sutor Creek Restaurant, Cromarty, for the next month or so.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 6:38 AM | Permalink | Comments

Marine terrace in the evening sun, originally uploaded by ccgd.

The post war buildings of Cromarty are not normally photographed, but I must admit I like the regular lines of Marine Terrace, and the fact they proudly display a Scottish 1940's and 50's "burgh" architectural style.

Here thay are caugt on a late August evening.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 6:02 AM | Permalink | Comments

The Buss Bank bouy, originally uploaded by ccgd.

At the mouth of the Cromarty Firth, and wonderfully decorated with the Northern Lighthouse's URL - www.nlb.org.uk

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 1:07 PM | Permalink | Comments

That 70's show, originally uploaded by ccgd.

A strange icon to British 70's design - the 7:55 Inverness - London Train. What was known as an Inter City 125 back in the days of my youth, now as the faded classic lines of a candidate for "what the future should have been".

I'm a regular on this train, which I still cannot but think of as the GNER, but on this ocasion was dropping Magnus off - he is down to South Wales via Ecinburgh for the British Track Champs (nice write up about him in last weeks Ross-shire Journal.)

Shot in RAW - converted with PSPX2 Red Filter option.

Nice Gritty feel.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 8:35 AM | Permalink | Comments

The ebb and flow of the tide., originally uploaded by ccgd.

The ebb and flow of the tide.

Cromarty Beach.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 5:28 AM | Permalink | Comments

cromarty rose in HDR, originally uploaded by ccgd.

This is what I wrote about this picture on Flickr.

"From three raw images - hand held. I quite like the subtle HDR that PSPX2 gives you - no obvious tone mapping."

Looking at the words above in the cold light of day, its technobabble. Gobblety gook.

But it does mean something to lots and lots of people.

Technolgy rules!

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 8:52 PM | Permalink | Comments

robert aka coco, originally uploaded by ccgd.

Taken on the 8th August 2008 - 8/8/8 - my old pal Robert Hogg, whose by name is coco (from his Grandfather I seem to remember).

We had just been for a sail around the firth in Roberts new boat (well more of a drift - the winds were light and variable) and here we were rowing back to the harbour in the smallest dingy that its possible to get two grown men in,

It did give me a interesting angle - almost as if I was in the water.

Postcript @ 19:00

I posted this snap on Flickr, which stimulated the following Men are from Mars - women are from Venus conversation:-

Kara (a pal from New York of the female persusion) asks:-

"What do you guys talk about"

I reply (thinking great this is my chance to show that men are not all dumb brutes who grunt at each other when not knocking back large pints):-

Interesting question Kara - thats exactly what Ruth and Chrissie (Roberts wife) ask as well.

We talk about boats, and sailing, and engines, - Robert gave me a blow by low account of his trip up from the Clyde in his new boat, how the engine mountings came loose, and how he fixed them - and about our kids, and what they are doing (our families are the same age), about birds, and fishing, about building oil rigs and wind turbines, about Highland politics and politicians, more stuff about ships and tugs, about whisky (we made tea laced with a good drop of malt) about our Dads and Granddads (who worked together in the 50's in Caithness at the Fishing), about Roberts time at sea as an engineer, and about the different boats I see in Boston Harbour, about mutual friends and about work.

Quite a lot actually, but as Ruth says - boys stuff.......

Kara replies:-

"Ruth's right...... "

Thats me put in my place.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Comments

Stock, originally uploaded by ccgd.

I currently have a small exhibition of some of my better Cromarty shots running at our local restaurant - Sutor Creek - and have been busy preparing lots of mounted copies for sale. I ordered photographic bags off e-bay to house the prints safely.

Did they come in time - of course not - but Donna who runs the Cromarty Bakery came to rescue with her food plastic sealing machine.

Worked a treat, and of course the bags arrived today.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 12:25 PM | Permalink | Comments

Mother and calf, originally uploaded by ccgd.

was down on the beach looking to snap passing cruise ships (there were two going out that night) when four local dolphins started a rather fun show.

This is from the Ferry Slip, next to Cromarty Harbour.

A lot harder to photo than you think.



Olympus E-500 - 40-150 lens - photo cropped quite heavily.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 11:46 AM | Permalink | Comments

Reflections of Masts, originally uploaded by ccgd.

Friday night, calm and warm, and the harbour was buzzing. Kids (and nor so young kids) fishing for cuddies and mackerel, drinkers from the Royal all sitting outside, and glorious reflections in the harbour.

Posted by Flickr Scotland at 1:57 PM | Permalink | Comments