All posts by Simon

Early Signs Of Winter in Wharfedale

I made this! 🙂

Best viewed directly on Youtube. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CzOEZpyW9vc

I shot this one morning in Lower Wharfedale, which itself is no small feat. Near where I live, and so very accessible, it is also very much in the shadow of Leeds Bradford Airport (LBA). If you know about the rules governing drones then you’ll know that CAA rules prohibit flying within 5 miles of any airport in the UK. Much of Lower Wharfedale falls within the 5 mile exclusion zone of LBA, and this flight was just on the outside edge of that zone. Much of the view in the footage, however, is within the exclusion zone.

When you live near an airport (I live about 2 miles from the LBA runway), it means that any time you wish to fly your drone you must drive a distance. It’s a nuisance, frankly, and means I barely get to fly. But the rules is the rules, and I knew them before I bought my drone.

These days I have keyboards and synthesizers, so I’m delighted to be in a position to write my own musical accompaniment to the videos that I share. I’m particularly fond of this piece, which is simple and – for me at least – reasonably musical. I wouldn’t describe myself as a musician. Most of what I write is best described as elevator music. It’s nondescript and uninspiring. Funnily enough, that often works well with the videos that I produce, but everything is a work in progress and hopefully will get better over time. 🙂

The Best Camera is the One That’s With You

“The best camera is the one that’s with you” is the title of a 2009 book by Chase Jarvis. With his book about iPhone photography, Jarvis popularised the notion of the smartphone camera revolution. An accomplished photographer, Jarvis’ acknowledgement of the smartphone in a new era of popular photography was significant. At the time Jarvis released his book … Read more The Best Camera is the One That’s With You

Drip!

At this time of year there isn’t much light about, even in the middle of the day when the sun is as high as it gets. Photography can get a bit frustrating when you’ve been out shooting, get home only to discover in Lightroom or Bridge that all the images you captured, that you were … Read more Drip!