I’m a Laird

One of the things we did on a previous trip to Orkney was take a boat trip around Scapa Flow. Our little group of friends was really interested in doing that as an Orkney Adventure. After trying to get in touch with a couple of companies, we were recommended to really nice guy with a great boat that took us not only around parts of Scapa Flow but also out into the Atlantic Ocean and up along the West Coast of the Mainland to see the Black Craigs.

After our wonderful boat trip, we had a little wander around the town of Stromness.

We travelled by ferry to the Island of Hoy with the specific intention to walk out to and photograph the Old Man of Hoy Sea Stack. This walk was almost 10kms long and we had to climb and descend the equivalent of 60 flights of stairs to get there. To be honest I wasn’t sure my legs were up to the task, but my walking partners were extremely supportive and patient and we did it. The walk and photography was spectacular but the best part was doing it with my Daughter, Dave and Alison and Karen.

After our walk out to the Old man of Hoy, we had lunch at the car and then we took a short walk down to the Bothy at Rackwick Bay Beach. We were treated to a visit with some Highland Cows (Coo’s). They were super friendly and posed for us for quite some time.

We took a short ferry ride from Kirkwall to the Island of Shapinsay. We haven’t been to the island since the summer of 1985. Not much has changed, but we did visit a couple of new places.

We first stopped at the Burroughston Broch. It was first excavated in 1862. The site overlooks the North Sea on the northeast part of Shapinsay. Burroughston Broch is still well-preserved. The drystone walls are up to four metres thick in some parts and there is a complete chamber intact off the entrance passage. Some remains of stone fittings are evident in the interior.

We then travelled to a beach at the very north end of Shapinsay that is well know for Otters. Unfortunately, they were very camera shy, but we sent some time enjoying the sunshine and hunting for sea shells on the beach.

We had to head back to the pier head to be on time for our ferry back to Kirkwall and I got some great pictures of Balfour Castle and the village.

Took a sort of surprise visit to the Orkney Islands in Scotland. The other half of the Imalaird Team flew over on April 1st to be with her Dad and see our daughter who lives in Kirkwall. Coincidently, our daughter took possession of her 1st home on the day my wife arrived in Kirkwall.

My wife’s best friend Karen had made plans to join her in Orkney a week or so after she arrived as a 60th birthday present to herself. She asked if I would like to travel with her and I agreed. I am still not sure I would want to travel that far (2 hour car ride, and 3 flights) on my own just yet due to my health concerns. But together we did it and arrived with no incidents.

You don’t come to Orkney for the weather, so I haven’t been able to get out every day, but I have gotten some rather nice Photos.

The Parish of Orphir and my favourite abandoned croft house.

The Ring of Brodgar

The Ring of Brodgar is large stone henge that is generally thought to have been erected between 2500 BC and 2000 BC. The very impressive stones have stood so long that people no longer remember what their purpose was for.

The Stones of Stenness and the Barnhouse Settlement

Just a little drive down the road from the Ring of Brodgar are the Standing Stones of Stenness. They may be the oldest Henges in all of the UK.

Something I have always wanted to do was visit the Vantage Point Viewing area at Pierre Elliot Trudeau Airport (YUL) in Montreal, Quebec. I have seen amazing photos taken from this viewing area just off one of the active runways. On Monday night I finally had the opportunity to stop by and capture a few photos. Unfortunately between my leaving for and arriving at the viewing area, they switched to the more northern runway, so while no real close up photos, I got a few interesting shot as the sunset was just amazing.

We went and did two locations today. We went to the Mer Bleu Boardwalk and to the Ottawa Airport to capture a couple of airplanes on approach.

The Mer Bleu Board walk is located in the east end of Ottawa. You can find it here using the what3word app/website (https://w3w.co/shattered.overwhelms.lotteries)

We also went over to the the Ottawa Airport and captured a couple of planes on approach into the airport. We took the picture from the following location: https://w3w.co/vitals.drones.records

The planes we were able to capture were:

• Air transat – TS889 – Airbus 321 from Santa Clara
• Air Canada – AC8866 – CRJ2 – from Washington DC

I recently bought a Cotton Carrier System for my cameras. I got the Dual Camera option as I now travel with two Nikon D5300 bodies to do my photos. I used to just switch lens on the fly, but wind, dust and sand are real issues in that scenario. I have been carrying both camera around my neck most of the winter, and what a pain in the neck/back that is. So this weekend I set up all the gear and we went down to the Ottawa River to take some shots and try it out.

I finally was able to capture a Robin in our backyard. I have seen them around the neighbourhood while I have been out on walks, but by the time I get my camera up, they are flying away.

This brilliant little bird was playing in the trees behind my house. I found out later on that it is a Male House Finch. I have to admit, I know nearly nothing about birds, but I love them flying around the cedars behind our house.

Last week I took a two hour Flash Photography Course from Michael Williams Photo here in Orleans. I found the course very interesting and I am really looking forward to honing my skills in the Genre over the next few months. I think I will need to buy (don’t tell the CFO) a few little things to enhance the Speedlights that I own.

Here are few photos from my first practice session last night.