Outside Bank station

When I was in London back in September, I had the pleasure of spending an entire day shooting the town with my friend Mike Murphy.  In addition to being a very talented photographer, he's a nice guy to hang out with and - lucky for me - since he lives in London he is a great tour guide!  He knows all the good spots.

The first place we met that morning was here just outside of the Bank tube station.  Once I exited the tube system and came up to ground level, I knew I wanted a shot of this place.  I love shooting cityscapes and architecture, and London is just full of opportunities for that!

Sunrise at Mar Hall

Mar Hall is a luxury resort situated on a wooded estate, just outside of Glasgow, Scotland.  I was there at the end of January this year for a customer event and formal dinner, which included me wearing a kilt.  It was pretty awesome actually. Despite my fears that the whole "Scottish national dress" event was a joke played on an unsuspecting American - and therefore being the only guy to show up in a skirt - it turned out that nearly all the attendees were "kilted".  So I fit right in.  Whew!

Anyways, the following morning I got up to explore the grounds at the crack of dawn, hoping for a few shots.  I was treated to this incredible sunrise, while I mushed around in the damp grass and trampled their lovely golf course greens.  But, it was in the name of art so I felt justified.

And if you are like me, then your obvious question is: where’s the pic of Jim in the kilt?  Well, here it is.  Goofy, huh?  (taken with my iPhone)

Canary Wharf DLR

DLR stands for Docklands Light Railway and it is an automated light rail system used in parts of London.  It's a pretty good system, from what I can tell, but hey I'm not from around there so not sure what Londoners think of it.  Plus I have never used the MetroRail here in Austin, so I'm not really qualified to offer a professional opinion on the matter.  But I digress.

On my recent trip across the pond, I had the good fortune to spend an entire day shooting new and interesting parts of London (new to me, that is) with Mike Murphy (my 2nd time to shoot with him, actually) who in addition to being a great tour guide is also a wonderful photographer.  It's great to have a local photographer guide you around.  While they know the best spots to shoot, they also know how best to get there, and how to figure out which train on the DLR goes where...and which Tube stops to take... and which bus to take when the Tube line is down.

So, thanks Mike!  I appreciate that!

This shot was taken at the Canary Wharf station, which Mike recommended we visit, and I am glad we did.  It's pretty awesome looking in my opinion, but I am partial to these sorts of things.  We all have our weaknesses, I guess. I went a little grungy on the processing on this one, but it is a train station and that just conjures up a little grunge in my mind.  How about you?

The British Museum

Keeping with my London theme from yesterday's post, here's another shot from lovely London.  This time it's the British Museum, which is an awesome place.  I wandered in there, purposefully looking to get this shot.  I shot from this spot on my last visit to London, but for several reasons wanted to re-capture it and start over...so I did.  And here it is!

The museum itself is vast and camera-friendly (though no tripods).  I actually had finished shooting from this spot and was back downstairs in the area just below.  I set up my tripod and fired some shots when I saw a museum employee approaching.  I knew it was going to be about the tripod, so thanks to the wonders of auto-bracketing, I finished my shot while she proceeded to tell me that tripods are not allowed.  

If you ever find yourself in London, be sure and enjoy this incredible museum, whether you are there as a tourist or a photographer.  It's a great place to be both!

Leadenhall Market

This place is awesome!!  I love when you find cool, interesting spots that are off the beaten path!  I had seen shots of Leadenhall Market and it was #1 on my list for my recent trip to London.  However, it is not really close to any of the standard sites that tourists would normally wander across, and as such I had never come across it on previous visits.  (Did I just describe myself as a tourist?  Oops.)

With the help of Google Maps, a printed map, and of course the London Underground - I eventually got there, and all I could say was WOW!

Leadenhall Market is a covered market which sits in the historic city center of London, and is still in use today.  There are a variety of shops here, from a butcher, a florist and as you can see also cheese and chocolate shops (plus a whole lot more).

Thankfully, it was a Saturday morning and everything was closed.  Apart from a few tourists and a couple of other photographers, I essentially had it to myself.  And yes, I took a million pics so this is the first of many more to come!