North Wales ( iPhone Only ) Photo Road Trip

Two weeks ago, along with a couple of friends (Anthony Crothers and Brian Dukes) I headed off on an iPhone Only Photo Road-Trip in North Wales … specifically Anglesey.

Leaving on the Thursday and due to head back on the Sunday, we’d sorted out a couple of ‘must go’ locations on Anglesey, namely South Stack Lighthouse and Penmon Lighthouse and then on the return leg as we were staying in Bala, we’d be heading to the nearby white water rafting area to see what we could capture.

DAY 1

On Day 1, Brian drove to my house where he left his car, and we headed off to Anthony’s but first of all to Portishead to photograph the Black Nore Lighhouse and get the first photographs ‘in the bag’.

To be honest I didn’t really get anytihng worth shouting about but hey … being there with Brian was a lot of fun. Getting a decent photograph would have just been a bonus 😃

Then it was a quick stop in Bristol on the way through for Brian to drop into WeX and swap out his new Sony A7RV for one that didn’t have a faulty display, and then it was on to Anthony’s and up to Bangor and The Slate where we were staying for the first 2 nights.

We didn’t arrive until gone 8pm so once we’d checked in and dumped our bags, we headed into Bangor to find somewhere to grab a bite to eat.

A decent curry was the plan but where we ended up, each of us was just glad to have woken the following morning with no issues … if you know what I mean.

DAY 2

With stomachs intact we headed across to Anglesey towards Penmon Lighhouse, however the weather was a touch wet and windy …

“You can’t see anything” said the guy on the toll leading to Penmon Lighthouse, due to the sea mist, so we took his advice and said we’d plan to head back there the following day when the weather was expected to ease off a little … this was a decision we’d all regret!

So we turned back to Beaumaris (fabulous place) and grabbed a coffee and a spot to dry out a little at the Pier House Café which we stumbled upon purely by accident … but what a great find!

After a short pit stop we headed across the island to South Stack Lighhtouse having decided that due to the weather, we’d use the day to check out the locations that we’d revist the next day.

South Stack did not disappoint!

iPhone 15 Pro Max
0.5x lens
3 second long exposure using the ReeHeld (Hand-Held Long Expsoure App)

With the weather as it was and sea mist so thick you couldn’t make out the horizon or indeed see much past the lighthouse, it was such an incredible sight as the sea crashed against the rocks below.

It was almost overwhelming to see the lighhouse in such conditions as it sounded its horn to warn vessels out at sea.

With the horn sounding like a whale call, the scene we were in felt so powerful but almost haunting … if that makes sense.

Anthony no-where near the edge … honestly Elaine 🤔

Anyway, having recce’d a few possible compositions we headed back to Beaumaris and the Pier House Café for bit of lunch (which was delicious) … and yes I had 2 😋

I’m sat here giggling now as I post the picture below which is actually a frame from a video captured with my iPhone …

Anthony and myself were stood in front of the RNLI base shielded from the high winds but Brian ventured out.

I turned my iPhone to him and suggested I video him as he jumps but film it in slow motion, and … well … yeah you got me Brian 🤣

Having seen what we wanted and made plans for Day 3, we headed back to The Slate to freshen up, grab some dinner and relax.

DAY 3

The food was so good at the Pier House Café in Beaumaris that we decided to head there for breakfast (yes I had two) having checked out of The Slate, and as the weather had improved a little it gave some opportunities to take some photographs.

Of course being a portrait guy I couldn’t resist …

This shot I took of Anthony I captured using the ReeFlex Pro Camera App and the Ultra Wide (0.5x) lens …

iPhone 15 Pro Max
0.5x lens
ReeFlex Pro Camera App

This shot I took again using the ReeFlex Pro Camera App, but with the telephoto lens which on my iPhone 15 Pro Max is the 5x … 120mm

iPhone 15 Pro Max
5x lens
ReeFlex Pro Camera App

This was the first proper chance I’d had to use the 120mm lens on my iPhone and yeah I’m really impressed with the quality.

The downside though is that using this lens doesn’t use the 48MP sensor which is why I’m REALLY looking forward to the time I have the G Series lenses from ReeFlex as a permanent part of my kit.

That said, the files from the 5x lens are perfectly useable despite them being lesser MP: I mean heck, I had a 72” print done of a 12MP file taken with my iPhone 14 Pro Max and that was incredible!

Anyway, having grabbed some shots around Beaumaris it was then the short drive to Penmon and the moment we regretted listening to “Toll Guy” the day before 🤷‍♂️

Penmom was a complete surprise.

We’d expected it to be further from the shoreline when in fact it was surprisingly close with a great rocky area to explore and find all manner of compositions.

Don’t get me wrong we were all REALLY happy but couldn’t help thinking how incredible it would have been to photograph it during the weather and conditions the previous day.

iPhone 15 Pro Max
1x lens
ReeXpose Long Exposure App

The photograph above was captured using the ReeXpose long exposure app (using the wide 1x lens) and is a blend of several images each taken at 0.5 seconds in length.

The photograph below was taken a little further back, again uing the ReeXPose long exposure app but using the 0.5x ultra wide lens on my iPhone …

iPhone 15 Pro Max
0.5x lens
ReeXpose Long Exposure App

For this one it would have been great to have the new Circular Polariser from ReeFlex to reduce reflections on the water surface in the rock pools. For now though during editing, a mixture of Dehaze and Texture in Lightroom reduced it quite a bit, and hey if anything, this is a great excuse to head back at some point.

So that pretty much was Day 3, so then it was on to Bala for our final night and then Day 4

DAY 4

Chatting over breakfast we were all saying how happy we were with what we had managed to capture at Penmon, and if that was all there was, it had definitely been a successful trip; I mean it had anyway with us all getting the chance to hang out, but it definitely was photography wise.

The weather had totally changed from the past few days and this morning there was bright sunshine and not a cloud in the sky.

I’ll admit that I was thinking conditions weren’t the best for landscape but Brian had suggested we take a look at a local white water rafting area and maybe visit Bala lake … because ‘you never know’ … and I’m so glad he did, becuase talk about lucky …

iPhone 15 Pro Max
5x lens
ReeFlex Pro Camera App

The lake was like glass and with mist gently brushing across the surface, and hardly a sound. It was simply stunning!

We were like excited children when we pulled up in the car “HOLY SH&T! LOOK AT THAT!” followed by all 3 of us bomb-bursting out of the car and hot footing it, to start taking photographs.

iPhone 15 Pro Max
0.5x lens
ReeFlex Pro Camera App

… and then 30 seconds away from. a different angle …

iPhone 15 Pro Max
5x lens
ReeFlex Pro Camera App

iPhone 15 Pro Max
0.5x lens
ReeFlex Pro Camera App

And then in the blink of an eye that was 4 days done and time to head home but with lots of photographs and lots of great memories and quality time with quality people!

Plans for the next Road-Trip are already underway.

It will again be iPhone-Only but we’re going to wait until we all have the new G-Series ReeFlex lenses as part of our full-time kit, and then we’ll be sticking closer to home and popping over the border into Cornwall.

To be continued …

Oh and if you want to know more about the iPhone Photography Apps being used, I’ve got more details over on my MOBILE Page ( LINK )

UPDATE 💥 The FACTS ABOUT GENERATIVE FILL in PHOTOSHOP 2024

Generative Fill and Generative Expand in Photoshop ... Low Resolution or High Resolution? Will that change? Will it cost me to have High Resolution results? Is it 1024px square or 2000px square? Does using a smaller selection work better? What about the future? What about credits?

There's a PROBLEM with GENERATIVE FILL AI in PHOTOSHOP 2024 😳 Photographers ... Be Aware!

Is Generative Fill AI ready for some SERIOUS use by Photographers and not just for images posted on social media???

•UPDATE: Generative Fill dimensions remain at 1024 pixels square

THIS is why I do what I do ❤️

A few weeks back I took the portrait of the wonderful Di Edwards; wife of the late David Edwards ( World War 2 Veteran) and a family that, thanks to my 39-45 Portraits Project I have become very close to.

Well, yesterday ( 31st July 2023 ) I popped over to Abergavenny, Wales to see Di and her son Chris and to take the printed portraits over to them and I simply could noty have wished for a better reaction.

As the title of this post says … THIS is why I do what I do❤️

Here’s the portraits that I took; both of which were using natural light coming in through a large sliding patio door that leads out onto Di’s garden …

Di and her son Chris

When leaving, as always we had a hug but I’ll forever cherish that she said “I’m blessed to have you as a friend”

Ditto that Di ❤️

Di and her late husband, David Edwards … the best of human-kind right there !

WW2 Veteran David Edwards photographed in April 2019

North Wales Road-Trip 2023

I write this post as a diary entry so that I can look back in it in years to come and remember a great few days away with a great friend, and getting the opportunity to spend some quality time together to chat … and I mean really chat.

• • •

So this past weekend (Friday thru Sunday) I headed out on a Road-Trip around areas in North Wales with my great friend Brian Dukes.

We’d been speaking about doing this for quite a while, and so a few weeks back finally managed to put a date in the diary and before we knew it, we were heading off.

First stop took us from Cardiff where we’d left my car at another friends’ house, Anthony Crothers, then on to Abergavenny for some dinner and finally to Builth Wells for our first stop-over.

We didn’t arrive until around 9.30pm so after an ‘interesting’ greeting from the owner of the B&B (our fault for being so late) we headed out for a quick drink and then it was lights out for an early start the following day.

After breakfast we made our way to Devils Bridge Falls situated in the heart of the Cambrian Mountains, Mid Wales.

A famous location attracting tourists year round, armed with mimimal kit consisting of just our iPhones and Tripods (although I was carrying more kit for filming) we made our way down the seemingly endless steep steps into the depths.

The effort was well worth it though when we got to see the waterfalls which with all the greenery on the surroundings trees and plants, looked stunning.

We followed the route around the base and back up the other side, stopping occasioanlly to take some photographs and grab some video content with my 360 camera.

iPhone 14 Pro Max

10 second long exposure using the ReeXpose App

A great cardio and leg workout and a great first location and a great start to the Road-Trip!

After a spot of lunch at the Hafod Hotel (well worth a visit) which is directly opposite the entrance to Devils Bridge Falls, we then set off towards Bangor, passing through some incredible scenery en-route including the Abergwesyn Pass.

DJI Mini 3 Pro

DJI Mini 3 Pro

Having arrived at the hotel for our 2nd night stop, The Slate, Bangor (which was fabulous) we quickly checked in and then headed the short journey to the Menai Suspension Bridge.

I kept saying it all weekend, but wow, we were so incredibly fortunate with the weather being as good as it was and with there being some incredible clouds too.

We walked across the bridge and made our way down to ground level below the bridge and found a very well positioned grassed area for taking photographs.

It was so good being there with no concern of time or schedule and just hanging out with a friend, taking photographs and capturing video content.

iPhone 14 Pro Max
60 second long exposure using the ReeXpose App

We were both using the ReeXpose and ReeHeld long exposure apps on our iPhones, which definitely contributed to the whole experience being so relaxing not having to carry or think about so much additional kit … just incase.

Having captured all we wanted, it was then back to the hotel for a quick freshen up, a delicious dinner (Brian had Fillet Steak and I had Surf n’ Turf which set off the hotel fire alarm) and then the short drive over Britannia Bridge and onto Anglesey.

I’d been wanting to go here for a few years to photograph the Twr Mawr Lighthouse; a location that has been photographed thousands upon thousands of times … but not by us and certainly not by us with our iPhones.

The walk across the beach to the lighthouse takes about 40 minutes and would be great to do at a steady pace, but we definitely had our marching boots on so we could be sure to get near the lighthouse before sunset which was just over an hour away.

The lighthouse and where its situated is as stunning as I was led to believe. WOW! So incredibly peaceful with only the sound of the sea and the many varied sea birds in the area.

iPhone 14 Pro Max
30 second long exposure using the ReeXpose App

There was unfortuantely a little bit too much low cloud shielding the setting sun from casting warm shafts of light across the landscape, but despite that we were both really pleased with what we saw and captured, and hey … there’s always next time.

Having covered several hundred miles and been to some spectacular scenery along the way, it was time to head back to the hotel and relax, chat, have a cold drink and as we did, enjoy watching Guns n’ Roses LIVE on TV from Glastonbury 😃

The next morning after breakfast we then started making our way slowly back towards Cardiff, but en-route stopping off at a few places so as to take in as much as we could and just enjoy friends spending quality time together.

First stop was to Betws-y-Coed which is somewhere I’d spent quite a bit of time as a child doing activities such as orienteering, rock climbing, canoeing and so on, and being there brought back so many great memories.

The weather, although still fabulous, wasn’t really ideal for photographs so we both just ‘went with the flow’.

After maybe a couple of hours we then headed on to Aberdovey through the outstanding Snowdonia National Park, stopped over in one of my favourite places, Aberaeron to grab a drink and a light snack at the Harbour Master, and then continued making our way back to Cardiff … our final destination where we then met up with friends, Anthony Crothers, Ian Munro and Gerwyn Williams for a meal together celebrating Ian’s recent success in the Natural World Bodybuilding Championships.

So that was it; our 2 ½ / 3 day Road-Trip that was over in flash, or so it seemed.

Great fun. Great memories.

Roll on the next Road-Trip!

Guest Blog Post on Scott Kelby's Photoshop Insider

Really proud to be a Guest over on Scott Kelby’s Photoshop Insider website today ( LINK )

I followed Scott’s blog when I first started out and still do to this day. Back in the day Scott used to run a ‘Motivational’ post every Tuesday and I’ll never forget the morning I started reading as usual and saw that his Tueday post was about me.

We’d not met and become friends at that point but Scott was telling his readers about my work and recommeding they go check it out. That meant a lot!

So much has happened since then and a big motivator of that was and is the support Scott has shown me over the years, so to be back on his blog today is something special for me … it’s kind of where it all started.

Thanks Scott and thanks to Brad Moore for reaching out.

Celebrating our 24th Wedding Anniversary

Yesterday, Friday 12th May 2023 was our 24th Wedding Anniversary!

Thank you so much for all the messages on social media … we read every single one.

The day couldn’t have been better …

After a few days of rain we woke to bright sunshine! Fabulous and relaxing breakfast at River Cottage HQ , relaxing on the beach down at West Bay and then Lyme followed by a simply perfect evening at the The Barrington Boar.

From the welcome as we arrived, the service, the special and unexpected touch of wishing us Happy Anniversary, and the food (oh my god the food!) … it couldn’t have been better.

A wonderful day celebrating 24 years of marriage and now more excited than ever for next year; the planning of which has already started as we’ll be returning to spend a few days away at somewhere VERY special to us both.

Of all I have done and do, this is makes me proudest of all!

PHOTOGRAPHERS ... STOP USING HDMI to connect your Monitor / Display 😳

Photographers ... who knew that connecting your computer to your display with a HDMI cable actually be the reason you're colours look bad and your prints look nothing like they do on the screen?

This video explains all why

IMPORTANT NOTE:
This video is NOT refering to the HDMI cable but the HDMI settings. In some systems for example with an NVIDIA Graphics Card it is possible to dive in and alter the setting so give the Full Range (0 - 255) however this isn’t possible on some other systems including Mac. In this case, amn alternative connection between computer and display is advised e.g. USB-C

iPhone Photography of the iconic Portland Bill Lighthouse

Despite temperatures going down to -8, I couldn’t resist heading down to Portland Bill Lighthouse again to catch the incoming tide and hopefully some better light at sunrise.

My GoPro Hero 10 wasn’t having any of it with the batteries immediately losing all power but thankfully my Insta 360 X3 was having no problems, so I did manage to get some Behind the Scenes footage (below)

Here though is my favourite shot from the morning; captured using my iPhone 14 Pro Max and the Lightroom Mobile App camera, and then edited in Lightroom Mobile and Photoshop on my iPad …

I’m absolutely LOVING the mobile workflow.

Being able to take a photograph with my iPhone and then moments later be sat in a nearby café editing the photographs I’ve just taken on my iPad because they’ve automatically synced across, just blows me away.

BUT to then edit in Lightroom and jump back and forth to Photoshop on my iPad too is just so much fun.

It doesn’t stop there though, because when I get home and sit in front of main computer, the images and all of the edits I’ve done are there waiting for me to tweak and finish off if needed.

Incredible!

To add to this, IF I was using my main camera I could have an equally easy and joyful editing experience by simply loading the images off the memory card onto my iPad Pro and into Lightroom Mobile whilst sat in the café … or wherever 😃

Seeing how this has progressed since Lightroom Mobile and Photoshop on the iPad were introduced, genuinely excites the heck out of me! Sure, Lightroom Mobile and especially Photoshop on the iPad don’t have the exact same functionality as the desktop version (yet) … but it’s coming and to be honest, the workarounds aren’t much to figure out anyway.

I’ll be putting a video together for my YouTube Channel showing this soon.

In the mean time though, here’s a 44 second YouTube Short I put together giving a look ‘Behind the Scenes’ of this Portland Bill Lighthouse Photo Shoot …

The 'Friends' Portrait Project

Yesterday … a great day with friends which also saw the start of our ‘Friends Portrait Project’ which, over the next couple of months is a project that will intentionally mean we get to know each other way more than we currently do.

Back Row (L to R): Ian Munro , Gerwyn ‘Gez’ Williams , Anthony Crothers

Front Row (L to R): Brian Dukes , Dave Clayton & Yours Truly

This is to be a very personal project that’s going be quite a ride with the conclusion seeing us each revealing a portrait , composite , design … whatever, that visually describes and explains who the person is, what they mean to you, and how you ‘see’ them.

What really makes that person tick? Why are they like they are? What is important to them? What is there in their past and present that makes them the person they are? Their values. Their motivations. Likes, Loves, Dislikes. Life events.

There are no rules. There’s no competition. This is a project with the sole purpose of not just knowing, but understanding each other, and an exercise that will make close friends, even closer.

Each and every part of the process is being filmed, with the final part bringing us together and revealing to each other, the pictures we’ve created.

The first part today … Who will Photograph Who?

And so it begins …