Celestial.

Hey everyone,
It's been a little while since I've posted something on here however I have been concentrating on a lot of things at the moment including a couple of huge blog posts so this one has been slightly delayed which you will notice as it contains shots I photographed of the full moon from a little while ago. However, I still really wanted to get these online, and although I've taken a few photos of the moon before with a long lens and a tripod, I decided to change it up for these shots! I've focused predominately on the clouds rather than focusing on the moon itself as I quite liked the atmosphere this gave the image especially considering the kind of night that I took these photos. What this really means is that I didn't expose my settings for the moon but for the clouds instead, and sadly that does means the moon will look slightly overexposed but I wanted the clouds to be the main feature as they were really noticable and I think this gives a much different look to what could be another boring and dull photo of the moon. I hope that you all enjoy these photos as much as I do, so let me know what you think, it's always great to talk to people that share an interest for photography!
Hopefully I'll be back soon with those two posts that I've been keeping back!

Nicola. x

Seaside Cottages and Fisherman Bars.

Hi everyone,
Today I'm back with a continuation to previous post about artists, including local murals, graffiti and design, and at the moment I'm focusing on places in my local village that I'm currently interested in, I've previously talked about how I have been particularly fascinated with the seaside theme, so I decided to capture a few popular spots in Broughty Ferry. The main photos below this little paragraph are what I am specifically talking about, the classic Ship Inn bar alongside the Barometer cottage, and the last shot of The Fisherman's Tavern, both much loved little venues that are very well associated with Broughty Ferry. I'm especially attracted to the appearance of these two venues, the colours of the Fisherman's Tavern and the typical seaside look of the Ship Inn with the Barometer cottage are perfect fitting with Broughty Ferry's seaside aesthetics.

Of course, I've included another angle of the glorious Broughty Ferry Castle and beach which I photographed a couple of blog posts ago, it's such a lovely place and sometimes it's just nice to take some different angles of a location. After all you never know what treasures you may find along the way, no pun intended with the seaside theme or anything...you get what I mean! Also, I thought I'd mention if any of you follow me on Instagram you'll notice that I've been posting little sneak peaks of what photos I'm currently working on, so there's definitely more blog posts coming soon with my latest adventures, but make sure to check out/follow my Instagram page at, http://www.instagram.com/nicolasharkeyphoto for more consistent updates!
Nicola. x

The Artist.

Hey everyone,
Lately my never-ending fascination with architecture has taken a turn and I'm currently fascinated by local murals, graffiti and design, so here's a couple of my most recent shots that I've photographed around my hometown. I've always had a particular liking for this mural that you are currently looking at above, every time I venture around this area in Dundee I wish I'd brought my camera with me to snap a quick shot, so I decided to finally make it happen since I've had a little bit of spare time, and thank goodness it was fairly good weather for the occasion!
The mural itself was painted in 1982 and shows many views and historic references about Dundee including the Tay Bridge, Dundee docks and Tay whale. I believe there were talks about it being restored which I kind of hope happens as it would look even more beautiful with a bit of a repaint!
I'm going to continue with my current theme on creativity in my next post as I've already planned a feature around a few of my other favourite places in my hometown, which I have infact already photographed so once I have finished editing the shots they will be online soon.

Nicola. x

Let Bloom.

Hey everyone,
A couple of weeks ago I finally managed to capture some amazing pink and vibrant orange sunrise shots, which I've been longing for some time now as many of you will remember. These were taken quite early in the morning, I think roughly about 8am and literally after I took these photos this amazing pink sky faded within only a few minutes, something of which always half annoys me but astounds me at the same time when I realise I managed to get the best of the best! Although, the annoying part being that I could have missed such an amazing shot which has happened many of a time before as most photographers will have experienced at some point in their career.
I talked briefly about RAW format photos in my previous post and I feel like I've mastered how to work these kind of shots now so I'm excited about getting back into photographing some of my more favourite peculiar and select locations to see how they translate this way. I'm definitely thinking about getting a few of these shots printed from photobox to see the quality difference, and update some of my photo frames at the same time!

Be sure to check out my Instagram page as I always post sneak peaks of any new photography pieces I'm working on before they're uploaded to my blog, my username is @nicolasharkeyphoto
As always I'll be back soon with lots more photos for your viewing pleasure!
Nicola. x

Dreaming Of The Seaside.

Hi everyone,
I'm back with a set of photos that I've been fairly excited to get online, I enjoyed taking these shots at the time and I knew that they were going to be a lot of fun to edit.
I've never really taken photos in RAW format before, shock horror and I know someone should give me a slap on the wrist for it but I have started trying to slowly bring it in to my photography routine...although sometimes I forget to turn on the RAW option so forgive me for forgetting the last time, now it's on for good though! Anyway I did luckily remember this time around as I was predominately photographing the clouds which kept coming out too flat so this instantly reminded me to switch on the RAW option, and thank goodness I did as it really brings back all of the lost quality that JPEG seems to take away.


Back to the idea of the seaside theme, I've actually recently discovered an artist called Tracy Savage on an outing around Broughty Ferry's local gallery. I am in total awe of her unique and quirky painting style so much that I had to buy a couple of prints for my room. I posted an instagram photo of the prints, I bought 'The Grand' and 'Bridge Keepers', two beautiful paintings that caught my eye, but I do feel I may go back for one of the VW camper van pictures, such a 70's beach vibe and I love it!
On another note, I'm glad I've finally photographed Broughty Ferry Castle, who would have thought it would have taken all of this time to get around to photographing places in your hometown? haha! However, I am proud of the shots I managed to get even if it was a bit of an overcast day, I like those kind of photos as it makes the location look way more moody, which seems to be something I bring out in my landscape pictures a lot, haha!


Anyway, I've still got lots more shots to upload and I'm already thinking about what's next, I've definitely missed taking landscape photographs!
Nicola. x

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone!
I know it may seem irrelevant to say so as it's already near the end of January but I've just recently got settled into my new place after moving at Christmas, and I must admit that it was pretty stressful at the time but at least I'm finally ready to get started with everything again.
Since I've entered the world of Instagram and have seen what everyone else has been getting upto it's made me very inspired and encouraged to get back into photography, lots of ideas have been floating around my head for a while so it's time to finally put them into action. Not before long I was dusting the cobwebs off my blessed camera and was strolling around my local area for inspiration, and funnily enough I realised I'd never taken photos of this cute little 16th century castle that I happen to bypass most days of the week.

Of course I've still been inspired by mid 90's and early 00's films, one of the latest on my list has been The Little Vampire ever since I watched it for the first time over the holidays, it's such an incredibly adorable film! Anyway, you're probably wondering what the significance is with my photos but the movie was predominately filmed in Scotland and the castle that I photographed reminded me of many scenes in the movie, although I'm sure there are no vampires living in this one!
The photo above was actually a quick snap that I caught when I was about to walk away, I just loved the look of the black iron gates infront of the small wooden door, I don't know what it is but every time I take a photo of gates, they always seem to add a certain creepy value to the building, although it maybe doesn't help that I turned this shot black and white, haha!

Anyway, I'm going to leave it at that for the time being, but I'll let you all know that I recently went on another jaunt and photographed the beautiful Broughty Ferry seaside in the gorgeous low winter sunshine. It was absolutely stunning and peaceful, almost like a holiday away from home! I'll try and get those photos edited as quick as possible, they're a bit different from the usual castles and creepy buildings that I tend to take photographs of, haha, so I'm looking forward to getting them online!
Nicola. x

Photobox Prints & New Frames.

Hi everyone,
Remember those frames that I have been repeatedly talking about since Christmas?...and I keep saying I'll eventually get photo prints for them?...well I finally managed to choose the shots that I wanted to be printed and sent them off to Photobox!

The photos that I've posted merely show what the frames and prints look like together and not on actual display, I never took any shots of what they look like in my room as I'm going to be moving house soon however when I eventually do move there will be an updated room tour post, so stay tuned! Anyway, I hadn't overly planned out which photos I wanted in any particular frame but I definitely knew of two that I wanted, which included a poster print of my current favourite live music photo of the guitarist from Heaven's Basement, really happy with that one and the other poster print was another one of my favourites, the 'Edward Scissorhands' mansion from a few blog posts previous. I absolutely love the way these two turned out with their frames.

The smaller shots were all random picks really, the two at the very start of this post are (left-right) a photo of Queen's View in Pitlochry and the 1920's-esque Grosvenor cinema in Glasgow. The combined oval shaped frame below was a harder task to choose photos for, I quite liked the thought of having another live music photo so I picked this one of Billy Talent's vocalist. The other shot is totally random because I couldn't think of anything better at the time haha, but I actually like the way it looked in the end.
Overall, I'm really happy with the prints and the way they all turned out, I would highly suggest to check out Photobox as they are a great company. The photos are all high quality and great colour, plus they arrived super quickly, so it's great if you're needing them quick for exhibitions etc. I'm definitely going to be ordering more soon as I don't have nearly enough live music shots printed so more of those will be on my list!

Let me know if you've framed any of your photos recently, I love looking at other photographer's work and being inspired! Hope my post has helped anyone that is looking to get their photos printed aswell.
Nicola. x

Dundee in the Summer.

Hey everyone, I've recently been hugely inspired by a few youtube photography tutorials to try out some sunset shots, so about a month ago I set off on a really good sunny night hoping that there would be an amazing shot to be achieved, but alas there was nothing special...(and I hate to say it but the next night the sky looked utterly amazing at sunset but I wasn't prepared). However I thought I'd put up the shots I managed to get at the time anyway because I quite liked them nonetheless, and the first one has quite a moody atmosphere to it, the second is totally the opposite and funnily enough, these were both taken at the same time but different directions of the sun.



The photo below is the current situation Dundee city centre is in, quite a state if you can see! It seems that they're trying to start and finish different projects all at the same time and I can understand the point of getting work done quickly but it's a pain to get places in traffic everyday. Ranting aside, I thought it made for a good image anyway, the building actually used to be the Tayside House and I'm pretty sure it was also a good five or six storeys higher than it is in this picture as they have been slowly taking it down over the past few months now, and I believe it is fully gone now, hooray!



Oh, also I recently loaded my Holga camera with a new roll of 120 film as I was cleaning my room the other day and noticed it gathering dust in its box, so it was about time it got put to good use again, expect some photos from those outings soon!
Nicola.x

Sunshine On The East Coast.

Hey everyone,
I thought I would post another set of landscape photos that I have been working on recently. These shots are once again from last year, roughly around late Autumn. It's actually one of my favourite seasons of the year to photograph subjects and particularly locations with the gorgeous Autumnal colours of fallen leaves on the ground, there's no doubt that a lot of my landscape and scenery shots transpire a little more rapidly around that time.
I've actually taken photos at this location before so you may or may not recognise some of the areas. I'm not sure if it's apparent but I'm in constant awe of certain places that I have visited so sometimes I return to them a while later and photograph them again to see the changes, in both the location and even my photography. It's actually quite good to do things like that every once in a while, mainly to see the progression in your work.
The last couple of shots I added in purely for a little bit of fun. They certainly made me laugh when I bypassed them on my journey anyway, haha!

Nicola. x

Revisiting Edward Scissorhands Mansion.

Hey everyone,
Surprisingly enough, I've actually been working on this blog post for some time now...well it was roughly around November last year! Yes I know, that's a long time isn't it?! However I had a lot of other commitments at the time so the photos ended up taking the backseat, but I'm glad to say that I have finally managed to find the time to finish editing the shots as I've really been wanting to post them for a while now.
Some of you may remember that I have previously taken photos of this derelict building already, it was actually back in the summer of 2011, however with my new kit on the go I really wanted to go back and shoot some more photos, and especially with the addition of the crisp winter weather we are having...any photographer should agree with me that it adds a little extra touch to a photograph.

You'll also probably notice that I keep calling this place the 'Edward Scissorhands' mansion, really it just seems like the best possible title because the building really reminds me of the house/mansion you see early on in the film. It's gorgeous, creepy and beautiful all at the same time...and it even reminds me of many other buildings in films by Tim Burton, such as Alice in Wonderland. I am completely in love with places like this, I could spend ages looking at them and this one is by far the most beautiful. It's ornate white sculptures and skillfully carved topiary bushes in the garden conclude it to be one of the most unique sites I have seen in Scotland yet.

I think the mansion was built back in the 1800's, and it really does show as it is literally falling apart. I believe one of the turrets have been completely fixed since, but the rest of the building is in a pretty devastating way. It's ashame to be honest, and I always hope that when I next visit there will be more construction under way but who knows, it might never happen.
Anyway before I finish this post I thought I would mention that I received a few vintage inspired frames for Christmas and I'm thinking about getting one of these photos printed to put in them (aswell as a couple of music shots), so be sure to look out for a post on the finished result!

Nicola. x

My 21st Birthday.

Hey everyone, If you didn't already know my 21st Birthday was on the 10th December, last Monday to be exact...and to be honest I still can't actually believe I'm 21 already but sadly it's true.
So I was treated to a day away in Edinburgh on my birthday (and if anyone remembers I also had a weekend away in Glasgow back in October which you can view photos of here). I also wanted to take some photos whilst I was in Edinburgh aswell so I have quite a few shots of the Christmas Markets, plus views over Princes Street in the gorgeous winter sun and even some of the wonderful gifts I received.

The first place we visited is actually one of my favourite stores in Edinburgh, and that is Harvey Nichols! They have some of the best beauty counters in the city and you should all know by now that I love cosmetics. As usual, I checked out MAC, Tom Ford and Space NK and I must admit I did buy a couple of things from each! After a little look around the shops in the area, I then headed over to Princes Street gardens where the annual Winter Wonderland takes place, it's the main reason I love visiting Edinburgh at Christmas.

First, we had a look around the carnival area which includes the Highland Village Christmas market, and since it is traditional we tried some roasted chestnuts for the first time, I love the little carts they sell them from so I obviously had to take a picture of that aswell.
The other end of the Winter Wonderland is the German Christmas market, which I absolutely LOVE! I had a good look around all the stalls, and I bought another Nutcracker and a little cute Elf ornament. We then headed over to the pretzel stall, which was another first time try and I can safely conclude that they are amazing! Try one, you won't be disappointed.
Also, yes that is a picture of myself with a Nutcracker below, I wanted to keep him!

After we went around the rest of the surrounding shops in Princes Street we decided to go to the Cowgate/Grassmarket area and check out some of the cute little places and their not so cute little prices ;)
Of course a visit to Edinburgh is never complete without a tourist shot of the Castle, this was taken towards the end of the day so it was slightly clouded over by this point.

So as you could probably imagine by the time I was home the night was followed in with lots of glasses of Champagne and birthday cake, which was specially made by my Auntie and features an awesome handmade camera, which looks amazing! I have a picture of it below, and I love how the camera has that marbled effect icing, it looks slightly vintage with an 80's/90's esque vibe.

I also received one of the most beautiful gifts from my family which was an Alexander McQueen double-skull ring! I absolutely love it and haven't taken it off since, it's completely the definition of me, I love all things gothic.
Anyway I hope you have all enjoyed looking at the photos, and I'll be posting another blog post very soon with a re-cap of this year's work!
As always stay tuned...

Nicola. x

Road To Nowhere.

Hey everyone, It's another one of those super quick blog posts...well in comparison to my last couple of entries anyway. If anyone has been following my Twitter page, you'll all know that I have been trying to sell one of my camera kits, and in exchange with the money I have bought some new gear which I am really excited about...so I went on another little adventure as I normally do whenever I buy new pieces for my kit, and I specifically chose a non-significant area to test the ability, and I'm really happy with the outcome! Can't wait to shoot with this setup more! Stay tuned...

Nicola. x

Autumn Leaves In Glasgow.

Hey everyone, So I'm back with part 2 of the Glasgow photos from my weekend away. These shots are from the daytime and all combined from over the few days I was there. I decided to go to the Templeton factory late in the afternoon of the first day I arrived. The building was originally built in the 1890's and was designed by one of my favourite architects...as you can see it looks pretty amazing and apparently the Doge's Palace in Venice was part of the inspiration!

When I was leaving Glasgow on the last day, I decided to re-visit the Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery at the University. Back in 2005 I went with my art class, so it was really good to check it out again. I also wanted to go to the Mackintosh House, but it was queue only for the guided tour so I decided to go over to the Museum instead which is in the other part of the University across the road.

Both the Museum and University are literally astounding for photos and definitely a photographer's dream! I didn't take any photos inside the Museum but I did take some shots of the grounds outside because it looked gorgeous in the autumn, aswell as some quick photos of the stairway that leads to the Hunterian Museum which you can see nearer the end of this post. The cloisters are my favourite part about the Universities architecture, it reminds me of the Harry Potter films for some reason, now that I think of it...I guess even the stairway to the Museum could look like the moving staircase scene aswell, all we need now are some talking paintings...

Anyway that happens to be all of my photos from my stay in Glasgow, I hope you all enjoyed looking  through them. I had an absolutely amazing time and I wish I could go back again, the holiday apartment that I stayed in, which was in the centre of Glasgow was literally (as Chandler Bing would say) perfection!
I've also just received some new photography gear so I will definitely be taking more photos soon, in the mean time make sure to follow my Twitter page for lots more updates, www.twitter.com/NicolaSharkey
Nicola. x