Recent News
Web Site Recent News 16/7/2010
I can't believe it was early spring since I last up-dated the site!
We had a spell of inactivity due to bad health when we returned from Anglesey, my chest & my wife's feminine bits. I am back to full form Margaret is booked to see a specialist at the end of this month.
On the positive side, we became Great Grandparents this week, Leo George 8lbs 4 ozs. born to Mischa. Both are well.
Our Breaks to Liverpool in May & Anglesey in June were weather washouts, & the Anglesey trip even worse due to ill health.
I finally met up with my main reson for leaving the camera club & told him what I thought of him & his antics, he seems to have a fixation with threatening people with the law, I can only assume it is a throwback to his past?
We have been busy compiling AV shows from what pictures we have taken since mid March, most are available as free downloads on our Flickr Group page http://www.flickr.com/groups/espic_digital_media/
I am still receiving orders for the Charity DVD & will produce a new batch shortly.
We have a second trip planned to York towards the year end & hope to photograph the Minster & National Railway Museum. The last trip had to be cancelled at the last minute due to bad weather.
Later this summer we hope to make a trip to East Anglia to explore the Broads.
Up-date on my new desktop/portable PC.
I'm using Windows 7 Professional 64bit and after 3 months I can report it has performed faultlessly. I'm still restricted with poor broadband speed but my workflow in photography is a joy, wish I'd bought one sooner.
To finish off, three of our AV shows have been selected to be shown at an event in the Saltburns Photographic Societys 50th anniversery celebrations. The event will be in October 2010.
That's all for now hopefully, will be back sooner next time.
16th March 2010
Once again time is flying by. So much has happened since my last report it's hard to know where to start. With the late spring, getting out to take pictures opportunities have been few, one sunny Saturday we visited Kiplin Hall by special invitation (no public present) to take pictures of the snowdrops with a view to them producing postcards for sale. We have also been invited to take pictures of the hall & its interior after the Easter opening, again on a non public day.
The charity AV show & DVD took up most of January & February actually running over into March as extra DVDs had to be made. In total 100 were made & sold, 70+ people attended the show in the Methodists Hall, in all £1001 was raised for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, Cancer Research UK & British Heart Foundation.
While distributing advertising material for the show I was approached by the person organising Leyburn towns efforts for the WW2 weekend in July to do something similar. As the first show was still to take place, I didn't commit myself.
I once more approached Wensleydale Camera Club which is in decline, to assist in putting on the show, which would publicise the club and hopefully generate some new members.
As expected the result was negative, so if a show was to be done I would be on my own again. It was to be brought up at last nights AGM, unfortunately I didn't stay around to find out what was said. My disgust at the way the meeting went got the better of me so I left before doing something that might get me into trouble with the police, AKA banging a few heads together. Suffice it to say I will not be renewing my membership for the next season.
My technique with the new camera continues to improve & the other day we re-visited Semerwater, the largest lake in the Dales. I tested my panorama & HDR skills & on the whole was happy with the results. Hopefully I will be able to put some new pictures on the site shortly so you can judge for yourselves.
Last week I bit the bullet & ordered a new computer, this is a cutom built unit based around a Thermaltake Lan box. Unlike the normal desktop computer, this one is portable, so I can take it with me when putting on slideshows. Further details next time.
I've also place a link to our Flickr picture hosting site where it is simpler & less expensive to post images (free) than on here.
The link is on our Links Page or you can cut and paste it from here.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16218328@N04/
Thats all for now, we are off to Barrow at the end of the month for a photography break.
Bye for now.
Happy New Year to All My Readers.
12th January 2010.
Time is flying by and I’ve lots to report. The main thing on the photography front is I lost my battle with my Canon camera. Following a post Christmas visit from my expanded family and a photo session, I decided my EOS 50D was not doing what I wanted and had to go.
I posted the camera body on Ebay at 6PM, by 9pm it had been sold. The lenses & speedlight followed in quick succession.
I now own a Nikon D5000, which on paper is a lower spec’ that the Canon but in fact has more features, is giving better results, is easier to use, is much lighter and has a similar menu to Margaret’s D40. Incidentally I bought her a new lens for Christmas, the 18-105 Nikon.
For my D5000, I have bought my second 18-200 lens, which took all the pictures with my previous D200. This is however the Mk11 which has a lock button to prevent lens creep. I have also ordered a prime lens, the 35mm 1.8 which has had very good reviews. The top of the range Canon speedlight has been replaced with the bottom of the range Nikon SB400, the weight & complexity of the Canon 580 was too much for my type of photography.
The BIG PROJECT the charity DVD is premiered in three weeks time, so the nerves are starting to build. I’m in the middle of publicising the event to try to get maximum attendance and coverage. I’ve sent a copy to the BBC at Newcastle, but haven’t heard anything yet from them.
The weather is preventing testing my new camera system; I’ve been restricted to taking shots of the snow through the window. So hopefully I will have more to say on that subject next time.
Bye for now.
21st November 2009
I was shocked when I checked the date of my last entry; three months have gone by in a flash.
We had a great time at the Leyburn Agricultural Show & the Hunton Steam Fair with a 500+ picture count between us.
The saga of my change in camera systems was finally resolved and I eventually got my money back for the faulty lens & ordered a replacement, a 17-45 L series which appears to be taking good pictures.
We also completed the Church DVD for Barry Lee and that is now on sale. They made their own 100 copies.
The camera club season re-started with much the same format as previously, we now meet at Bellerby Village Hall, which is superior to the previous premises, but further from town, subsequently the membership has dropped to below 20 and is in danger of dropping even further for various reasons.
I really must change the picture content of the site, some are looking a little jaded & I ought to get some on here from the new camera.
The charity DVD in aid of Yorkshire Air Ambulance, British Heart Foundation & Cancer Research UK. We are holding a premier at Leyburn Methodist Hall on Tuesday 2nd February 2010, doors open 7pm. The DVD contains an AV show with over 600 images of Leyburn, its people & activities past & present. It runs for 65 minutes and has a 28 score accompaniment. It can be ordered on here, the price is £5.99 collected, or £6.99 mailed.
On the photography front, I also treated myself to a new Manfrotto tripod & Margaret has a new 18-105 Nikon lens. We are off to Newcastle again in December shopping & taking pictures, this trip was supposed to be to Chatham to the Royal Dockyard. Unfortunately, I found it was closed at the time we were due to go, so Newcastle was substituted.
We also have a combined trip booked in March to York Minster & The National Railway Museum. Another trip is booked to South Cumbria.
Christmas will be here before we know it; we have booked Christmas day at a restaurant in Aysgarth, where the falls are.
My New Years resolution is to keep up this site to date more often.
23RD August 2009
Where does time go?
Busy period since my last up-date, one of the major happenings was my decision to change camera systems from Nikon to Canon.
The reason behind it was complicated & started with an idea to start video. However, after thoroughly exploring the options, I decided to keep my main interest as still photography & change cameras.
My Nikon had produced some brilliant pictures but was now two years old and lagging in the technology stakes. To change to Canon would be quite expensive, as the ancillaries don’t mix.
So after selling my Nikon equipment, I searched for a Canon dealer that I could afford. Unfortunately, I chose a company called Camerabox. I should have smelled a rat when trolling through their web site, I found their address was a box number. The promise of substantial price savings led me by the nose.
I placed my order & the following day it arrived, not in one box, but in a box and a mailing sack. One of the lenses being in the mailing sack. Upon examination I determined it had been damaged or had been sent faulty.
That wasn’t the only problem. When I switched on the camera, the menu was in oriental icons, the manual was missing, the charger was not CE marked & supplied with an adapter, a sorry tale of woe.
After checking Camerabox’s returns conditions I knew it was going to be a long haul correcting the errors. At the moment, MasterCard are analysing if they can get my money back, Trading Standards are going through the process of taking them to court.
In the meantime, as I had sold my Nikon gear, I had to make the most of the Canon equipment.
Enough of my problems, we had booked a mini break to Carlisle to give us a base for trips into Scotland & the Lakes. Once more, the best laid plans etc’. The weather was atrocious, we managed one days photography out of the three, English Summers!!!!!
I mentioned last time I had offered my long time friend & colleague Barry, my services to produce a fund raising DVD for his Churches. The project is at the proof stage & hopefully will be done by Christmas.
My Epic project about the town where we live Leyburn drags on. The picture count is almost 400 & that only equates to 30+ minutes of the planned one-hour show.
Our agricultural show is on the 29th August & the Hunton Steam Fair on the 13th & 14th September, so God & the weather willing, we may be able to get some good material.
That’s all for now.
Up-Date 4th July 2009.
Well summer finally arrived. We’ve been very busy with various projects. The camera club had a trip to Shildon Railway museum, which although the weather was poor, was quite enjoyable.
I had bought a mobility buggy, as I had read Shildon was a large site, so to ensure I could get around I bought a buggy from ebay. My foot has now healed sufficiently to sell it on.
Shildon is similar to the National Railway museum at York, but on a smaller scale. It’s similar to Darlington, with some period buildings plus a massive undercover viewing hall with lots to interest the railway enthusiast.
I have also had a couple of new pupils Val & Mary.
Arthur is still plodding through his archive slide shows, which I am converting, and a new contact Harry, has commissioned me to compile his family history to an AV show. He has also commissioned a second show about a trip he made to Baltistan Karakorum, which is on the Afghanistan/Indian border.
My old friend a ex work colleague Barry Lee decided to get confirmed, so we went to support him at St Mary’s Northallerton & back at his house presented him with a copy of my Wensleydale Trinity DVD. After viewing it at a party after his confirmation, I suggested I take pictures of the three Churches in his benefice.
Margaret & I took the pictures last Wednesday, which could prove to be an expensive day out, after eating lunch in the car, I managed to knock Margaret’s tripod onto the car & left a slight dent & scratch. Then I managed to leave my very expensive Nikon remote control in the last Church of the three; hopefully I will get that back.
This afternoon, we have a stall at the Church fair where we will be selling the remainder of out bric a brac that didn’t sell at last Sundays Fire Station car boot sale.
That’s about it for now, coming up is the Wensleydale Railway’s 1940’s re-enactment & the Wensleydale Agricultural Show, I’m sure I’ve missed a couple of items? Just remembered I managed to get tickets for a Mastermind recording in Manchester, so we are off to that week after next.
Eric & Margaret. Espic Digital Media.
30th May 2009
Not much sign of summer yet, really stinting our photography.
Decided to to try to re-invigorate the book sales. They have now been converted to PDF files which reduces the file size and makes them e-mailable, providing you have a broadband connection & an ISP that allows email attachments up to 10mb. Good news for you, it also reduces the price. The e-mailed sailing versions are now £1.99 per title or £6.99 for all 4 on 4 separate emails. If you want them on CD they are £2.99 per title plus £1.50 postage to UK, £2.50 rest of the world. All 4 on 1 CD £7.99 plus the same postage. The PDF files still contain all the pictures which make these books a must for the would be or practising sailor.
We are supposed to be off to Hartlepool tomorrow to carry out the HMS Trincomalee photo session. I have also been in touch with Dave one of our sailing buddies from Spain who winters his boat in Hartlepool, so we could be seeing him also.
Update on my foot, I am still waiting for the X-Ray results and still taking pain killers.
That's about it for now. It's the Wensleydale Festival Of Food this weekend, Margaret & I are acting as stewards on Monday, so that should be fun. TTFN
10th April 2009
Good Friday.
Finally got out and took some photographs, Margaret & I visited Ripon Cathedral. It's a long time since since I was inside a really big Church, so it's impact was quite dramatic. We parked in Sainsbury's car park & the cathedral is only about 200 yards walk. It cost £3 each for a photography permit, so after setting up the tripods, we split up and did our thing. After an hour and a half, we were ready for lunch, so it was back to the car for a pack lunch. We were both knackered after our winter lay-off, so I drove around to try to park nearer to get a couple of outside shots. Eventually I parked outside the main door, nipped out and took a few shots for the opening sequences of the new AV show. The show is now complete & runs for 13 minutes and is a brief history of the cathedral. On Wednesday evening, I presented a show to the Lower Wensleydale Women's Institute, which was very well received, went without a hitch. I showed 8 shorts which took just over the hour. Last Friday we attended a retirement party in Bradford for one of my ex works colleagues and was hoarse when it was over talking to people I hadn't seen for 8 years. Well thats it for now, We are away for a couple of days over Easter with a visit to Lindesfarne, then the next dedicated photography trip is to get pictures for the HMS Trincomalee AV show.
Happy Easter to all my readers.
14th March 2009.
Hi All.
Lots of water gone under the bridge since my last up-date. Main happening was, I broke my right foot!
We had taken a trip to Richmond to collect some bird feeding gear & we decided to have lunch. After rejecting a couple of places, we found a place we hadn’t visited before, The Black Lion on Finkle Street, up-stairs they had a Bistro called “Blacks”, a bit expensive for lunch, but what the heck we had been housebound most of January.
After a reasonable meal, Margaret went to the facilities while I paid the bill, then I visited the gents. I noticed there was a notice on the door warning of a step. I opened the outer door and the vestibule was in darkness. I reached around for the light switch and fell headfirst down two steps onto the concrete floor.
As I lay there dazed & winded, a voice called “are you OK?” I was embarrassed and answered “yes” as I struggled to my feet. I examined myself for damage, apart from a grazed knee and bruised shoulder. I seemed OK. I struggled down the stairs where an anxious Margaret was waiting. I explained what had happened.
Coincidentally, she had the same experience in the ladies, but was warned before entering the light may be off. Obviously the management were on a cost cutting exercise.
Our trip was ruined so we went home, on the way my right foot was very painful & swelling. When I got home and removed my shoes, my right foot was bruised & swollen and difficult to walk on.
The following day, we still hadn’t got the promised bird feeders, so a trip to the garden centre at Bedale & B&Q in Northallerton fulfilled our requirements. By this time I was having difficulty driving let alone walking. I dosed myself with painkillers and hoped things would improve the next day, they didn’t.
I called the doctors, he came around lunch time, wiggled my big toe, sympathised and said something was probably broken or badly sprained. “What about an Xray” I asked, “no point” he said, there is no quick fix, no strapping up, just rest and painkillers, 4 to 6 weeks was the suggested recovery time.
So last Friday I managed to take Margaret to Leyburn & Sunday went to Church. I missed the camera club for two weeks & was tearing my hair out with boredom.
I’m now back on my feet, with a new acquisition a Tenor Saxophone. I used to play the clarinet in a band in my mis-spent youth, and while I was laid up got the urge to make some music. So I am now the owner of a Yamaha YTS275 Tenor Saxophone. Watch this space.
Photography has obviously been curtailed, so in the next couple of weeks we will be making field trips to Ripon Cathedral & HMS Trincomalee at Hartlepool. We also have a two day trip planned to Northumbria and Lindesfarne. So my next blog should be a little more productive.
16th January 2009
MONOCHROME HAWES
A new Audio Visual show is available as a free download, the show is only 7 minutes and 17mb so it will download via broadband in about 5 minutes. Our first attempt at night-time photography in black & white. To download your free copy, go to the links page and click the Monochrome Hawes Mediafire link.
5th January 2009
Things getting back to normal after the Christmas break. One new item to report, we visited the Darlington Railway Museum before Christmas. Unfortunately the exhibits were covered in Christmas decorations, which spoiled a potentially good shoot. We came back with enough material for a 10 minute AV show called "A Whiff of Steam". Again I produced two versions one for camera club audiences and one for general viewing, 7 & 10 minutes, with an adapted poem and commentarys about the history of the railway. Bought Margaret a camera for Christmas, a Nikon D40 so she is itching to get started on her own projects. I have started another show soundtrack. This one will be different as the pictures will all be in monochrome (black & white) and also taken at night. I've already selected some suitable music from Enya and written two poems to accompany the work. Just waiting for some suitable weather to take the pictures (full moon & showers). That's all for now.
Happy New Year.
15th December 2008
Things have moved on apace since my last report. New show added following our snowy mini break in Newcastle upon Tyne, named "Fog On The Tyne". It's an unusual compilation comprising familiar views of the river & city and some you have probably never seen before. Two versions a camera club & what I call a WI version 7 minutes & 10 minutes. We also attended the RPS AV day at the Bradford Media Museum, I submitted my Digital Dales Diary 2008 show for critique from the great & the good, quite pleased at their comments & have revised the club version to reflect their comments. The Church DVD "A Wensleydale Trinity" has been finally completed. Of the 50 copies made around 11 are still for sale to members of the public. I decided the Richmond CC was not for us & have re-joined the Wensleydale CC, Margaret has decided to get more into the hobby & joined with me, so I have sent a request to Father Christmas for a camera she can use. My latest show which is in production at present is called "A Whiff of Steam", which as you can gather from the title has a railway background. We are going to the Darlington Railway museum this week, hopefully to gather some material.
That's about it for this year, hope you all have a good Christmas & a Happy New Year.
26th October
Forgot to mention the new show "Autumn Dales Diary" the title tells all, 12 minutes 75 pictures with matching sound track and sound effects, best to date.
25th October 2008
Following the receipt of a commission to produce a slidesow for a client who wanted to use slides rather than digital images, after copying 200 slides via a scanner into the computer, editing them and constructing a digital show from the results, I've decided to offer the service generally. If you go to the bottom of the pricing page, the details are there.
The three Churches fund raiser is well on the way, the pictures are complete, just the sound track to complete. Decided to try live recordings to add to the sound track. Last Tuesday we did a trial recording with part of the choir, the results weren't positive so a recording with the full choir will be done in November. Busy Busy.
29th September 2008
They say you are never too old to learn. In my case I have just mastered Audacity, which is a sound editing programme, I have used it to compile a lecture for sailing enthusiasts based on one of my books "Corsica to the Costas" this is a 55 minute lecture with around 260 pictures split into 2 parts, part one covers from Corsica to Toulon part 2 from Toulon to Barcelona. I will put the details on the pricing page and will offer it as a CD or DVD. The Audacity sound tracks contain suitable music, voice over and sound effects.
On the photography front, we went out Saturday, onto a local farm and took some Harvest pictures for my next show which will have an autumnal Dales theme.
We went to our Church Friday to the Harvest service, and afterwards to a harvest supper at the village hall. Then Sunday instead of Church, the service was held on a local farm in one of the barns. Although a little draughty, was well attended. That's it for September.
8th September 2008
Unfortunately I have had to shelve the idea of a Computer Club in our village, so if you are looking for the relavent page, it's been deleted. Lots of reasons, mainly the problem deciding on a meeting day to suit everyone. If you read this blog regularly you will know I have a new show which is Wensleydale Railway's 1940's revival. I've decided to make this show a free download, it's 16 minutes long and 63mb so it takes around 20 minutes to download to a broadband connection. Check it out, the other show for sale are of a similar size and quality, but fully composed of my pictures. The link to the show is http://www.mediafire.com/file/c8gtl3lh5rn/Leyburn 1940-2008 rev1.exe Enjoy it. That's all for now.
1st September 2008.
I have some time on my hands, so I thought I’d up-date the recent news page of my web site.
Last Tuesday, Annie & Vagn our Danish friends we met in Spain arrived. They were on their way home after helping their around the world yottie friends through the Caledonian Canal, they only had one night with us but we certainly chewed the fat about Spain & sailing. They took us for a meal at the Wensleydale Heifer, and I presented them with one of my pictures. You can read more about Annie & Vagn in my book “Homeward Bound” available on this site.
Then Friday, Gail our eldest arrived with Fedra & Nolan two of the grandchildren. They left Saturday, taking Margaret with them for a visit, I collect her Wednesday.
On Saturday, Wensleydale Railway was holding a 40’s weekend, with the station & town dressed in 1940’s regalia. I went down to the station and took over 60 pictures, then assembled them into an AV show. I managed to find some propaganda posters on the Internet, so these are interspersed with my pictures, a selection of wartime music and sound effects, giving a 15 minute show, which will also be available soon when the sound track CD arrives from Ebay.
That’s all for now folks.
11/8/08 Lots happened this month, decided to seek out another photography group to join, visited Teeside Digital Group, will check out Richmond Camera Club as that is much nearer. Another major happening was to change churches, we now attend St Oswalds in Hauxwell a couple of miles away, I smell another DVD and AV show in the near future. Watch this space!
14th July 2008.
Yesterday was Bellerby Villages Open Gardens and Scarecrow Competition. Following church we made our way to Bellerby and toured the various gardens and displays. The weather was warm and we spent a pleasent 2 hours and met many friends. Tonight is the second summer teach in for the camera club again at Bellerby Village Hall, it's free and refreshments will be served in the interval. A 10 minute AV show of the garden event is available on the pricing page.
July 2008
We finished off the moth with a trip with the camera club to Newcastle U Tyne.
Wensleydale Camera Club.
Trip to Newcastle upon Tyne.
June 2008.
Despite predictions of bad weather ten members of the club set off from Leyburn Market Square on a joint trip organised by the local British Legion.
The outskirts of Newcastle were reached after a bumpy trip up the A1 in a mini coach well past it’s best. Due to the heavy traffic, the remaining 10 miles took almost 45 minutes. The first requirement on arriving P&T.
As we had had a visitor the first stop was a trip around M&S, where a new wind cheater was purchased, and photographs taken on the way and also around the M&S entrance, while waiting for my wife and our visitor Kath to hit other shops in the vicinity.
By this time the forecast rain had arrived so we elected to take a lunch break in one of the department stores. Much refreshed, we emerged an hour later and made our way to the Tyne Bridge. This turned out to be an excellent vantage point to get shots of the quayside areas and picturesque buildings from high level.
Unfortunately, we were on the wrong side of the road from the new bridge and the so-called “Slug”, the weight of traffic preventing us from crossing. The only other alternative being a subway at the far end of the bridge, the enemy (time) ruled this out so we made our way back to the city centre, pausing on the way at a Cuban “Café Bar” were I had a very nice Mocha.
By the time we reach the centre I was content to allow the girls to head off back to the shops, while I took in the sights and sounds of the city from a convenient seat out-side the theatre.
All to soon, it was time to return to the pick-up point. The coach arrived on time and the party set off for home.
To sum up, I took around 50 pictures, 5 of which I discarded when editing them. The 45 remaining I used to produce a 10 minute slide show, with a resolve to re-visit the city and spend more time there as soon as possible.
Eric Shepherd.
17th June 2008
June is always a busy month in the Shepherd household. Birthdays for my wife and I, Fathers day, and with a spell of good weather, planning photographic trips.
Thorpe Perrow Arboretum and animal park has been on the list of must do for some time. The park is located within a couple of miles of Bedale so did not break the bank in fuel costs. The admission includes concessions for children and seniors.
We arrived around 11am and parked in the disabled slot near the main gate. The eating area is located there also. The collection of Birds of Prey was my main interest of the day, so after asking directions proceeded to walk in completely the wrong direction. The weather was hot and sunny, the further we went into the park the hotter it became. Eventually I found my sea legs and entered the Bird enclosure, taking a number of pictures on the way.
The show had just started, so we took our seats and set up the camera. The show was orchestrated by a pair of young ladies, taking it in turn “to fly” an Owl and a Falcon. The displays were amazing, only complaint the commentary was for 100mph ears.
A slow walk back to the car, followed by a pack lunch a snooze and we set off back home, arriving around 3pm.
I have produced a new show from the pictures, and this and a sample of the pictures can be purchased in the usual manner. I have also added a few low resolution pictures to the home page and Dales gallery page.
Next trip is to a Sheep Herding show near Hawes, hopefully with a soundtrack of the action.
Sunday 25th May
On a personal note, Margaret my wife was confirmed yesterday as a full member of the Church of England and now able to take Holy Communion. The service was conducted by Bishop James of Knaresborough.
New A-V Show.
Fountains Abbey.
9th May 2008.
This new show contains over 80 images, and is accompanied by haunting sound track of Monks chanting and other suitable religious choral works.
The contents are shots of the Abbey ruins only. These depict the grandeur that must have been when built in the 11th century, and the subsequent destruction in the 16th century by Henry V111.
Run Time 15m 40sec’s.
Minimal animation
Suitable for schools history lessons.
This site went live on Sunday 30th March. New additions will be listed here as and when they happen.
My Recent News Page. 4th April 2008
The web site has been up and running for a week now and I have been able to search on www.Google.co.uk using both my name Eric Shepherd and my domain name Espic Digital Media and get a result, which is an excellent conclusion. I’m not able to determine how many hits the site has had until this weekend, however that will be inflated by me passing the details to friends and colleagues.
The A-V show tickets are selling slowly, still plenty of time to buy some on-line, The Church DVD is going better and again is available on-line.
Been a busy week at Church, with plans to re-order the main body to form a meeting room in an effort to get more people into using the Church.
12.4.08
This week we took a short break to Maryport and the Lake District. Starting off in Maryport, which is the last harbour on the West Coast of England, before the Scottish Border. The first part of the show contains scenes of the harbour and marina then, a number of scenes from high above the town. The weather was dry but very overcast.
After an overnight stay in Cockermouth about 4 miles away, we set off into the Lake District, the weather was again overcast with intermittent heavy showers of rain and sleet, not your typical April weather.
We made a circuit around Bassenthwaite Lake, then took the road to Ullswater, pausing for breakfast at the Glen Ridding Lakeside Hotel. Feeling well nourished we made the climb up through the Kirkstone Pass, where the clouds were well below mountain top height.
On the other side of the pass the main road winds down through Troutbeck, we however diverted through Ambleside, where there are vantage-points to view the whole of Windermere.
Pausing in Windermere, we made a brief stop at St Mary’s Church, the on to lunch at the local Booth’s Supermarket. The weather was very unkind so we decided to cut short the Lakes visit and return home through Kirby Lonsdale and Chapel Le Dale, pausing to take a couple of pictures at the Ribblehead Viaduct. Our final stop before home was to picture a family of spring lambs and their protective Mother. The show produced from the trip lasts ten minutes and contains over sixty pictures.
The A-V shows for Church Funds have now taken place, the report is as follows:
Wensleydale Camera Club
Report on “Digital Audio Visual Slide Shows”
At Bellerby Village Hall. 26th April 2008.
St Matthew’s Church Hall Leyburn 28th April 2008.
Upwards of 60 patrons attended the WCC’s first two digital A-V shows. Christine Whitehead the club’s treasurer acted as MC.
The performances began at 7pm with a show by Christine called “Two Dales Toddle”, which was a tour around Wensleydale and Swaledale, with some stunning shots of Bellerby during a recent snowfall. The show lasted around 20 minutes.
Next up was a show by Jonathan Woolley, “A Brief Visit to Vietnam & Cambodia”. The pictures taken by Jonathan on a recent holiday there. The rendition gave an insight on how life is now post war, with lots of smiling faces. One of the pictures was a winner in a recent club competition, entitled “Budding Buddha”. Again around 20 minutes duration.
Last before the interval was a show by Eric Shepherd named “Wensleydale Agricultural Show 2007”. Eric took the pictures at the one-day show, which unfortunately suffered from the restrictions of last years Foot & Mouth outbreak and only had horses and dogs from the animal world. However as Eric said in his introduction, “considering the restrictions, it was a great show”. Duration 18 minutes.
During the interval, complimentary refreshments were served, and the patrons given the opportunity to buy raffle tickets for the three mounted framed prints, donated by Eric Shepherd, one of which won the club’s “Transport” competition titled “1930 Crossley”. Kath Maggie & Sid Bruce did sterling work selling raffle tickets and DVD’s, Eric’s wife Margaret supervised the refreshments with the help of Kath’ Yardley and Renee Shepherd, and together with Maggie supplied delicious cakes.
After the interval, Christine spoke about the WCC, the reasons for the show, (to raise money for St Matthew’s Leyburn & St John’s Bellerby), and to invite would be photographers to join the club.
The second half began with a trailer for a project the WCC is undertaking to produce a compilation of their archive pictures dating back to the early 1900’s.
The show was a five minute effort compiled by Eric and set to the music of the “Grimethorpe Colliery Band” playing the hymn “How Great Thou Art”, which had the audiences singing along.
Next up was another show by Christine called “Autumn in the Cairngorms” which contains many super pictures depicting the flora and fauna of the area. A group of the pictures were taken at a nearby wildlife park, one which was a shot of a wolf which won one of the club’s competitions. Duration 20 minutes.
The final show of the evening was another of Eric’s, entitled “The Digital Dales” Part Two. The intention of this show was to simulate a Magic Carpet ride over the Dales, with stops on the way at Hubberholm the Bowes Museum and Muker. Duration 15 minutes.
Finally, the raffle was drawn and the three winning Bellerby & Leyland residents selected prints from Eric’s collection, which were mounted framed and supplied complete with a mini easel.
Christine wound up the evening, again exhorting the audience to consider joining the camera club. Thanking all those who helped in the production and numerous other tasks.
The Vicar of St Matthew’s & St John’s the Rev’d Huggett thanked all concerned for their efforts.
The show finished around 9.15pm, however a hitch with the Leyburn raffle tickets meant the patrons there were treated an extra show from Eric’s collection, “Maryport and the Northern Lakes” a 10 minute rendition of a 2 day wet trip West.
The impressions of the shows from those spoken to both during and afterwards were “An excellent nights entertainment”.
All up, including DVD sales to date the club raised over £330.00, which is to be divided between both Churches.
I can't believe it was early spring since I last up-dated the site!
We had a spell of inactivity due to bad health when we returned from Anglesey, my chest & my wife's feminine bits. I am back to full form Margaret is booked to see a specialist at the end of this month.
On the positive side, we became Great Grandparents this week, Leo George 8lbs 4 ozs. born to Mischa. Both are well.
Our Breaks to Liverpool in May & Anglesey in June were weather washouts, & the Anglesey trip even worse due to ill health.
I finally met up with my main reson for leaving the camera club & told him what I thought of him & his antics, he seems to have a fixation with threatening people with the law, I can only assume it is a throwback to his past?
We have been busy compiling AV shows from what pictures we have taken since mid March, most are available as free downloads on our Flickr Group page http://www.flickr.com/groups/espic_digital_media/
I am still receiving orders for the Charity DVD & will produce a new batch shortly.
We have a second trip planned to York towards the year end & hope to photograph the Minster & National Railway Museum. The last trip had to be cancelled at the last minute due to bad weather.
Later this summer we hope to make a trip to East Anglia to explore the Broads.
Up-date on my new desktop/portable PC.
I'm using Windows 7 Professional 64bit and after 3 months I can report it has performed faultlessly. I'm still restricted with poor broadband speed but my workflow in photography is a joy, wish I'd bought one sooner.
To finish off, three of our AV shows have been selected to be shown at an event in the Saltburns Photographic Societys 50th anniversery celebrations. The event will be in October 2010.
That's all for now hopefully, will be back sooner next time.
16th March 2010
Once again time is flying by. So much has happened since my last report it's hard to know where to start. With the late spring, getting out to take pictures opportunities have been few, one sunny Saturday we visited Kiplin Hall by special invitation (no public present) to take pictures of the snowdrops with a view to them producing postcards for sale. We have also been invited to take pictures of the hall & its interior after the Easter opening, again on a non public day.
The charity AV show & DVD took up most of January & February actually running over into March as extra DVDs had to be made. In total 100 were made & sold, 70+ people attended the show in the Methodists Hall, in all £1001 was raised for the Yorkshire Air Ambulance, Cancer Research UK & British Heart Foundation.
While distributing advertising material for the show I was approached by the person organising Leyburn towns efforts for the WW2 weekend in July to do something similar. As the first show was still to take place, I didn't commit myself.
I once more approached Wensleydale Camera Club which is in decline, to assist in putting on the show, which would publicise the club and hopefully generate some new members.
As expected the result was negative, so if a show was to be done I would be on my own again. It was to be brought up at last nights AGM, unfortunately I didn't stay around to find out what was said. My disgust at the way the meeting went got the better of me so I left before doing something that might get me into trouble with the police, AKA banging a few heads together. Suffice it to say I will not be renewing my membership for the next season.
My technique with the new camera continues to improve & the other day we re-visited Semerwater, the largest lake in the Dales. I tested my panorama & HDR skills & on the whole was happy with the results. Hopefully I will be able to put some new pictures on the site shortly so you can judge for yourselves.
Last week I bit the bullet & ordered a new computer, this is a cutom built unit based around a Thermaltake Lan box. Unlike the normal desktop computer, this one is portable, so I can take it with me when putting on slideshows. Further details next time.
I've also place a link to our Flickr picture hosting site where it is simpler & less expensive to post images (free) than on here.
The link is on our Links Page or you can cut and paste it from here.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/16218328@N04/
Thats all for now, we are off to Barrow at the end of the month for a photography break.
Bye for now.
Happy New Year to All My Readers.
12th January 2010.
Time is flying by and I’ve lots to report. The main thing on the photography front is I lost my battle with my Canon camera. Following a post Christmas visit from my expanded family and a photo session, I decided my EOS 50D was not doing what I wanted and had to go.
I posted the camera body on Ebay at 6PM, by 9pm it had been sold. The lenses & speedlight followed in quick succession.
I now own a Nikon D5000, which on paper is a lower spec’ that the Canon but in fact has more features, is giving better results, is easier to use, is much lighter and has a similar menu to Margaret’s D40. Incidentally I bought her a new lens for Christmas, the 18-105 Nikon.
For my D5000, I have bought my second 18-200 lens, which took all the pictures with my previous D200. This is however the Mk11 which has a lock button to prevent lens creep. I have also ordered a prime lens, the 35mm 1.8 which has had very good reviews. The top of the range Canon speedlight has been replaced with the bottom of the range Nikon SB400, the weight & complexity of the Canon 580 was too much for my type of photography.
The BIG PROJECT the charity DVD is premiered in three weeks time, so the nerves are starting to build. I’m in the middle of publicising the event to try to get maximum attendance and coverage. I’ve sent a copy to the BBC at Newcastle, but haven’t heard anything yet from them.
The weather is preventing testing my new camera system; I’ve been restricted to taking shots of the snow through the window. So hopefully I will have more to say on that subject next time.
Bye for now.
21st November 2009
I was shocked when I checked the date of my last entry; three months have gone by in a flash.
We had a great time at the Leyburn Agricultural Show & the Hunton Steam Fair with a 500+ picture count between us.
The saga of my change in camera systems was finally resolved and I eventually got my money back for the faulty lens & ordered a replacement, a 17-45 L series which appears to be taking good pictures.
We also completed the Church DVD for Barry Lee and that is now on sale. They made their own 100 copies.
The camera club season re-started with much the same format as previously, we now meet at Bellerby Village Hall, which is superior to the previous premises, but further from town, subsequently the membership has dropped to below 20 and is in danger of dropping even further for various reasons.
I really must change the picture content of the site, some are looking a little jaded & I ought to get some on here from the new camera.
The charity DVD in aid of Yorkshire Air Ambulance, British Heart Foundation & Cancer Research UK. We are holding a premier at Leyburn Methodist Hall on Tuesday 2nd February 2010, doors open 7pm. The DVD contains an AV show with over 600 images of Leyburn, its people & activities past & present. It runs for 65 minutes and has a 28 score accompaniment. It can be ordered on here, the price is £5.99 collected, or £6.99 mailed.
On the photography front, I also treated myself to a new Manfrotto tripod & Margaret has a new 18-105 Nikon lens. We are off to Newcastle again in December shopping & taking pictures, this trip was supposed to be to Chatham to the Royal Dockyard. Unfortunately, I found it was closed at the time we were due to go, so Newcastle was substituted.
We also have a combined trip booked in March to York Minster & The National Railway Museum. Another trip is booked to South Cumbria.
Christmas will be here before we know it; we have booked Christmas day at a restaurant in Aysgarth, where the falls are.
My New Years resolution is to keep up this site to date more often.
23RD August 2009
Where does time go?
Busy period since my last up-date, one of the major happenings was my decision to change camera systems from Nikon to Canon.
The reason behind it was complicated & started with an idea to start video. However, after thoroughly exploring the options, I decided to keep my main interest as still photography & change cameras.
My Nikon had produced some brilliant pictures but was now two years old and lagging in the technology stakes. To change to Canon would be quite expensive, as the ancillaries don’t mix.
So after selling my Nikon equipment, I searched for a Canon dealer that I could afford. Unfortunately, I chose a company called Camerabox. I should have smelled a rat when trolling through their web site, I found their address was a box number. The promise of substantial price savings led me by the nose.
I placed my order & the following day it arrived, not in one box, but in a box and a mailing sack. One of the lenses being in the mailing sack. Upon examination I determined it had been damaged or had been sent faulty.
That wasn’t the only problem. When I switched on the camera, the menu was in oriental icons, the manual was missing, the charger was not CE marked & supplied with an adapter, a sorry tale of woe.
After checking Camerabox’s returns conditions I knew it was going to be a long haul correcting the errors. At the moment, MasterCard are analysing if they can get my money back, Trading Standards are going through the process of taking them to court.
In the meantime, as I had sold my Nikon gear, I had to make the most of the Canon equipment.
Enough of my problems, we had booked a mini break to Carlisle to give us a base for trips into Scotland & the Lakes. Once more, the best laid plans etc’. The weather was atrocious, we managed one days photography out of the three, English Summers!!!!!
I mentioned last time I had offered my long time friend & colleague Barry, my services to produce a fund raising DVD for his Churches. The project is at the proof stage & hopefully will be done by Christmas.
My Epic project about the town where we live Leyburn drags on. The picture count is almost 400 & that only equates to 30+ minutes of the planned one-hour show.
Our agricultural show is on the 29th August & the Hunton Steam Fair on the 13th & 14th September, so God & the weather willing, we may be able to get some good material.
That’s all for now.
Up-Date 4th July 2009.
Well summer finally arrived. We’ve been very busy with various projects. The camera club had a trip to Shildon Railway museum, which although the weather was poor, was quite enjoyable.
I had bought a mobility buggy, as I had read Shildon was a large site, so to ensure I could get around I bought a buggy from ebay. My foot has now healed sufficiently to sell it on.
Shildon is similar to the National Railway museum at York, but on a smaller scale. It’s similar to Darlington, with some period buildings plus a massive undercover viewing hall with lots to interest the railway enthusiast.
I have also had a couple of new pupils Val & Mary.
Arthur is still plodding through his archive slide shows, which I am converting, and a new contact Harry, has commissioned me to compile his family history to an AV show. He has also commissioned a second show about a trip he made to Baltistan Karakorum, which is on the Afghanistan/Indian border.
My old friend a ex work colleague Barry Lee decided to get confirmed, so we went to support him at St Mary’s Northallerton & back at his house presented him with a copy of my Wensleydale Trinity DVD. After viewing it at a party after his confirmation, I suggested I take pictures of the three Churches in his benefice.
Margaret & I took the pictures last Wednesday, which could prove to be an expensive day out, after eating lunch in the car, I managed to knock Margaret’s tripod onto the car & left a slight dent & scratch. Then I managed to leave my very expensive Nikon remote control in the last Church of the three; hopefully I will get that back.
This afternoon, we have a stall at the Church fair where we will be selling the remainder of out bric a brac that didn’t sell at last Sundays Fire Station car boot sale.
That’s about it for now, coming up is the Wensleydale Railway’s 1940’s re-enactment & the Wensleydale Agricultural Show, I’m sure I’ve missed a couple of items? Just remembered I managed to get tickets for a Mastermind recording in Manchester, so we are off to that week after next.
Eric & Margaret. Espic Digital Media.
30th May 2009
Not much sign of summer yet, really stinting our photography.
Decided to to try to re-invigorate the book sales. They have now been converted to PDF files which reduces the file size and makes them e-mailable, providing you have a broadband connection & an ISP that allows email attachments up to 10mb. Good news for you, it also reduces the price. The e-mailed sailing versions are now £1.99 per title or £6.99 for all 4 on 4 separate emails. If you want them on CD they are £2.99 per title plus £1.50 postage to UK, £2.50 rest of the world. All 4 on 1 CD £7.99 plus the same postage. The PDF files still contain all the pictures which make these books a must for the would be or practising sailor.
We are supposed to be off to Hartlepool tomorrow to carry out the HMS Trincomalee photo session. I have also been in touch with Dave one of our sailing buddies from Spain who winters his boat in Hartlepool, so we could be seeing him also.
Update on my foot, I am still waiting for the X-Ray results and still taking pain killers.
That's about it for now. It's the Wensleydale Festival Of Food this weekend, Margaret & I are acting as stewards on Monday, so that should be fun. TTFN
10th April 2009
Good Friday.
Finally got out and took some photographs, Margaret & I visited Ripon Cathedral. It's a long time since since I was inside a really big Church, so it's impact was quite dramatic. We parked in Sainsbury's car park & the cathedral is only about 200 yards walk. It cost £3 each for a photography permit, so after setting up the tripods, we split up and did our thing. After an hour and a half, we were ready for lunch, so it was back to the car for a pack lunch. We were both knackered after our winter lay-off, so I drove around to try to park nearer to get a couple of outside shots. Eventually I parked outside the main door, nipped out and took a few shots for the opening sequences of the new AV show. The show is now complete & runs for 13 minutes and is a brief history of the cathedral. On Wednesday evening, I presented a show to the Lower Wensleydale Women's Institute, which was very well received, went without a hitch. I showed 8 shorts which took just over the hour. Last Friday we attended a retirement party in Bradford for one of my ex works colleagues and was hoarse when it was over talking to people I hadn't seen for 8 years. Well thats it for now, We are away for a couple of days over Easter with a visit to Lindesfarne, then the next dedicated photography trip is to get pictures for the HMS Trincomalee AV show.
Happy Easter to all my readers.
14th March 2009.
Hi All.
Lots of water gone under the bridge since my last up-date. Main happening was, I broke my right foot!
We had taken a trip to Richmond to collect some bird feeding gear & we decided to have lunch. After rejecting a couple of places, we found a place we hadn’t visited before, The Black Lion on Finkle Street, up-stairs they had a Bistro called “Blacks”, a bit expensive for lunch, but what the heck we had been housebound most of January.
After a reasonable meal, Margaret went to the facilities while I paid the bill, then I visited the gents. I noticed there was a notice on the door warning of a step. I opened the outer door and the vestibule was in darkness. I reached around for the light switch and fell headfirst down two steps onto the concrete floor.
As I lay there dazed & winded, a voice called “are you OK?” I was embarrassed and answered “yes” as I struggled to my feet. I examined myself for damage, apart from a grazed knee and bruised shoulder. I seemed OK. I struggled down the stairs where an anxious Margaret was waiting. I explained what had happened.
Coincidentally, she had the same experience in the ladies, but was warned before entering the light may be off. Obviously the management were on a cost cutting exercise.
Our trip was ruined so we went home, on the way my right foot was very painful & swelling. When I got home and removed my shoes, my right foot was bruised & swollen and difficult to walk on.
The following day, we still hadn’t got the promised bird feeders, so a trip to the garden centre at Bedale & B&Q in Northallerton fulfilled our requirements. By this time I was having difficulty driving let alone walking. I dosed myself with painkillers and hoped things would improve the next day, they didn’t.
I called the doctors, he came around lunch time, wiggled my big toe, sympathised and said something was probably broken or badly sprained. “What about an Xray” I asked, “no point” he said, there is no quick fix, no strapping up, just rest and painkillers, 4 to 6 weeks was the suggested recovery time.
So last Friday I managed to take Margaret to Leyburn & Sunday went to Church. I missed the camera club for two weeks & was tearing my hair out with boredom.
I’m now back on my feet, with a new acquisition a Tenor Saxophone. I used to play the clarinet in a band in my mis-spent youth, and while I was laid up got the urge to make some music. So I am now the owner of a Yamaha YTS275 Tenor Saxophone. Watch this space.
Photography has obviously been curtailed, so in the next couple of weeks we will be making field trips to Ripon Cathedral & HMS Trincomalee at Hartlepool. We also have a two day trip planned to Northumbria and Lindesfarne. So my next blog should be a little more productive.
16th January 2009
MONOCHROME HAWES
A new Audio Visual show is available as a free download, the show is only 7 minutes and 17mb so it will download via broadband in about 5 minutes. Our first attempt at night-time photography in black & white. To download your free copy, go to the links page and click the Monochrome Hawes Mediafire link.
5th January 2009
Things getting back to normal after the Christmas break. One new item to report, we visited the Darlington Railway Museum before Christmas. Unfortunately the exhibits were covered in Christmas decorations, which spoiled a potentially good shoot. We came back with enough material for a 10 minute AV show called "A Whiff of Steam". Again I produced two versions one for camera club audiences and one for general viewing, 7 & 10 minutes, with an adapted poem and commentarys about the history of the railway. Bought Margaret a camera for Christmas, a Nikon D40 so she is itching to get started on her own projects. I have started another show soundtrack. This one will be different as the pictures will all be in monochrome (black & white) and also taken at night. I've already selected some suitable music from Enya and written two poems to accompany the work. Just waiting for some suitable weather to take the pictures (full moon & showers). That's all for now.
Happy New Year.
15th December 2008
Things have moved on apace since my last report. New show added following our snowy mini break in Newcastle upon Tyne, named "Fog On The Tyne". It's an unusual compilation comprising familiar views of the river & city and some you have probably never seen before. Two versions a camera club & what I call a WI version 7 minutes & 10 minutes. We also attended the RPS AV day at the Bradford Media Museum, I submitted my Digital Dales Diary 2008 show for critique from the great & the good, quite pleased at their comments & have revised the club version to reflect their comments. The Church DVD "A Wensleydale Trinity" has been finally completed. Of the 50 copies made around 11 are still for sale to members of the public. I decided the Richmond CC was not for us & have re-joined the Wensleydale CC, Margaret has decided to get more into the hobby & joined with me, so I have sent a request to Father Christmas for a camera she can use. My latest show which is in production at present is called "A Whiff of Steam", which as you can gather from the title has a railway background. We are going to the Darlington Railway museum this week, hopefully to gather some material.
That's about it for this year, hope you all have a good Christmas & a Happy New Year.
26th October
Forgot to mention the new show "Autumn Dales Diary" the title tells all, 12 minutes 75 pictures with matching sound track and sound effects, best to date.
25th October 2008
Following the receipt of a commission to produce a slidesow for a client who wanted to use slides rather than digital images, after copying 200 slides via a scanner into the computer, editing them and constructing a digital show from the results, I've decided to offer the service generally. If you go to the bottom of the pricing page, the details are there.
The three Churches fund raiser is well on the way, the pictures are complete, just the sound track to complete. Decided to try live recordings to add to the sound track. Last Tuesday we did a trial recording with part of the choir, the results weren't positive so a recording with the full choir will be done in November. Busy Busy.
29th September 2008
They say you are never too old to learn. In my case I have just mastered Audacity, which is a sound editing programme, I have used it to compile a lecture for sailing enthusiasts based on one of my books "Corsica to the Costas" this is a 55 minute lecture with around 260 pictures split into 2 parts, part one covers from Corsica to Toulon part 2 from Toulon to Barcelona. I will put the details on the pricing page and will offer it as a CD or DVD. The Audacity sound tracks contain suitable music, voice over and sound effects.
On the photography front, we went out Saturday, onto a local farm and took some Harvest pictures for my next show which will have an autumnal Dales theme.
We went to our Church Friday to the Harvest service, and afterwards to a harvest supper at the village hall. Then Sunday instead of Church, the service was held on a local farm in one of the barns. Although a little draughty, was well attended. That's it for September.
8th September 2008
Unfortunately I have had to shelve the idea of a Computer Club in our village, so if you are looking for the relavent page, it's been deleted. Lots of reasons, mainly the problem deciding on a meeting day to suit everyone. If you read this blog regularly you will know I have a new show which is Wensleydale Railway's 1940's revival. I've decided to make this show a free download, it's 16 minutes long and 63mb so it takes around 20 minutes to download to a broadband connection. Check it out, the other show for sale are of a similar size and quality, but fully composed of my pictures. The link to the show is http://www.mediafire.com/file/c8gtl3lh5rn/Leyburn 1940-2008 rev1.exe Enjoy it. That's all for now.
1st September 2008.
I have some time on my hands, so I thought I’d up-date the recent news page of my web site.
Last Tuesday, Annie & Vagn our Danish friends we met in Spain arrived. They were on their way home after helping their around the world yottie friends through the Caledonian Canal, they only had one night with us but we certainly chewed the fat about Spain & sailing. They took us for a meal at the Wensleydale Heifer, and I presented them with one of my pictures. You can read more about Annie & Vagn in my book “Homeward Bound” available on this site.
Then Friday, Gail our eldest arrived with Fedra & Nolan two of the grandchildren. They left Saturday, taking Margaret with them for a visit, I collect her Wednesday.
On Saturday, Wensleydale Railway was holding a 40’s weekend, with the station & town dressed in 1940’s regalia. I went down to the station and took over 60 pictures, then assembled them into an AV show. I managed to find some propaganda posters on the Internet, so these are interspersed with my pictures, a selection of wartime music and sound effects, giving a 15 minute show, which will also be available soon when the sound track CD arrives from Ebay.
That’s all for now folks.
11/8/08 Lots happened this month, decided to seek out another photography group to join, visited Teeside Digital Group, will check out Richmond Camera Club as that is much nearer. Another major happening was to change churches, we now attend St Oswalds in Hauxwell a couple of miles away, I smell another DVD and AV show in the near future. Watch this space!
14th July 2008.
Yesterday was Bellerby Villages Open Gardens and Scarecrow Competition. Following church we made our way to Bellerby and toured the various gardens and displays. The weather was warm and we spent a pleasent 2 hours and met many friends. Tonight is the second summer teach in for the camera club again at Bellerby Village Hall, it's free and refreshments will be served in the interval. A 10 minute AV show of the garden event is available on the pricing page.
July 2008
We finished off the moth with a trip with the camera club to Newcastle U Tyne.
Wensleydale Camera Club.
Trip to Newcastle upon Tyne.
June 2008.
Despite predictions of bad weather ten members of the club set off from Leyburn Market Square on a joint trip organised by the local British Legion.
The outskirts of Newcastle were reached after a bumpy trip up the A1 in a mini coach well past it’s best. Due to the heavy traffic, the remaining 10 miles took almost 45 minutes. The first requirement on arriving P&T.
As we had had a visitor the first stop was a trip around M&S, where a new wind cheater was purchased, and photographs taken on the way and also around the M&S entrance, while waiting for my wife and our visitor Kath to hit other shops in the vicinity.
By this time the forecast rain had arrived so we elected to take a lunch break in one of the department stores. Much refreshed, we emerged an hour later and made our way to the Tyne Bridge. This turned out to be an excellent vantage point to get shots of the quayside areas and picturesque buildings from high level.
Unfortunately, we were on the wrong side of the road from the new bridge and the so-called “Slug”, the weight of traffic preventing us from crossing. The only other alternative being a subway at the far end of the bridge, the enemy (time) ruled this out so we made our way back to the city centre, pausing on the way at a Cuban “Café Bar” were I had a very nice Mocha.
By the time we reach the centre I was content to allow the girls to head off back to the shops, while I took in the sights and sounds of the city from a convenient seat out-side the theatre.
All to soon, it was time to return to the pick-up point. The coach arrived on time and the party set off for home.
To sum up, I took around 50 pictures, 5 of which I discarded when editing them. The 45 remaining I used to produce a 10 minute slide show, with a resolve to re-visit the city and spend more time there as soon as possible.
Eric Shepherd.
17th June 2008
June is always a busy month in the Shepherd household. Birthdays for my wife and I, Fathers day, and with a spell of good weather, planning photographic trips.
Thorpe Perrow Arboretum and animal park has been on the list of must do for some time. The park is located within a couple of miles of Bedale so did not break the bank in fuel costs. The admission includes concessions for children and seniors.
We arrived around 11am and parked in the disabled slot near the main gate. The eating area is located there also. The collection of Birds of Prey was my main interest of the day, so after asking directions proceeded to walk in completely the wrong direction. The weather was hot and sunny, the further we went into the park the hotter it became. Eventually I found my sea legs and entered the Bird enclosure, taking a number of pictures on the way.
The show had just started, so we took our seats and set up the camera. The show was orchestrated by a pair of young ladies, taking it in turn “to fly” an Owl and a Falcon. The displays were amazing, only complaint the commentary was for 100mph ears.
A slow walk back to the car, followed by a pack lunch a snooze and we set off back home, arriving around 3pm.
I have produced a new show from the pictures, and this and a sample of the pictures can be purchased in the usual manner. I have also added a few low resolution pictures to the home page and Dales gallery page.
Next trip is to a Sheep Herding show near Hawes, hopefully with a soundtrack of the action.
Sunday 25th May
On a personal note, Margaret my wife was confirmed yesterday as a full member of the Church of England and now able to take Holy Communion. The service was conducted by Bishop James of Knaresborough.
New A-V Show.
Fountains Abbey.
9th May 2008.
This new show contains over 80 images, and is accompanied by haunting sound track of Monks chanting and other suitable religious choral works.
The contents are shots of the Abbey ruins only. These depict the grandeur that must have been when built in the 11th century, and the subsequent destruction in the 16th century by Henry V111.
Run Time 15m 40sec’s.
Minimal animation
Suitable for schools history lessons.
This site went live on Sunday 30th March. New additions will be listed here as and when they happen.
My Recent News Page. 4th April 2008
The web site has been up and running for a week now and I have been able to search on www.Google.co.uk using both my name Eric Shepherd and my domain name Espic Digital Media and get a result, which is an excellent conclusion. I’m not able to determine how many hits the site has had until this weekend, however that will be inflated by me passing the details to friends and colleagues.
The A-V show tickets are selling slowly, still plenty of time to buy some on-line, The Church DVD is going better and again is available on-line.
Been a busy week at Church, with plans to re-order the main body to form a meeting room in an effort to get more people into using the Church.
12.4.08
This week we took a short break to Maryport and the Lake District. Starting off in Maryport, which is the last harbour on the West Coast of England, before the Scottish Border. The first part of the show contains scenes of the harbour and marina then, a number of scenes from high above the town. The weather was dry but very overcast.
After an overnight stay in Cockermouth about 4 miles away, we set off into the Lake District, the weather was again overcast with intermittent heavy showers of rain and sleet, not your typical April weather.
We made a circuit around Bassenthwaite Lake, then took the road to Ullswater, pausing for breakfast at the Glen Ridding Lakeside Hotel. Feeling well nourished we made the climb up through the Kirkstone Pass, where the clouds were well below mountain top height.
On the other side of the pass the main road winds down through Troutbeck, we however diverted through Ambleside, where there are vantage-points to view the whole of Windermere.
Pausing in Windermere, we made a brief stop at St Mary’s Church, the on to lunch at the local Booth’s Supermarket. The weather was very unkind so we decided to cut short the Lakes visit and return home through Kirby Lonsdale and Chapel Le Dale, pausing to take a couple of pictures at the Ribblehead Viaduct. Our final stop before home was to picture a family of spring lambs and their protective Mother. The show produced from the trip lasts ten minutes and contains over sixty pictures.
The A-V shows for Church Funds have now taken place, the report is as follows:
Wensleydale Camera Club
Report on “Digital Audio Visual Slide Shows”
At Bellerby Village Hall. 26th April 2008.
St Matthew’s Church Hall Leyburn 28th April 2008.
Upwards of 60 patrons attended the WCC’s first two digital A-V shows. Christine Whitehead the club’s treasurer acted as MC.
The performances began at 7pm with a show by Christine called “Two Dales Toddle”, which was a tour around Wensleydale and Swaledale, with some stunning shots of Bellerby during a recent snowfall. The show lasted around 20 minutes.
Next up was a show by Jonathan Woolley, “A Brief Visit to Vietnam & Cambodia”. The pictures taken by Jonathan on a recent holiday there. The rendition gave an insight on how life is now post war, with lots of smiling faces. One of the pictures was a winner in a recent club competition, entitled “Budding Buddha”. Again around 20 minutes duration.
Last before the interval was a show by Eric Shepherd named “Wensleydale Agricultural Show 2007”. Eric took the pictures at the one-day show, which unfortunately suffered from the restrictions of last years Foot & Mouth outbreak and only had horses and dogs from the animal world. However as Eric said in his introduction, “considering the restrictions, it was a great show”. Duration 18 minutes.
During the interval, complimentary refreshments were served, and the patrons given the opportunity to buy raffle tickets for the three mounted framed prints, donated by Eric Shepherd, one of which won the club’s “Transport” competition titled “1930 Crossley”. Kath Maggie & Sid Bruce did sterling work selling raffle tickets and DVD’s, Eric’s wife Margaret supervised the refreshments with the help of Kath’ Yardley and Renee Shepherd, and together with Maggie supplied delicious cakes.
After the interval, Christine spoke about the WCC, the reasons for the show, (to raise money for St Matthew’s Leyburn & St John’s Bellerby), and to invite would be photographers to join the club.
The second half began with a trailer for a project the WCC is undertaking to produce a compilation of their archive pictures dating back to the early 1900’s.
The show was a five minute effort compiled by Eric and set to the music of the “Grimethorpe Colliery Band” playing the hymn “How Great Thou Art”, which had the audiences singing along.
Next up was another show by Christine called “Autumn in the Cairngorms” which contains many super pictures depicting the flora and fauna of the area. A group of the pictures were taken at a nearby wildlife park, one which was a shot of a wolf which won one of the club’s competitions. Duration 20 minutes.
The final show of the evening was another of Eric’s, entitled “The Digital Dales” Part Two. The intention of this show was to simulate a Magic Carpet ride over the Dales, with stops on the way at Hubberholm the Bowes Museum and Muker. Duration 15 minutes.
Finally, the raffle was drawn and the three winning Bellerby & Leyland residents selected prints from Eric’s collection, which were mounted framed and supplied complete with a mini easel.
Christine wound up the evening, again exhorting the audience to consider joining the camera club. Thanking all those who helped in the production and numerous other tasks.
The Vicar of St Matthew’s & St John’s the Rev’d Huggett thanked all concerned for their efforts.
The show finished around 9.15pm, however a hitch with the Leyburn raffle tickets meant the patrons there were treated an extra show from Eric’s collection, “Maryport and the Northern Lakes” a 10 minute rendition of a 2 day wet trip West.
The impressions of the shows from those spoken to both during and afterwards were “An excellent nights entertainment”.
All up, including DVD sales to date the club raised over £330.00, which is to be divided between both Churches.