Spoke too soon!

All notions of Spring were completely drowned in snow yesterday as about 3 inches of the stuff fell over night. Even more has followed today which has pleased some people but enraged anyone who has to commute to work. Luckily I can count myself out of that group! Not a great photo, but thought I should get something showing snow up on here. And yes of course it has been photoshopped! For those who are remotely interested in the technical aspects of creating this effect here is a super condensed crash course...

1) Use Polygonal Lasso Tool to draw around the subject (in this case the handsome Goldfinch)
2) Add a slight feather of a few pixels
3) Select 'inverse'
4) Use Hue and Saturation to remove all colour
5) Create a new layer on which we apply a black radial gradient (with reverse applied so it's light at the centre)
6) In the layer options dropdown select 'Multiply' and set Opacity to about 40%
7) Well done, you've made a not so good image into a fairly interesting image!

After the frost and ice of the last few days I thought I'd go in hunt for some new life. So what better symbol of regrowth is there than the first Snowdrops of the year? These images were taken in the Stirling University grounds where there are an abundance of flowers carpeting the forest floor. The challenge in this situation is always what to select for a photograph. I've gone for two approaches here; shooting through clumps of flowers (above) and showing the island cluster below surrounded by dead leaves.Which do you prefer?

Feeling the cold

Glorious sunshine made staying indoors a crime today despite the bitter cold. I was really glad I made the effort as I was met by some stunning landscapes, the local reservoirs all completely frozen over and some really heavy frost. I have to be honest and admit that I've done my fair share of hibernating this winter and haven't been out in the cold nearly enough. Still, the winter's not over yet and the sun certainly makes a difference.

Adventure Travel Magazine

I'm pleased to have one of my images featured as the Picture of the Week in Adventure Travel Magazine and on their website. Check the site out here for all the latest adventure and outdoors news.

A great adventure awaits...

The idea of going travelling around the world for a second time has been on my mind ever since returning home on a cold, drizzly spring morning in Scotland almost three years ago. That trip was a year of outstanding sights, new cultures, friends and a whole lot of partying. This time around is a whole different kettle of fish.

New Escape Images website launched

Just in-case you hadn't already noticed, the Escape Images website has been completely revamped. I finally feel as though I have a website that works for me! All you have to worry about is that the new look site also has some very user friendly features for browsing, searching and purchasing images. All of the images in the Escape Images collection are now searchable, with keywords and extended captions. You can also make use of our Lightbox facility and instant purchasing and downloads.

A lot of time, effort and not to mention - money has gone into the new site so it would be great to hear what you think of it. The number of images in the archive is set to grow dramatically this year with some exciting travels planned. More about this very shortly.