Instagram #WWIM12 - Edinburgh Zoo and National Museum of Scotland

Last weekend I headed off to Edinburgh, on the 8am train, to my second Instameet. WWIM12! First up was a visit to an empty National Museum of Scotland. The main atrium is vast and an amazing space with some great features and exhibits dotted around. I'd been here only once before, on a busy Sunday afternoon with two tired nephews in tow, so it was great to be here when we had an 'empty'. Yes, that's right, they very kindly opened up the space half an hour early for us Instagrammers. An 'EmptyNMS'.

Everyone quickly set about the task of wandering around this vast 'birdcage' like building and snapping away. At about 10.15am we were taken up to a circular meeting room with great view of the bustling streets below and where breakfast was laid on. Then, the final treat was higher, up on the roof terrace where the public aren't really allowed to go. And the best part... The views of course.

Huge thanks to National Museum of Scotland team for their generosity and hospitality and @Snapmike for organising that part of the day.

Next, a few of us hopped in a taxi and made the short journey over to Edinburgh Zoo for part two of this WWIM12. It was #WWIM12EdinburghZoo. Now, I haven't been to the zoo or any kind of animal park since I was about 6. Many, many years ago. Oof, I'm getting old! The only thing I can remember from that visit was a picture of me and my sister standing next to a rock with a giant bear behind us. We had no clue he was there!

Anyway, we arrived just after 11am and got our tickets and name badges, but the surprise part was a ticket to see the Panda's at 2pm. Wow, very generous.

I headed on up the hill to the chimpanzee area where a feed was about to begin. A few people had gotten to the balcony before us so we had to wait at the fence but still managed to see the chimps grabbing away at their food. They had a huge wooden and rope built structure that looked like such great fun. A little while later we swapped over with the balcony group and got a closer view of the animals. I never took my Fuji camera with me as I wanted to shoot on my iPhone for my Instagram feed. In hindsight I should've just slung it over my shoulder as the zoom of the iPhone is not great for shots of animals who are quite far away. Still, good to see them in real life though. There's one there in that picture above, a female, who's been there for 50 years we were told.

After the chimpanzees, I decided to wander on my own. I slowly made my way up the hill to an area called Dinosaurs Return. Giant animatronic dinosaurs were dotted around, with sound effects and one was even spitting water! A few kids had fun standing under it. Another kid was screaming when his mum tried to get a picture of him at the mouth of the T-Rex. Hehe.

After a quick stop for lunch at a BBQ stall it was time to head over to the see the Panda's. The female wasn't around and the male was just sort of laying there in a hammock with his back to the window. The keeper told us he ate 45kg of six different kinds of bamboo per day. Greedy thing!

Shortly after that was the penguin parade. A strange affair. Everyone was asked to stay on the grass behind a yellow line and a little group of penguins walked around, closely guarded by the keepers. The penguins were smaller than I had imagined. Only about knee high, and the black part wasn't as black as I'd thought.

The Scottish weather was unusually warm and made for a great day out. Most of us headed back to the lecture theatre in the chimpanzee area to charge up phones and take some final shots. After that was a quick drink stop then I headed for the train.

Huge thanks to Edinburgh Zoo for their hospitality, and to the Instagram Edinburgh folks for organising it all. Really appreciate it. It was lovely meeting new faces too. I'm always a bit awkward at these events. So if I met you (or not!) and I was a bit quiet, I do like you and know that I'm much more talkative once I get to know you. *smiley face*

You can see some great photos by heading over to Instagram and typing in #WWIM12Edinburgh #emptyNMS #WWIM12EdinburghZoo I highly recommend you have a look!

Angela

#WWIM11_Edinburgh

I finally did it. I finally got a place and attended a WorldWide Instameet. This was number 11 and I attended the one that took place in Edinburgh on Saturday evening, organised by @IgersEdinburgh. It was held at the Scottish National Gallery of Modern Art One and was a lovely setting for it. Two things I Love; Instagram and modern art, in one evening - I was always going to want to be in on that action. Even better was the fact that the Roy Lichtenstein work has just opened at the gallery plus a great deal more. I'm a huge fan of all that pop art stuff and even have a print of one hanging on my wall.

Anyway, I arrived in the golden hour to the gallery and there were a few people milling around outside whilst a group took some pictures on the grassy sculpture. It's always a bit awkward when you are rocking up to these events and you don't know anyone there. Luckily there were a few people in the same position as well as some folks who obviously knew each other.

@Ange77H

Then there's the meet up etiquette. When I've been to 'tweet-ups' in the past there have been name badges with your Twitter handle on it. There were no name badges here. I was thinking "shall I just say Angela or will I give my Instagram name?"... I soon discovered Angela would do fine.

close up of a Lichtenstein

After the opening group shop was taken we made our way inside the museum and the door was closed. We had an EMPTY! The first of it's kind in Scotland so it felt like a real privilege. After an intro by the museum staff and a few pointers from the organisers we were allowed to go on our way to explore and snap this wonderful building.

I love this picture but WHO is this? anyone? @IgersEdinburgh 

There were a few hashtags we were asked to use on our pictures and it didn't take me long to find a few great shots #emptyscotmodern #emptyscotmodern_corner #emptyscotmodern_reflection. I also brought along my Fuji as I wanted to get some better quality shots of the artwork. PS all photos in this post were taken with my iPhone6. I'll do another post with the Fuji pictures.

At around 7.50pm the bell was rung and that was the end of the '#empty'. What a thoroughly enjoyable evening. Everyone headed outside into the chilly spring air and there were more group shots with faces lit by phone light. Most people then headed off to have food and drinks and I headed home.

I was sad the shop wasn't open

If you'd like to see more pictures I took on the night head over to my Instagram @Ange77H :)

Huge thanks to @IgersEdinburgh Steve (@Wilde_Oates) and Jemma (@Jemmacraig) for organising and to @natgalleriessco for allowing us the privilege to explore an empty Modern One.

Angela x

Favourite Instagrammers

Instagram is still one of my all time favourite apps and will always have a well deserved spot on the home page of my phone. I love it because I'm a visual person who takes inspiration from photos and colour and views and sunsets rather than words. One thing I thought was that I can't think if I've ever blogged about my favourite Instagrammers? Can you remember? Well, even if I have i thought I'd do an update on some of the Instagram feeds that I love the best for various reasons. It's good to share the love sometimes.

First up we have @TheFashionGuitar Charlotte from the blog of the same name showing us all things fashion and New York. Her style is great and her pictures show us a small glimpse into her life of fashion and kids and a recent move to New York. Stylish but not showy. Follow her.

@Johnnyramirez1 OH MY GOD. This guy is one half of Ramirez Tran who I think I've mentioned on this blog before. Hairdresser in Los Angeles, I 'Like' nearly every single picture he posts. I would give anything to visit his salon. He is the one single person who i would trust my hair to 100%. Hands down.

@andreadabene This feed is amazing. Brilliant vistas from a snowy covered Montana just now. It looks all clean and minimal - just lovely. Previously the desert with a little bit of greenery in between.
A well curated feed.

@_Divanoletto Fun adventures with bikes. Nicolo is based in Rome but he travels all over. There's always a bike and a smile. A really nice collection.

@Wilde_Oates absolutely stunning set of pictures from a guy in Edinburgh called Steve. Mostly Scotland and Edinburgh but that's okay. It's a lovely place to capture and this feed shows our country off really well. Brilliant stuff.

@Le21eme AKS. "Luh Van-Tay-Uh-Nee-Emm" Brilliant fashion photographer. NOT street style, fashion shows and the #AKSforeheadselfie's are dreamy. Top.

@dr_woo_ssc Shamrock Social Club tattoos. Gorgeous delicate tattoos that I'd get, if I ever took the plunge.

@Jedidiahjenkins Recently completed a cycle from Oregon to Patagonia, he's now moved back to LA to write a book about his adventure. The emotion and what it meant to him to make that journey really came through in his pictures. We saw who he met on that journey, where he slept, how he got his little bike repaired and what he ate. Everything. Nice.

And those are just some of my favourite Instagram feeds. Of course there are more that I love but this post would go on *forever* if I listed them. Go have a look though, and let me know who you're favourites are to follow on Instagram?

Angela x

The Nolitan Hotel, New York

Yes. It's true. Last week I spent 5 days in New York city. Fast becoming one of my favourite places ever. I spent 3 days in Nolita and 2 days in Midtown, and I have to say I think I preferred the Nolita/Soho area best. Don't get me wrong, the whole city just has that special something about it but there's a different feel to Soho. Narrower streets, lower buildings and generally a slower pace of life, I felt. I loved it.

From the moment I got off the subway at Bowery and emerged into a balmy new york evening I knew it was going to be good.

I got off the plane after a relatively uneventful flight and waited at immigration for just over an hour. It's great. You can people watch and catch snippets of conversations depending on where you are in the queue. I had Miss Opinion and Mister Laid-Back behind me and i couldn't fathom out how they could be travelling together! I mean I don't think they were partners, there were no PDA's. She had an opinion about everyone and everything. The young, tall, naturally beautiful slim girl must have been 'anorexic' according to Miss O. I mean didn't she think that this flawless girl could be in town the week before FASHION WEEK to do castings for fashion shows because she was a MODEL, and might not be anorexic, but in fact just really tall and naturally slim. Those girls do exist. Jeezus.

Anyway, through immigration I was then to decide how I'd get from JFK to the hotel. Do I request an Uber? Nah, I jumped on the AirTrain into Jamaica station and got the train to Bowery. It was a sunny afternoon and I thoroughly enjoyed to train ride through Queens and Brooklyn, over the Williamsburg bridge and into Manhattan.

Like I say I emerged into bright sunlight from Bowery station where I hauled that giant yellow case up the stairs and took a few minutes to get my bearings. Once I'd got Google maps out, I knew which direction to go and walked to the hotel.

The Nolitan hotel was the one I'd chosen after much deliberation. It was an easy and quick check-in process where I was told I was on the 9th floor!! Woohoo - VIEW! Pay the extra for a higher floor.

View from my cityscape balcony room at The Nolitan

When I got into the room I dumped the case and headed to the window. What a view indeed. A pure class magnificent view of the Empire State building and all that Midtown had to offer. As well as Soho to the left and the Lower East Side and Williamsburg Bridge to the right. Just amazing. I couldn't stop looking at it. Even better was that my room had a balcony - pay extra for a cityscape balcony room on a higher floor. It wasn't a huge balcony but it had a little bench and it was just brilliant for people watching and stopping to catch my breath after days pounding the streets.

 The room itself wasn't massive but it was big enough for me and would fit two people nicely. Two people with no more than two large cases mind you. The bathroom and toilet were separate which may not suit some people, but the bathroom itself was of clean and simple design and the shower had a see-through glass wall which meant you could actually see the Empire State as you washed your hair - if you're an exhibitionist! No, I kid. But yes, you could see out the window. Hopefully no-one could see into your room. For those who preferred more privacy there was a curtain you could pull over to close the bathroom off. I found the room a bit dark when I did that but soon pulled it back when I'd done with the showering.

The bed was a very comfy queen, but large enough for two. There was a desk and chair, as well as a side chair, and the ceiling was bare concrete which I really liked. It added to the modern industrial feel of the place. I couldn't have chosen better.

Once I'd been in my room for half an hour I freshened up and headed out into the streets to see what I could find. The are was busy but not Times Square busy. Busy enough with people heading to cafes and bars for food and drinks.

There was a restaurant at hotel but I didn't eat there. Instead on my wanderings I happened upon cafe upon cafe upon restaurant or take out, and even a shop called Rice to Riches on Spring Street which only sells rice pudding. Yes, that's rice pudding (and some drinks of course). There was every flavour of rice pudding you can imagine - well, about 20 different flavours. I opted for the caramel flavour and got a 'solo' sized bowl which lasted me two nights. It was so tasty though. Such a great idea for a shop. I'd recommend you try it if you're in that area.

Rice To Riches

Thankfully, in Google maps, I had saved all of the places I wanted to eat at, visit, see, try out and take photos off, and many of them were right here on the streets of Nolita / Little Italy / Soho. You see I was right bang in the middle of all three places. Just brilliant.

I ate a cupcake and had a cup of tea at the Little Cupcake Bakeshop and then went to the MacBar of some classic macaroni cheese to take back to the hotel. But not before a quick trip down Mulberry street to see the Little Italy sign. By now it was about 9pm and I was hanging with tiredness as I'd been up on my feet for twenty hours. So after scoffing down the mac n cheese I went to sleep on my first night in the city that never sleeps and I didn't draw the curtains. Well, you wouldn't either with a view like this to look at...

More soon!...

Angela x

Juicy Brainwave

The other week I had a brain wave. I get them now and again you know. I decided that to kick start my sugar detox and help my bodily functions I thought I'd try a juice cleanse.

Now, the back story is that I don't eat that much variety of vegetables or fruit. Shameful I know. I can't really eat apples or skinned fruit anymore due to them getting stuck in my brace and then I have to do a thorough brush of my teeth afterwards to get any apple skin out, and so it goes on... Lazy and really no excuse I know, but still.

Anyway, my brainwave.

I started looking at juice cleanses on the web and found a local company who delivered a one day sweet cleanse (a taster pack) for £45 plus delivery. That is expensive but it's almost half the price of other ones i found. A few emails back and forth and we'd arranged my delivery on Thursday of two weeks ago. I picked Thursday as it's the day I didn't really do any exercise and the information mentioned that you might want to take it easy on juice days.

The guy appeared at my office at a little after 9.30am as arranged. I got two brown papers bags with five 500ml glass bottles of varying colours, along with a lemon, a shot of ginger, two detox teabags and information leaflets. I read the leaflets and I was to start my juice cleanse with one nice fuchsia pink coloured liquid. Oh they also included straws. Very handy when you want to just slurp and swallow instead of taste this liquid. The pink liquid was watermelon, lime and mint. It was okay. It was drinkable. You aren't meant to gulp these drinks down. The information said to drink it like food. So, no sipping, but no gulping. It took me two hours to finish this bottle. Good start from me, high five.

The next one on the list was a green one. I was dreading the green ones. Green drinks aren't appetising really. This one had kale, apple, cucumber, ginger and something else that I can't recall. I want to purge this smell from my mind. For yes, when I opened each bottle I had a sniff. This one was a very strong cucumber smelling juice. Like, very strong. I popped in a straw, pinched my nose and took a long draw of liquid. Ugh. Disgusting. I couldn't do it. Bleurgh. I gave a colleague a taste too. She didn't mind it but agreed about the cucumber being overpowering. 

I decided to miss this green one out and go straight for the purple one. The beetroot one. Now, looking at the ingredients it didn't have the much beetroot in it but we all know that beetroot stains easily and the colour most certainly was of the beetroot hue. I lasted about three draws of drink throughout the straw and I gave up. I can't do juicing. I went and got a cup of tea and some water.

There ended my foray into juice cleanses.

Seriously, who would do juicing for the love of it? They aren't my taste at all. I can't think why anyone would do this for more than one day. That's totally nothing against the company i bought mine from, in fact they were very good. The juice came in lovely glass bottles, or you can opt for plastic ones. You do get a little money off your next order if you return the bottles to them so that's good. So yes, the company were good but juicing is just not for me. 

The last green one was a broccoli and kale affair. I can only imagine what that tasted like!

The juices that were left didn't go to waste. A colleague took them home. But I think I've had it with the idea of juice cleansing. It's not for me.

Now I'm left with some really nice glass bottle to up cycle into some nice table decorations/ornaments. So I suppose something good came out of my juice cleanse. If you think you can stomach the taste of juices, go ahead. I think from now on I'll stick to my fruit and chicken salads - not together!

Oh and granola. I am obsessed with Jordan's Super Nutty Granola, with some yoghurt and fresh strawberries. I'd eat that every day if could.

Angela 

A Wander Around My Town

How often do you walk around your own town or village and just soak it all in? Do you see new things that you'd never noticed before? Discover a hidden gem? See how that old tree ages with each passing year? Is that tree even still there?

I don't do it that often and yet I live in a small village next to a small city of huge historical importance in Scotland - Stirling. Only the there night was there a programme on TV dedicated to finding the original battle of Bannockburn battleground. This might be a spoiler but the site is less than 2 miles from where I sit typing this very blog post and you wouldn't even know it! At least I wouldn't because I don't really go venturing close to home. Sure there are bike ride along the well trodden footpaths that circle the village but actually walking around my local city? nope.

One late Saturday afternoon as golden hour was approaching I decided to go out in the car for a little run. I wasn't sure where I was going to go so heading into town. (I still call it the town but it's officially a city). I drove around then went up to an area we call 'The top of the town'. All the locals know it as that. It leads up to Stirling Castle perched high and overlooks the whole of the Stirling area and on a clear day far north towards Callander and over east to Falkirk/Fife.

The top of the town, or Stirling Old Town as the guide books might say, is all cobbled streets and hundred year old buildings. There are some new builds but in the main I think they've tried to keep the appearance as old as possible. There's a couple of hotels, a cemetery, shops, coffee shops, scout halls, the Tolbooth Theatre, Old Town Jail visitor attraction and of course Stirling Castle itself. I parked the car near the top and wandered down Broad Street (once used in a Bank of Scotland advert).

It was quiet for a Saturday afternoon but I enjoyed the walk. I walked back up around Spittal Street then up towards and into the Castle Esplanade. A few tour buses and cars were dotted around so I couldn't really get a full on panorama of the castle in all of its glory but I tried. Here are few more shots I took that day. All on the iPhone.

I'll go back for another wander with my new camera to see what hidden gems I can capture.

Angela

Help! I'd like a new camera

BandW boy (Dan Rubin), shot and edited in VSCOcam on iPhone 4S, by me. Glasgow Photowalk, Jan 2014.

I need your help?!

Ever since I went to the Glasgow Photowalk workshop back in January, I've been trying to decide which camera to buy that will become my new companion. Most people at the workshop had some sort of DSLR camera and if i'm honest i always wanted one of those but was never sure quite why. I suppose I thought it took better pictures. Reality is that it's not the equipment you use it's the picture you take. Sure, I mean if you're a pro or even a semi-pro then I'm sure a DSLR is very useful. But for me, a hobbyist with a keen interest, I just wasn't sure what I was after. By the way, I like the way the subject in the photo above is not dead centre.

A few weeks ago I went to Jessop's. I was annoyed because about 1 minute after entering the shop and before I had the chance of a proper look, a sales guy was all too keen and eager at asking if I needed any help. I mean that is fine and all but wait a few minutes at least so I can catch my breath, tut. However, after a few minutes having a look myself at what was on offer I asked a girl for some more information. I told her i wasn't sure i wanted a DSLR. What I did want was something that was good in all light conditions, especially night time. I wanted something small, perhaps with interchangeable lenses. What I really wanted to say was that all I wanted was something that could take good portraits and those fancy schmancy torchlight word pictures in the dark! But you can't say that in a photography shop without looking like a twat. I had an idea of the kind of thing I was after. Someone had mentioned the Fuji X100S to me. Small, but not too small though. No interchangeable lens. But oh man, it looks great. The price is a little steep mind.

The sales assistant didn't once suggest it to me. Instead she showed me a DSLR (!) and a Sony compact model. Great in low light, she said. I had a play with both and took a few pictures. The Sony did feel better in my hand. I has small hands. However, she really pushed the DSLR and was banging on about all these bells and whistles it had and that I should take this as my first one. I let her go on. I probably shouldn't have. She priced everything up and recommended their photography workshops, the insurance, a scabby bag, a spare battery and a memory card. £699. I didn't have the heart to tell her i was just in to see it and i'd probably buy it off the internet for much cheaper. I mean the memory card alone was double the price in the shop. Why would I buy it there.

I left there none the wiser and not hopeful that I was getting what i wanted so i wandered to John Lewis to see if their choice was any better. After 20 minutes of hanging about waiting on the one guy from the photography section finishing with a fussy and demanding customer, I told him what i wanted. That i didn't want anything too big, probably not a DSLR, and guess what he showed me? Almost the same DSLR and the same Sony camera. Would you even believe it? I mean would you...

a selection from John Lewis

I uhmed and aahed again and was really hoping that he would have good solid trustworthy advice for exactly what I wanted. I left there after another few goes with the cameras.

Ignoring my camera-buying urge for a few weeks I managed to get my hands on a smallish DSLR to try out for a week or so. I liked it. I liked the pictures I took with it but there was something not quite right. I didn't now what it was until I decided to take it along with me on a trip to Glasgow, and then I realised. There was nothing missing. There was too much of it. It was too big. Even this small model was still too big for what I really wanted.

I LOVE my iPhone because it suits the type of photographs I want to take. Random, ad-hoc, on the move photos. Photos that just appear in front of you. I'm not a professional photographer. I don't feel I need nor do I want to be carrying a bulky DSLR around with me. I do however want the ability to take great photos. To be able to whip my camera out of my bag and take a picture. I don't want to have to carry an extra camera bag about with me, or extra lenses. Do I really need a zoom lens? No. My feet are my zoom. I am inspired by pictures on the Instagram or VSCOcam apps and those are photos that are mostly taken by phones (I hope!). That's the kind of thing i'm after. Mobile photography that isn't on a phone but a bit more advanced than my normal point and shoot - a 'compact system camera'? That's all.

I'd be really grateful if you could help me. Reading lots of reviews online about different compact system cameras and they range in price from £400 - £1000. I like this review of a Fuji X100S...

It's all about the picture, not about bogus sales features. The X100S has no BS HDR modes, yet its Voodoo sensor and electronics let it render insane dynamic ranges naturally and instantly, and its built-in flash is always perfect — and never needing to pop up or wait to recycle or any of the other hogwash that other camera makers spray out to get between us and a good picture. All the other baloney helps sell cameras to non-pro photographers, while the X100S is as perfect as any digital camera this side of the iPhone 5 has ever gotten.

I think that says a lot. I want it to be about the picture, not the size of my zoom or how many lenses I have. Talking of lenses. Whilst i was at the workshop for the Glasgow Photowalk I was surprised and glad that Dan recommended that you use one lens to take pictures for the first few months, to get to know your camera and how it works. Dump the standard lenses it comes with he said (or something along those lines) at least for a while. Then the 'nifty 50' was mentioned. It's apparently really great as this post mentions and a photography enthusiast colleague told me. Low cost, lightweight, great for travelling, killer bokeh, what's not to love. And look what she says on zoom lenses - great for sports or weddings but you can always just walk that two feet to get a new composition with your prime lens.

Not bad for an iPhone. Shot and edited in VSCOcam on iPhone 4S.

Having said all of that I'm still at a loss as to what to buy. These aren't cheap models by any means but i want something of quality, relatively new to the market as I don't want to find out that 3 months down the line they're bringing out a 'newer' version with more features. Although I gather that new cameras are always coming out. I want to take low light pictures, night time, inside, outside, portraits, fun torchlight word pics, manual setting, not fussed about a zoom lens, wifi connectivity might be an advantage but it's not a deal breaker. Buying a camera is a personal thing. It has to feel good in your hands too. You have to want to take it out and shoot because otherwise you're not going to take those pictures and capture those moments with all of your heart. I keep going back to this but i really do love my iPhone for this but now I'm ready to up my game and get a grown up camera.

Help?

Angela