It’s been a few months since I shared a photo of Blake. He’s almost 3 and growing up quickly. We can have conversations now, which has made being an Auntie even more fun! Toys ‘R’ Us is shutting down so stock is 25% off. I bought him a Skye toy from the Paw Patrol series. I think he liked it.
Americano and Apple Tart
It’s been almost a year since I visited Cottonrake Bakery, despite finding myself on Great Western Road often. On Saturday I returned with my friend, Rab. It’s a lovely spot for fresh cakes, but make sure you visit early—they usually sell out.
Sunday Afternoon Light
This was one of those Sundays I really enjoy. A day of uninterrupted me stuff, like taking Indie for a long walk, cleaning the house and going out for a run. The fact the sun was shining instantly put me in a good mood. These Scottish winters can feel awfully long, you know. The light in my apartment was on point and I had to capture Indie settling into this sun patch for a sleep.
Ella and Macy
This is Ella and Macy, my friend’s dogs. They’ve had some bad news about Ella’s health and there’s a chance she won’t be here in 6 months. It’s heartbreaking. I know how much my friend loves these dogs, so I offered to do a family shoot. Now they’ll have some nice memories to look back on. Here’s a photo I took of Ella when she was a puppy. They’re both lovely dogs and I know Ella will be getting lots of cuddles.
Vietnamese Coffee at Monty’s
Okay, I lied. It’s not called Monty’s. It used to be Montogomery’s. Then Monty’s. Most recently it’s rebranded to 10 10. I don’t care what it’s called, as long as they continue serving Vietnamese coffee I’ll be there.
I’ve never visited Monty’s or 10 10 or whatever and not ordered the Vietnamese Coffee. It’s very sweet and a nice change from my usual coffee.
Eilidh and Chris’ Engagement
Let’s do an engagement shoot in Glencoe! In February! That was our plan until a weather warning was issued. It didn’t end up snowing, but it was wet and damp so we relocated our shoot to Luss.
Luss is a village on the bank of Loch Lomond. This area will look pretty even in the wind and rain. Eilidh and Chris braved the cold to get some beautiful shots of them before their wedding in May.
They were fun to photograph, so I’m looking forward to their wedding even more so now. Congrats, Chris and Eilidh.
Happy Birthday To Me
I’m a few days late in posting this, but the 25th of January was my birthday. Birthdays stop mattering after a certain age, but I made sure I had a day of ‘me’ stuff. It looked like this:
Had breakfast at Tantrum Doughnuts Did a bit of work Bought a new video game (Wildlands. It’s really good.) Enjoyed tapas and cocktails in Finnieston
Indie’s First Time Off A Lead
Indie’s almost 12, yet I’ve never let her off the lead. Well, that’s not true. There were a couple of occasions and she ran away. She follows her nose—even if that puts her in dangerous situations. It does mean she never gets much of a chance to stretch her legs and run around.
Somebody on Facebook posted about a dog run in Glasgow and by the next day I’d booked a 30 minute slot for Indie. I didn’t know what to expect, so I packed a ball and some toys for her to run around with. It turns out she never left my side and just wanted to dig in the snow. It was very cute.
Family Holiday in Lanzarote
It was lovely to start 2018 with a family holiday to Lanzarote. This was my nephew’s first time on a plane and he loved it—even through heavy turbulence on the flight home. It was special to experience everything with him for the first time.
It was all-inclusive and I was expecting to come back fat. Fortunately the hotel had an amazing salad bar (yes, I get excited about salad).
Highlights were:
- Visiting the volcanoes
- Holding lava rock in my hand. It’s scorching!
- Spending time with my nephew, Blake
- Getting some Vitamin D
- Reading Birdsong on my balcony with sparkling wine
Downsides were:
- 2 year old tantrums. Respect to all parents out there!
- Seeing the camels chained together, having to heave fat Brits up a volcano
- My sister getting ill. There was a bug going round and quite a few of us got it. Fortunately I didn’t, which is a miracle considering I was sat next to my sister for 5 hours on a plane
Lunar Landscapes
This time last week I was on a family holiday in Lanzarote. It was mostly about entertaining the kids, so there wasn’t a lot of photography action or culture. I did enjoy the express volcano tour, which is when I took these landscapes. (If I was doing this trip with other photographers, I would have hired a car instead of tagged along on an official tour. This experience would be better at sunrise or sunset.)
Lanzarote has a lunar landscape after a volcano erupted for 6 years, which produced 32 new volcanoes. The landscape feels so barren with layers of volcanic rock instead of the greenery I’m used to. Alongside that, there are very strict rules about architecture. Every building must be painted white and can not exceed 4 floors. The volcanic activity makes for some interesting pictures.
