Walking On Sunshine

We had a lovely sunny day for supporters of the National Autistic Society Scotland, who walked a 5km route around Glasgow Green to celebrate World Autism Acceptance Month. I did this event with them last year when it was chucking it down. Even as the rain came in sideways the smiles kept going.  What a difference a year makes. We had a chilly start, but as the sun burst through it was lovely. The numbers were up because of the good weather. The picture was all the smiling faces as they came into the finish line on the home stretch with the Glasgow Commonwealth Games Big G in the background.

Ship Ahoy

HRH Princess Anne was visiting the TS Queen Mary berthed beside the Glasgow Science Centre. We had a lovely day for the visit and the Princess looked great in her Team GB sunglasses. She was on great form chatting to the sponsors and volunteers. I loved this picture of HRH Princess Royal with Iain Sim, chairman of the Friends of TS Queen Mary on deck as part of her visit as Royal patron. We had fantastic coverage of the visit, it even made the front page of The Herald.

Old Scots Denim

I love history. I was delighted to have my first visit to the Scottish Crannog Centre where I met experimental archaeologist Isobelle Hanby with the piece of woven fabric, which lay buried in the bottom of Loch Tay in Perthshire for nearly 2500 years, naturally preserved by the silty bed. Believed to be the oldest of its kind in Britain and dating back to the early to middle part of the Iron Age, it was found in 1979 when an Iron Age loch dwelling house, known as the Oakbank Crannog, was excavated on Loch Tay. It was thought to be the ancient equivalent of a denim type of material.

Isobelle and her co – experimental archaeologist Maureen Kerr  are pictured  the roundhouse using a warp-weighted loom to recreate the 2/1 twill weave found during the excavation of Oakbank Crannog in 1979 in Loch Tay in Perthshire. 

River City

I do enjoy the Unit Still part of my job. I don’t do a huge amount but I really enjoy what I do. Over the years I have photographed on set with Scots Squad, Princess Mirror Belle, Richard Osmond’s House of Games to name a few. I always fancied getting a go on River City. I have been on set many times working for the Herald & Times on features but never as a unit stills photographer. I was asked along this month to photograph some scenes being filmed. They were all so nice from the guy who signed me in, to the stars of the show. It was pleasure and I was made feel so welcome. As with all  TV studios its all brilliantly lit. My pictures have gone on to be used on the BBC I Player.

Ghost Stories

I am not a fan of being scared. Horror movies are not for me but ghost stories …I don’t mind so much. I met the cast of ‘Ghost Stories’ on the old Victorian stairwell of The Theatre Royal in Glasgow. What a nice friendly bunch they were. I could not imagine anyone of being scared of them until I saw a few clips of the audience reactions on YouTube.

Lets Hear it for the Girls

While not being a natural athlete I am always delighted to meet sports people. I met lots of them at Glasgow Caledonian University Sports Awards Ball at The Hilton Hotel in Glasgow. I got chatting to the tennis team , tennis is a sport I play. The golf team, which I also play but the one sport I started and finished my career at in the space of 20 minutes at school was rugby. I was therefore, so impressed with GCU Women’s Rugby Club, who were winners of the GCU Team of the Year shield. They were a great bunch. The GCU Club of the Year trophy was GCU Men’s Rugby Club and GCU Most Improved Club trophy was GCU Equestrian Club. They were all good fun, although not for the first time I was feeling my age.

BCSWomen Lovelace Colloquium at The University of Glasgow

I visit The University of Glasgow many times throughout the year and in my younger years frequented the Queen Margaret Union. I even saw Slade there back in the day but I have never been in the Glasgow University Union. It was called The Men’s Union, probably my College of Building and Printing matriculation card wouldn’t let me in there. Anyway, what a lovely old building. I was in to photograph a the BCS Women Lovelace Colloquium, an annual one day conference for women and non-binary students of Computing and related subjects.  The event started in 2008, and moves around the country. This time it was the University of Glasgow’s turn to host it. What a nice bunch. Lots of scientists and folks who make me wish I had stuck in more at school. It was great to get everyone in for the big group picture in the main hall, which wasn’t the easiest space to light.