Christmas Gift Ideas

Do you still need to find a present for someone who loves the great outdoors? Or maybe you know someone who loves to travel and would appreciate a piece of the world in their own living room? Look no further! Be inspired by a visit to our photography print collection at www.jasonfriendprints.com - The online image gallery dedicated to the work of award winning photographer Jason Friend.

Perhaps you know someone who is having a new camera for Christmas, and would love to learn how to get the most from both their camera and their own photographic ability. Perhaps you should take a look at our range of photography workshops? A workshop gift voucher makes an ideal present for the budding photographer!

Edinburgh Nights

Edinburgh City is undoubtably one of the most spectacular cities to be found within the United Kingdom. A perfect blend of old and new, natural and man made constructions, Edinburgh City is a dream location for any visiting photographer. And I am delighted to announce that it is to be the subject of my 6th solely authored book (to be released by Halsgrove in 2009).

There is something very special about this forthcoming publication. Unlike all of my previous books, the images are captured during the hours of darkness - The only source of lighting being the artificial city lights. As a photographer who spends a vast amount of time hanging around waiting for the sun to emerge, I am finding it quite bizarre shooting images where the reverse is the desired lighting conditions. In some ways it is also very liberating as I am no longer tied to the normal considerations of weather patterns and I can actually still create memorable images even in spells of overcast skies. Whilst the above shot of Edinburgh Castle was captured on a clear winter night, the image of the Scott Monument and Princes Street was captured on an overcast day at dusk - Proof that even on the dullest of days that there will always be a small pocket of 'cross over lighting' from day to night when the sky will retain some form of colour. A good dose of light pollution from the city lights will also help to ensure a degree of colour.

The Ferris Wheel and Helter-Skelter in the Princes Street image are part of the cities christmas celebrations to be found at the East Princes Street Gardens. If you are planning to visit Edinburgh over the next couple of weeks, I fully recommend that you visit the fair and join in the festivities. If you are a budding photographer ensure that you take your camera and tripod and try capturing some images after dark - The Ferris Wheel offers a number of creative opportunities. The image to the left was the result of a 30 second exposure at f19. A simple way to achieve this kind of image is to set your camera to aperture priority and select a small aperture such as f16 or f19 - The resulting exposure should be long enough to provide the desired result.

The Tyne through the eye of a fish

The last fews days have seen me exploring the area I call home, as I continue work on my next book project - Portrait of Tyneside.

I borrowed a Canon 15mm fisheye lens from local photographer (and friend) John Millard for the shot above featuring the iconic millennium bridge on the Gateshead / Newcastle Upon Tyne quayside. This was my first experience of using such a lens and whilst I do not feel that it would be suitable for many situations, I do think that it can provide an amazing new angle to your shots with the appropriate subject.

There are a few technical issues to consider before using the lens. First of all you can forget the use of a polarizing filter, or indeed any sort of filter that would normally attach to the front element. Secondly, it is incredibly easy to get the tripod (or even your own) feet within your composition. Thirdly, this lens will extremely distort the perspective of any verticals towards the edge of the frame which is often undesired - although in some situations it may just work!

2009 Photography Workshops Announced

We are delighted to announce the schedule for the forthcoming North East England based Photography Workshops, to be held during the first quarter of 2009.

New for 2009 is that all of the Photography Workshops are now entirely based in North East England, and all are led by award winning Newcastle Upon Tyne based photographer, Jason Friend.

The first five workshops for 2009 are held in the counties of Tyne & Wear and Northumberland. The workshop details are as follows:

South Tyneside Coast - 18th January 2009.

The South Tyneside Coast has to be considered as one of the most picturesque stretches of coastline to be found in the North East of England. Join Jason Friend for an early morning start to hopefully capture a sunrise image like the one above!

Plessey Woods, Northumberland - 30th January 2009.

A favourite location for photography during the winter months, join Jason in the Plessey Woods Country Park near Morpeth, Northumberland where we will hopefully get a chance to view the endangered Red Squirrel.

Ingram Valley, Northumberland - 8th February 2009.

Explore your photography and join Jason Friend on a day workshop in the Ingram Valley, part of the Northumberland National Park.

North Tyneside Coast - 20th February 2009.

Join Jason Friend in his home patch as he shares his intimate knowledge of the North Tyneside Coast - gained from numerous years photographing the highlights of this often overlooked region.

Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland - 15th March 2009.

Join Jason Friend along a spectacular stretch of Hadrian's Wall within the Northumberland National Park. As a regular visitor to the region, Jason will be sharing some of his favourite viewpoints of this famous world heritage site as well as his experience of how to make successful images from the location.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about the 2009 workshop schedule is the price tag! All workshops are planned around a 6 hour day and cost only £50 per person. Book your place soon as these photography workshop dates will probably fill up quickly!

2009 Photography Workshops Announced

We are delighted to announce the schedule for the forthcoming North East England based Photography Workshops, to be held during the first quarter of 2009.

New for 2009 is that all of the Photography Workshops are now entirely based in North East England, and all are led by award winning Newcastle Upon Tyne based photographer, Jason Friend.

The first five workshops for 2009 are held in the counties of Tyne & Wear and Northumberland. The workshop details are as follows:

South Tyneside Coast - 18th January 2009.

The South Tyneside Coast has to be considered as one of the most picturesque stretches of coastline to be found in the North East of England. Join Jason Friend for an early morning start to hopefully capture a sunrise image like the one above!

Plessey Woods, Northumberland - 30th January 2009.

A favourite location for photography during the winter months, join Jason in the Plessey Woods Country Park near Morpeth, Northumberland where we will hopefully get a chance to view the endangered Red Squirrel.

Ingram Valley, Northumberland - 8th February 2009.

Explore your photography and join Jason Friend on a day workshop in the Ingram Valley, part of the Northumberland National Park.

North Tyneside Coast - 20th February 2009.

Join Jason Friend in his home patch as he shares his intimate knowledge of the North Tyneside Coast - gained from numerous years photographing the highlights of this often overlooked region.

Hadrian's Wall, Northumberland - 15th March 2009.

Join Jason Friend along a spectacular stretch of Hadrian's Wall within the Northumberland National Park. As a regular visitor to the region, Jason will be sharing some of his favourite viewpoints of this famous world heritage site as well as his experience of how to make successful images from the location.

Perhaps the most amazing thing about the 2009 workshop schedule is the price tag! All workshops are planned around a 6 hour day and cost only £50 per person. Book your place soon as these photography workshop dates will probably fill up quickly!

The Wet Highland Way

I have just returned from nine days north of the border with my wife, Lynette, in bonnie Scotland. The plan was to capture some autumnal images whilst walking the West Highland Way - An official UK long distance walking track covering some 95 miles from Milngavie in Glasgow to Fort William in the Highlands. I had it all planned... early morning photography sessions photographing picturesque Scottish landscapes on crisp, sunny autumn days.

If only this had been the case!

Anybody living in the north-west of England or western Scotland will tell you that the weather last week was horrendous, in fact even dangerous. We were greeted at Milngavie by high winds which quickly became rain. After two days of this we had a brief interlude (just to lull me into a false sense of security) before the rain started again with even stronger, gale force winds. There was snow on the peaks surrounding us on the walk, incredibly picturesque - just a shame that the winds were strong enough to blow both Lynette and myself over! 95 miles carrying a camera and tripod for a handful of shots is incredibly frustrating.

I managed a few shots at Loch Lomond before the storms arrived and a couple more during the period of the calm before the next storm! The West Highland Way images can be viewed by clicking here.

There is an upside to everything though. At least the Midges were not causing us any problems!

Around the world in 10,000 shots

Readers of popular UK magazine, Digital SLR Photography, may have noticed a familiar face in this months edition. OK, you guessed it, yours truly is in this months issue and boy do I have a story to share with you all!

It has been nearly a year since Lynette and myself returned from our twelve month around the world foray, visiting and capturing images in some amazing countries including Argentina, Borneo, China and New Zealand. Now I finally get to share some of my favourite images with you all and also some of the stories behind them.

If the idea of seeing my images is not enough to make you rush out and buy the magazine, you can be assured that the magazine has plenty of other great images and features to justify the cost!

May I take this opportunity to say 'welcome' to any readers of the magazine who have taken the time to visit my site - I hope you enjoyed my story and I would love to read your comments!

2009 Photography Workshops

The workshop schedule for 2009 is due to be announced on the 1st November 2008, and I am pleased to announce that a number of changes have been made to the structure including a new, lower price!

The forthcoming 2009 workshops will be entirely based in the North East of England, a logical progression if you consider that the area is not only incredibly photogenic but also on my own doorstep - meaning that I will be in a position to show you some hidden gems of the North East.

The new structure of the workshops will mean that the days are slightly shorter than the previous dawn to dusk workshops - a frequent request from our participants last year. However, we will ensure that you will be on location for a chance to shoot images during the 'golden hour' either at sunrise or sunset - depending on the location.

The cost for the workshops has been slashed to only £50 per person - and you can save another 20% simply by signing up for the newsletter and being among the first to receive the details of the forthcoming 2009 photography workshop schedule.

Click here to subscribe to the photography workshop newsletter

Whilst you wait for the 2009 dates to be announced, may I remind you that places are still available for the Lancaster Fireworks Display photography workshop. Also, why don't you take a look at the images captured by our clients during 2008.

New Prints Available!

After the successful launch of Jason Friend Prints earlier this year, I am delighted to announce that a number of new images have been added to the collection and are now available as a range of prints & gifts, all of which can be ordered securely online at www.jasonfriendprints.com.

The landscape of Northern England provides the subjects for the new additions to the collection, which includes a selection of new images from Tyne and Wear, Northumberland, Yorkshire and Cumbria.

Why don't you take a look yourself? Click here to visit www.jasonfriendprints.com!

Northern Passion

The much promised indian summer finally hit Tyneside last week, and I did my best to make sure that I made the most of it! With the text and processing completed for my next book, Spirit of Cumbria, I continued work on my second book to be released next year, Portrait of Tyneside, and made sure that the laptop was left well alone for a couple of days!

The Angel of the North is an iconic landmark that should be on the 'hit list' for any photographer visiting the region. The only trouble is that it receives 90,000 visitors a year so you may well have to wait for a 'people free' image. Never mind though, you can always indulge in an ice cream if you are having a hot flush in these northern climes!



The joys of working on a book based around the area where I live, are that the logistics of visiting locations is made far simpler - And I can even have a lie-in for early morning shots! Both of the above images were captured less than five miles from my home. The first of the images, Michaelmas Daisies at Rising Sun Country Park, would not have been possible without the use of my new 3 Stop hard Singh-Ray Galen Rowell Graduated Neutral Density Filter. I had to have the filter sent to my from the states but the quality of these filters is second to none - and yes, I have used Lee Filters!

The final shot was captured on Monday morning at King Edward's Bay along the Tyneside Coast in Tynemouth. Again the filter was invaluable to deal with the lighting conditions. It is true that I could have shot the image twice and merged them behind the screen. Or I could have even used the new graduated filter effect in Lightroom 2 to simulate the filter but there is just something more rewarding about completing the process in camera.

Now, when will it finally stop raining!

Firework Display Photography Workshop

Calling all budding firework photographers! We have a number of places left for the forthcoming Lancaster City photography workshop on the 8th November 2008 with award winning photographer Jon Sparks.

The historic City of Lancaster has many magnificent buildings but what really makes it a delight for the photographer is fine setting, spread over two hills with the River Lune curving around them. Few places offer a better range of urban vistas in such a compact area. The grim battlements of Lancaster Castle, the beautiful Perpendicular stylings of the Priory Church and the sweep of the Georgian quayside are just some of the highlights.

But there’s more to this very special workshop than Lancaster’s architectural heritage. Each year Castle Hill is the site of a stunning fireworks display. Your tutor Jon Sparks has photographed this and many other fireworks displays and knows the secrets of capturing them to best effect. Having lived in Lancaster for most of his life and photographed it exhaustively, he also knows all the best angles and will pick the ideal vantage point for the fireworks to take best advantage of weather and visibility on the night.

The build-up to the fireworks display features a number of supporting events with colourful characters in historic costume likely to figure prominently. All being well we’ll also have the chance to photograph the interior of at least one of Lancaster’s finest buildings.

This really is a very special opportunity; early booking is strongly advised. Although this is a one-day workshop Jon will also be happy to advise on other great locations nearby so those staying overnight can take full advantage of Lancaster’s location close to the scenic delights of the Bowland Fells, Lune Valley and Morecambe Bay.

To find out more and reserve your place online, please click here.

Patagonian Ramblings

I was lucky enough to spend the last month of 2006 exploring the wild landscapes of the deep south of the Patagonian region - The legendary wilderness straddling the southern tips of Chile and Argentina.

These ramblings have resulted in me writing sections of text for a couple of books released worldwide by New Holland Publishers (UK) Ltd. The latest of these being 'Walking the World's Natural Wonders' which is now available to order through amazon.co.uk and other bookshops - online and on the high street.

The synopsis of the book is as follows:-

Aimed at the burgeoning adventure travel market, this book focuses on hikes, treks and walks that explore some of the earth's most spectacular wild places, and particularly natural wonders such as volcanoes, glaciers, unique rock formations, rivers and great lakes. This book is not aimed at expedition-type trekkers. Although some of the places are remote, all have basic visitor infrastructure, with option for a variety of walking trips. Destinations are drawn from all over the world including North America and Asia, with a significant proportion of European destinations.

I supplied the images and the text for the 'Torres Del Paine National Park' chapter, which was somewhat an honour as the fellow contributors included Tony Toole, Cameron Burns, Ronald Turnbull, Kev Reynolds, Gillian Price, John Bannon, Roly Smith and Roger Bray - with Jon Sparks supplying all other text and images as well as overseeing the complete project.

The other book featuring my work, and in this case only my words, was released earlier this year. New Holland approached me last year to write the introductory essay for the English translated version of 'Patagonia: Nature's Last Frontier' by Argentine photographer 'Marcos Zimmermann'. I have included a taster of the essay below:

Every single step forward felt like a huge achievement. Gale force winds were being channeled through the sheer valleys walls of the Fitzroy range, and with every particularly large gust we were being blown three steps back from our destination, a small ridge of the summit of the glacier moraine. Our quest to view the azure colored glacial lake was going to be somewhat of a struggle. However this was to be expected in Patagonia, a place where nothing is easy. A land where struggle is an essential part of everyday life.

If you would like to read some more, you will have to buy the book!

In Search of Spirit

Since my last post, I have had the pleasure of exploring what I consider to be finest landscape to be found in England, The Lake District, in search of new images that have that elusive photographic element - Spirit.

In my honest opinion, capturing the essence of a location (a.k.a Spirit) which I visit is the most important aspect that I try to convey in my images. For example, a clear, summers day spent photographing landscapes in the UK will often produce pleasing results. But this does not mean that the true character of the landscape is revealed. My favourite working conditions are during unstable weather fronts as I find that it helps me to (sometimes) capture images with the required spirit.

Take this image captured last weekend from Hardknott Castle Roman Fort looking towards the highest mountain in the region - Scafell Pike. As any visitor to the Lake District will tell you, it more often rains than shines in the Lakes meaning that a Lakeland shot in the heat of the afternoon sun will rarely convey any mood or suggest any essence. However, if you are mad enough to stand near the edge of a crag whilst a near gale force wind nearly knocks you and your tripod over, then maybe you may just capture some of that spirit.

This was the last trip for my forthcoming book 'Spirit of Cumbria' and I must admit that I have been very pleased with how the book has been taking shape. I will now spend the next few weeks processing the RAW files and scanning some of my old panoramic images before the completed project is passed to the safe hands of my publisher.

I can't wait to show you all the results!

HDR - The Lightroom Way (Sort of!)

I am going to be honest. I am not really a great fan of HDR images, I personally feel that they can sometimes look flat, artificial and lack the punch that I try to get from my images. However, a number of my contributors are now supplying a few HDR images and I have to say that if the process is carefully considered that in some instances HDR can look great. Personally I would still prefer to use ND grads in the field as I am already spending far too much time behind the computer screen and I still feel that grads look far more natural, but photography is all down to personal preferences.

But what happens when you are in Borneo and you realise that your NG grads are in Thailand? Hmm, I wonder who this could be? This was the situation I found myself in last year when I was photographing a sunset off the west coast of Sapi Island in Malaysia Sabah. This is one situation where HDR images are definitely not suitable - the crashing of the waves means that the various images required to form a HDR image will not be identical. So I couldn't use HDR and my grads were locked up in a hotel in Bangkok. There was only one choice - shoot to my heart contents whilst ensuring that I exposed all of the images with the view of preserving the high-lights. Then I could weave a little magic back at the Mac.

Nearly a year later I have finally managed to be able to process the above image. The exposure was fairly simple - The band of cloud helped to shield the setting sun so it was easy enough to retain the details in the high-lights of the image. Once I had imported the image into Adobe Lighroom, I created a 'virtual copy' and then processed the two files very differently. With the first image I 'developed' the sky and with the second I concentrated on the foreground interest. This technique utilizes one of the great advantages of digital photography compared to shooting transparency film - a greatly improved latitude of exposure. Simply put this means that a digital camera will record more detail than slide film without loss of quality. Once I was happy with the settings for my two files, it was simply a case of merging them. Photoshop! I hear you scream... No, Lightroom!

Enter the LR/Enfuse plugin for Lightroom from Timothy Armes Photography. This plug-in, like the others available from the Timothy Armes website, was a breeze to install and just as simple to use. Now back to the two selected images, in Lightroom I selected 'File > Blend exposures using LR/Enfuse' and created a preview via the plug-in control panel. Once I was happy with the look of the image, I proceeded to click OK to create the full size file which I saved to a folder on my desktop called HDR. Then it was simply a case of importing the finished file into Lightroom.

So I am back to where I started. The image has worked and is a great improvement on the single exposure but I can't help but think that it would have been easier to achieve and possibly a superior final result through the use of ND grads. What do you think? I would be interested to read your comments!

What summer?

We should not complain really. I know that most of the UK is receiving rain but lets face it we have had a cracking spell of weather, or dare I say it, summer!

There are some advantages when it rains. It often means that I am less inclined to take my camera out into the great British summer and that I can continue to work my way through the 3000+ images left to process from my around the world trip last year.

Dom from Kidderminster recently sent me an email asking how I managed to shoot, sort and store my images whilst on the road. I decided that he was asking some valid questions so I am planning to write an article for a forthcoming 'Blog' spot so watch this space!

But in the meantime I have had the pleasure of re-living the trip through processing a selection of my images from Chile, Bolivia, China and Australia. Don't forget that you can keep an eye on my latest processed images by clicking here (don't forget to bookmark the page!).

Inevitably, there will be some folks across the UK complaining about the weather this weekend - It is what the British are famous for! But before we live up to the title of 'whinging pommes' maybe we should spare a thought for this little fellow, a Tasmanian Pademelon, who has to brave far worse weather conditions than we do through the month of August!

Orangutan screensaver now available for free download

On my trip last year to Malaysia Sabah (Borneo), I was lucky enough to have had two encounters with the local wildlife that I considered to be a humbling experience. Snorkeling in a sea where wild turtles were swimming alongside you and almost bumping into your body was an amazing sensation, perhaps only to be surpassed by the meeting of our distant relatives - The Orangutans.

Unfortunately I did not get to meet these guys in the wild. The truth is that their habitat is disappearing fast to make way for palm oil plantations, as well as timber being a valuable commodity ensuring that the destruction of their forest home is escalating. It is estimated that their are just 15,000 Orangutans left in the wild.

Enter the Sepilok Rehabilitation Centre in the Malaysian Sabah District of North Borneo, founded in 1964 to rehabilitate orphan orangutans like our friends above. The centre provides a safe haven for the Orangutans and many of the residents simply would not be alive without the help and love of the staff and volunteers at the centre.

I had two wonderful days at the centre, and our Orangutan friends made sure that I left with some memorial images. I have selected a few of my favourite shots to share with all of you PC users as a free screensaver - Sorry Mac users. I hope that the screensaver will offer you an insight into the personalities of the Seplilok residents - and the amazing work that the centre undertakes to ensure that these guys have a safe and loving existence.

Jason Friend Prints is here!

I have to admit to being genuinely excited about today's blog entry. For nearly as long as I have been a professional photographer, I have been constantly exploring the virtues of a number of outlets to market my images as a collection of photographic prints. There have been a few issues that have had to be taken into consideration about who should market the collection and how it should be done.

My tick list of requirements has been simple enough: I wanted fantastic reproduction of my images at a price that would be affordable for the person on the street. I have always loathed the idea of only private collectors seeing my work - I became a photographer to share my vision and as such I am delighted to announce the launch of www.jasonfriendprints.com.

The website service provider for my print collection is the Media Storehouse, who also handle all elements of the actual print fulfilment. You only have to look at the other well known collections that they handle (National Trust, English Heritage, Newcastle United FC!) to be assured that the print quality will be second to none. And the price?

As I ranted earlier, I have always wanted to keep the cost of my prints low and this is exactly what I have done. Award winning photography from a fiver? Framed prints £60? Stunning canvas prints for under £200? I have waited a long time to say this but...

Welcome to Jason Friend Prints - Click here to visit the shop!

Sign of the times!

Well it has been an eventful couple of weeks. Regular readers of the 'blog' will have noticed that I mentioned the forthcoming wedding to my long suffering partner, Lynette. I am delighted to announce that she has made an honest man of me - even if she did leave me to sweat in the ceremony when she was nearly thirty minutes late!

Our honeymoon took us to the grand landscape of the Dolomites in northern Italy, followed by a relaxing break in Venice and yes, I did take a camera but only captured three images.

Immediately on our return to the glorious north east of England, we found ourselves heading north of the border to help promote my latest book - Portrait of the Borders. So here I am, signing
copies of my books in the Galashiels branch of WHSmiths. Thank you to the staff and customers that I spoke to on the day and for your kind comments regarding the book. Lets face it, if the Scottish public like the book then I must have done something right. Now I just need to return to the Waverley Bar in Hawick to see if the book gets the locals approval and to find out if they think that an Englishman can do justice to their beloved homeland.

Any excuse for a pint eh?

This is the week!

I am thrilled to announce that my latest book, Portrait of the Borders, is now available in a store near you! This book, my third solely authored and my first since The Cumbria Way (from which a selection of images gained me the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild award for excellence in photography), is asuperb collection of over 140 full-colour images which I hope truly capture the perfection of the Scottish Borders.

'From the rolling hills of the east to the wild moorlands of the west, the county of the Scottish Borders is home to an incredible diversity of landscapes. Found alongside these natural features are the remnants of numerous abbeys, castles and hillforts, symbolic of a turbulent history. These natural and historical features have all helped to shape this melting pot of an area. Although perhaps somewhat unfairly overlooked by visitors heading to the Highlands, the inhabitants of the region have continued to be fiercely proud of their Scottish history and their beloved land.'

'Portrait of the Borders' is published by Halsgrove and is now available to purchase from Amazon.co.uk. If you would like to see a small selection of images displayed as a gorgeous screensaver for your pc (sorry mac users), why don't you download the free Scottish Borders screensaver ? For more information regarding the book, please download the promotional pdf!

This week is set to be an absolutely amazing one due to another long awaited event due to take place in the Lake District on Saturday. I will be finally marrying my long term (and ever patient) partner, Lynette, against a backdrop of the gorgeous Lake District National Park. We will be honeymooning in Italy so things will be quiet on the blog front for the next couple of weeks. I am even leaving the camera at home - well the Eos 5D anyway!

Enjoy the book!

Return to the Lake District

I can be a lucky 'so and so' at times. At the beginning of this week I found myself back behind the camera in the heart of the English Lake District National Park, capturing images for my forthcoming 'Spirit of Cumbria' book to be published by Halsgrove at the start of 2009.

The incredibly early start to the day is the only real disadvantage of practicing landscape photography during the summer months. I scouted the location for this dawn shot of Windermere the evening before, ensuring that I did not stop still long enough to provide a feast to the local midges! After a failed sunset shoot at Wray Castle (two hours standing on the spot waiting for the cloud to break!), I finally crawled into my tent at 10.30pm, only to be rudely awoken by my alarm clock at 4am. Ouch! However, the scene that unfolded before my eyes was definitely a good enough reason for leaving my snug sleeping bag!

This was my first photography trip back in the Lakes since our epic around the world adventure, and I have naturally found myself comparing my images from The Cumbria Way to my latest images. Perhaps the biggest surprise for me is that I am now using my Canon 70-200mm lens almost as much as my super-wide 17-40, and I am delighted with the results I am getting!

Aira Force, is a classic location where the use of a telephoto lens is incredibly beneficial. Not only does the increased magnification help you to isolate the features of the location, it also helps you to avoid capturing a stray tourist in your composition - and lets face it there are plenty in the Lake District! Joking aside, Aira Force has been photographed numerous times so with this image I tried to capture something a little bit different. I would have preferred to have used an even longer focal length to crop the waterfall further still - maybe next time.

All in all, the first dedicated trip working on the 'Spirit of Cumbria' was a great success. The new images will fit in nicely with my first picks from my library of Cumbria photographs and I am really excited about the prospect of watching this book take shape.

My next trip to the Lakes (after my wedding to Lynette on the 7th June of course), will be on the 23rd June when I will also be hosting a beginners photography workshop at Elterwater. There are plenty of places left if you would like to join me - I can't promise you great weather but I can promise you a lot of fun in the finest of all English landscapes!

Last chance for Wharfedale workshop

It's not too late for you to join Outdoor Photography magazine regular contributor Andy Latham and myself in (hopefully) sunny Wharfedale this Saturday. This is a rare chance to join Andy in his beloved Yorkshire - home to the subjects of a number of his award winning images.

There are only two places left so if you are interested, please take a look here!

Free Scottish Borders Screensaver!

To celebrate the forthcoming launch of my 'Portrait of the Borders' book, I am giving all you PC users a chance to use some of my favourite images from the new publication on your computer as the Screensaver and wallpaper.

So how do you get the Screensaver? Simply by clicking here! To install just double click on the downloaded file.

As much as it irritates me, I have to tell you that the Screensaver is PC only - Sorry Mac users...

'Portrait of the Borders' available to order from Amazon!

The release of my next book is nearly here, and I am delighted to announce that Amazon.co.uk have now started to take advance orders for 'Portrait of the Borders'. This, my third book is due to be released in the UK by Halsgrove at the end of this month.

I am very excited by the forthcoming release of this book, the first of four new titles for this publisher. The next books will see my revisiting Cumbria, exploring Tyneside and also scouting the streets of Edinburgh through the hours of darkness.

What more can I say? Apart from of course, click here to pre-order the book! If you would prefer a signed copy for £14.99 (UK only), please click here for a sneak preview of the images and to order the book!

One year on - Images from the Dusky!

Wow. It is hard to believe but it is a year to the day that Lynette and myself finished the grueling Dusky Track.

Traversing a distance of 84 kilometres through a remote area of the Fiordland National Park, part of the Te Wahipounamu – South West New Zealand World heritage Area, the Dusky track has gained its reputation as a challenging trail due to its terrain and the fact that large areas are prone to flooding. Believe me, this was not a simple walk in the park!

Coincidentally, I have just completed writing an article for a british photography magazine where I recall our experiences of walking the 'Dusky' and the processes involved to create some of my favourite images from the track.

But just in case you can't wait that long, I have uploaded a showcase of images from the track.

Click here to be transported to the Fiordland National Park and the infamous Dusky Track!

If only I could get back to Fiordland that quickly in real life!

Join Jason Friend on a photography workshop along Hadrians Wall

I am excited to announce that I will be leading an intermediate photography workshop along the spectacular Hadrians Wall within Northumberland National Park.

As a regular visitor to the town of Haltwhistle and the Hadrians Wall World Heritage site, I will be sharing some of my own personal viewpoints as well as taking you to the classics such as Cawfields and Sycamore Gap. The day will start at noon and we will stay out until sunset - fingers crossed for a spectacular sunset behind the Wall.

The workshop is limited to only 4 participants, so if you want to join us I suggest that you visit the Jason Friend Photography website and book your place!

Join Andy Latham & Jason Friend in Wharfedale

Hi all!

Just a quick post to let you know that we still have a couple of places available on the forthcoming Wharfedale photography workshop. The tutor, Andy Latham, is a regular name in the British photography press especially to all of the readers of Outdoor Photography. So if you love the great outdoors and really want to take your images to the next level, why not join him in (hopefully) sunny Yorkshire!

Oh, almost forgot to mention that I will be tagging along!

If you would like to join us, please visit this link.

Beginners workshop dates announced

We know that learning photography can seem overwhelming for the beginner - lets face it we were all beginners once! So we have decided to launch a range of workshops located in the north of England. The first two dates to be announced are located within the Lake District National Park and the Peak District National Park.

Designed to concentrate on the composition and creation of images as opposed to the technical side of photography, these workshops are ideal for the budding snapper hoping to get the most out of their camera. Whilst we do cover the basics of exposure and depth of field, the main objective is to show the participant how to create beautiful images regardless of their equipment.

Unlike many workshops designed for beginners, our workshops are entirely field based. Starting at 10 a.m in the morning and finishing at 4 p.m, the schedule of the day is designed to be suitable for people of most fitness levels. The workshops are priced at only £49 (including value added tax (VAT)) for the complete day - an affordable option to help you learn how to make an image as opposed to just taking one.

Portrait of the Borders - A sneak preview!

From the rolling hills and rugged coastline of the east to the wild moorlands of the west, the Scottish Borders region is home to an incredible diversity of landscapes. Found alongside these natural landforms are the remnants of numerous abbeys, castles and hill forts, symbolic of a turbulent history. These natural and historical features have all helped to shape this melting pot of a county. Although perhaps somewhat unfairly overlooked by visitors heading to the highlands, the inhabitants of the region have continued to be fiercely proud of their Scottish heritage and their beloved land.

They have many reasons to be proud of their ancestors, for without them this area may well have become part of England. These lands have seen fierce battles including the two wars of Scottish Independence, as well as other long periods of lawlessness where the inhabitants of both sides of the borders were prone to the threats of arson and murder. These troubled times have left their mark on not only the border region but also the English language, with such terms as ‘blackmail’ being derived from the payments that the working class farmers had to pay to the Border Reivers to protect themselves from pillage and plunder.

For the present day visitor, it is easy to understand why these people fought so hard, often giving their lives to protect their humble homelands. The coastline has to be considered as some of the most impressive stretches to be seen in the British Isles. In particular, the geology to be found near St Abbs is an ever present reminder of the formations that were created when the two separate landmasses that were to become England and Scotland collided to form the mainland that we know today.

Inland the distinct forms of the Eildon and numerous other hills around the Merse area are the remnants of extinct volcanoes, creating a vista that for any visitor to the area is simply magical. Further west the landscape changes as the rolling hills which give way to more grand hills and numerous lakes are revealed including the mesmerising St Mary’s Loch.

The remoteness of the terrain and the constant threat of changeable weather ensures that the Scottish Borders has a distinctly different feel to its English counterpart. As soon as you cross the border from England, influences from the people of the county to the features of the landscape will ensure you undoubtedly experience a Scottish welcome.

We know that you want to see a taster of the images from this great new book so......

Click here to view the sneak preview!

Back - in Black!

We've had a facelift, or perhaps more accurately a major overhaul! www.jasonfriend.co.uk is back - in black! A new look for the site has traditionally been associated with the release of a new book, and I am delighted to announce that the release of my third book is imminent!

So the site has been stripped to its core so that it can be re-designed to not only reflect my present style of photography but to also allow me to show you images from my new book and my other forthcoming projects. The image library can now be found at www.jasonfriend.net - a beast of a site built around the last few years of development on this very site! Now, I can spruce up things around here and get back to the basics of displaying my favourite images. I must be going all retro on you, before you know it I will be loading film and shooting black and white landscapes!

It will never happen. Will it?