This is a shot through the viewfinder of my good friend Khaled Termanini's Mamiya. It was taken down at the Dubai creek, and while it's not quite the shot I was aiming for I did think it was worth posting. That said, when I'm over there again in March I think I'll borrow his camera and try it again.

In other news ...

I'm running another Creating Dramatic Images workshop in Blackpool in August (11th and 12th). Take a look at the link if you think you might be interested in coming along. If not, click the link anyway and take a look at some of the shots we produced during the last workshop (the gallery's about half way down the page). There's some great images.

http://www.chromasia.com/training/events/blackpool_cdi_8_12.php

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11.30am on 14/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 43mm f/4.0 1/320 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none none

Here's the fourth Istanbul diptych I'll be posting, and probably the most abstract of the set. The image on the left is an aluminium table top, while the one on the right is a shot of a piece of painted board resting on the pavement.

I was going to post another Istanbul diptych today, but as it was -23.8°C this morning – the coldest weather I've ever experienced – I thought I'd post this one instead: another Hipstamatic shot, taken yesterday morning from our lounge window.

As you can see from the original, this one was edited, mostly to change the colour balance – I wanted the scene to seem colder – but also to modify the border. And I know that these Hipstamatic shots aren't to everyone's taste, but I am pleased with how this one turned out.

There's no cash prize, but heaps of kudos to the first person who can correctly identify both the scale and content of this shot.

This is the first of two iPhone shots I'll be posting this weekend: another Hipstamatic shot from Istanbul, taken using the Chunky lens and Ina's 1935 film. Unlike some of the other Hipstamatic shots I've posted this one was altered in Photoshop, but only slighty (using a single curve to add a bit more contrast and lighten the shadows). Other than that though it's pretty much a straight shot.

When I spotted this guy he was smiling, and when I asked him if it would be OK if I photographed him he nodded and continued to smile. As soon as I pointed my camera at him though he adopted this rather serious expression and, despite my best efforts, stared fixedly into the middle distance for the time it took me to take a few shots. When I showed him the images he smiled.

So, hardly the most natural of portraits. And, while it would have been nice if his expression had matched the figure in the background, I think the contrast works OK too. Let me know what you think.

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10.51am on 14/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 64mm f/5.6 1/50 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none no

This is another shot from Istanbul, taken from a roof bar which I think was quite close to the Galata Tower. What amused me about this scene was the restaurant across the way, which looks like a gazebo perched on the top of a five storey building. I'm sure it was safe enough, but it did look rather precarious.

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2.31pm on 8/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM 90mm f/11.0 1/30 aperture priority +2/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none 2x1

This was taken from the roof bar of the Four Points Sheraton hotel on Sheik Zayed Road in Dubai, the location from which I shot one of my favourite night shots in Dubai. Unlike that shot though, which was all about capturing as much detail as possible, this one was an attempt to create a slightly different impression: shallow depth of field, the reflections in the glass, and so on. I don't think it's anywhere near as successful as the previous image but, as an alternative way of capturing the location, I am pleased with how it turned out.

Let me know what you think.

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7.47pm on 15/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 24mm f/2.8 1s aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none 1x1

Of all the flags I've photographed, and I confess that isn't a huge amount, I think the Turkish flag is probably the one I like best. There's just something about its simplicity that really appeals to me.

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10.55pm on 9/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM 130mm f/4.0 1/400 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 200 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none no

This was taken on our recent Faces and Places Photo Tour to Istanbul, near to the Galata Tower.

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3.14pm on 8/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM 200mm f/4.0 1/40 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 400 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none 1x1

Here's my first iPhone shot of the weekend, taken at much the same time as this shot, in one of the tunnels on the way to Sofia airport.

As you can see, the original was quite noisy, but as there wasn't any specific details I wanted to retain I ran it through Topaz Denoise using its maximum amount of noise reduction. The end result, as I hope you'll agree, is quite a bit better.

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4.31pm on 6/11/11 iPhone 4 ProCamera f/2.8 1/15 1000 no Photoshop CS5 Topaz Denoise 3x2

I have a folder on my hard drive called 'possibles'. Shot's that I like but can't decide whether to blog. Normally, an image will sit in this folder for no more than a month or two – I'll either blog it, or delete it. This one though has sat there for almost two years, and I keep opening the file, then closing it again, remaining undecided as to whether to post it here.

So, rather than go through the whole process for another few years I thought I'd post it today. It's a shot of Libby and Tabby (our next to youngest) being photographed by Milly who was 13 at the time.

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10.57am on 21/4/10 Panasonic Lumix GF-1 20mm f/1.7 ASPH f/2.5 1/80 aperture priority +1/3 intelligent multiple 100 no RAW ACR Photoshop CS5 none no

This was taken down at the souqs in Dubai, and while I have no idea what the guy on the left was thinking, I do like his expression.

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10.20am on 14/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 35mm f/4.0 1/80 aperture priority +2/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none minor

This was taken during a photo walk around Istanbul, and there were two things that caught my eye. The first, and most obvious, is the textures, shapes and colours of the building. The second was the mother and daughter looking out through the window. If I'd taken this shot in the UK one of two things would probably have happened – either I'd have been shouted out for invading their privacy, or I'd have been threatened by the police. In Istanbul though, the 'my home is my castle' mentality doesn't seem to apply insofar as nearly everyone we saw would wave from their houses, or smile, or otherwise indicate that they were more than happy to be photographed, as I also mentioned when I posted this shot.

Anyway, it's not an especially striking shot, but it is one that I like. Let me know what you think.

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11.41am on 11/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 43mm f/4.6 1/60 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none none

This is a shot of the Jumeirah Beach Residences taken from the lowest frond of the Palm in Dubai while I was running my Shoot The City, Day & Night workshop that I ran at the GPP Fotoweekend training event in November. It's also the image that GPP are using to advertise the next occurrence of this workshop at GPP 2012. If you think you might be interested in attending, take a look at all the workshops that will be running this year. It's always a great event, but this year's line-up is truly fantastic.

In other news, if you haven't had a chance yet, head on over and take a look at my new photography and post-production blog. There's only one post so far, detailing what I'm going to be including, but I've also asked for some feedback from you, particularly in terms of what you'd like me to include. So have a look at my first post and let me know what you think.

And finally, I have a few one-to-one training dates coming up – February 24th, May 17th and May 21st–24th. If you're interested, take a look at our events page and one-to-one training page for further details.

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6.00pm on 15/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 35mm f/9.0 30s manual n/a evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none 16x9

This is the first of two iPhone shots I'll be posting this weekend, both of which were taken with Hipstamatic.

Unlike tomorrow's image though, which is a straight shot, this one was fairly heavily edited, mostly because it was very flat, but also because I decided that the colour version didn't work that well. Both problems, if I think about it, were entirely my own fault as I used the Chunky lens (which adds 'light leaks', thereby lowering the contrast) and the Ina's 1935 film (which adds a range of rich, warm tones).

Anyway, while both choices seemed like a good idea at the time, during the editing I decided that I'd have been much better off choosing a lens/film combo that added contrast and either no colour, or colder colours, as both seemed to suit this image a lot better.

As for what it is: I suspect it's fairly obvious but, if not, feel free to guess :)

This was taken during our recent trip to the Shipka Memorial, about 150 steps down from the monument (see this shot). As you'll see, the processing was quite extensive, particularly in terms of bringing out the detail in the wall, but this was definitely a scene that needed a bit of help given the dull, flat lighting.

On a different matter, our latest Critique Slot Screencast is now live, featuring an image supplied by Doug Stroud. If you're unfamiliar with the screencasts, the basic idea is that one of our subscribers submits an image (as both a layered PSD file and the original RAW) and I offer a critique in the first section, then reprocess it using the original RAW file in the second section.

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3.09pm on 28/12/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 34mm f/8.0 1/60 aperture priority +2/3 evaluative 100 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none 1x1

This is a shot of the western edge of the Galata Bridge in Istanbul, shot a couple of hours before the one I posted yesterday, and while it's definitely an image that would work better as a print (you'd be able to see more detail of the people and their expressions) I did think it was worth posting.

Let me know what you think.

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4.36pm on 8/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM 85mm f/8.0 1/40 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 400 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none no

Admittedly, this isn't the most attractive of signs, but I did like the way it was lit. I found it at the western end of the Galata Bridge in Istanbul, close to where I took the shot of the floating fish and chip shop :)

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6.37pm on 8/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 70-200mm f/2.8L IS USM 73mm f/2.8 1/25 aperture priority -1/3 evaluative 400 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none no

I found this chair in the Old Bazaar on the last day of our recent Faces and Places Photo Tour to Istanbul.

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11.25am on 12/11/11 Canon 5D Mark II EF 24-70mm f/2.8L USM 46mm f/3.5 1/80 aperture priority +1/3 evaluative 400 no RAW Camera Raw Photoshop CS5 none minor