Slo-mo rowing

The slow motion effect on the phone is cool, but I rarely have any real use for it, However, on a recent recovery walk after the latest round of chemotherapy, I saw some of the University rowing team practising on the Union Canal near Harrison Park. So I nipped up onto the bridge and switched into slo-mo mode to capture this:

Vid - Slow Motion Rowing

Apart from the interesting visuals, the sound is also slowed down, so turn the volume up – you can hear passing traffic, birds, the splashes of the oars, but all slowed down, and about halfway through the ding, ding, ding of a passing cycllist’s bell, but here deepened and drawn out by the slow-mo effect, giving an unusual sound.

Edinburgh Canal Festival

My chum and I had a nice stroll along the annual Edinburgh Canal Festival the other weekend – after days of rainy showers, the sun came out, hot and strong that weekend. The festival itself felt smaller than previous years, not least because the Raft Race, which is what started the whole thing (existing before th festival grew around it) is now taking place on a different date, so it felt like crowds were smaller, there were less stands and fewer bands etc (and it all finished fairly early in the afternoon compared to previous years)

Edinburgh Canal Festival 01

That said, we still had a great time, had some nice food and drinks (someone was making proper, fresh fruit-filled Pimms, a perfect summer sunny day drink!), enjoyed some of the bands and browsed the stalls, while taking pics (my friend wanted a go with the camera too).

Edinburgh Canal Festival 03

Edinburgh Canal Festival 06

Edinburgh Canal Festival 011

Band entertaining the crowds around Lochrin Basin, where the canal now ends

Vid - Edinburgh Canal Festival 01

Edinburgh Canal Festival 014

Jazz band I have photographed at previous Canal Festivals was back, with some swinging tunes!

Edinburgh Canal Festival 016

Edinburgh Canal Festival 017

Edinburgh Canal Festival 018

Vid - Edinburgh Canal Festival 02

I was delighted to see our smiling mermaid was back again this year. We pointed her out to some small kids near us, and she waved to them – their faces lit up!

Edinburgh Canal Festival 022

Even the barges became stages for entertainment!
Edinburgh Canal Festival 024

Edinburgh Canal Festival 027

Kayak fun!!

Edinburgh Canal Festival 031

Ball right in the net!!!

Edinburgh Canal Festival 034

I rarely appear in front of the camera, preferring to be behind the lens, but my chum wanted a go with the camera and took this shot of me, with a child apparently growing out of my head!

Edinburgh Canal Festival 036

One of my swan chums decided to join me!!

Edinburgh Canal Festival 037

Light waves reflecting off the sunny water onto the curved underside of the old, arched, stone bridge

Light Waves

And a slo-mo video of the same, because it was kind of gently mesmerising.

Vid - Mesmerising Light Waves

And suddenly there were canoes in Edinburgh

Heading up to Mel’s to take care of Dizzy, the incredibly pretty kitty, close to sunset I paused on the bridge which crosses the Union Canal. It’s always worth stopping for a moment there because sometimes you see something nice sandwhiched in between the Victorian tenements; sometimes ducks, geese or swans, sometimes just the sun reflecting off the water or, as in today’s case, a group of canoeists paddling past. I guess they were making the most of an unseasonably mild and very clear, sunny day which was more like very early spring rather than early February in Scotland. Isn’t it nice the things you can just come across walking round your neighbourhood? (click the pics to see the bigger versions on the Woolamaloo Flickr)

Hunting werewolves

Full moon this weekend, good werewolf hunting weather (hey, everyone needs a hobby and it gives me some exercise and gets me out into the fresh air):

(all this scene needs now is Christopher Lee in his Dracula cape; click for the bigger version on my Flickr)

(the full moon reflecting on the Union Canal; fun to compare this to summer evening pic of this same location I took a while back on my Flickr)

No lycanthropes were harmed in the making of these photographs, although my fingers got sodding frozen.