Tag Archives: nuit

Nocturnal Streets

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Nocturnal streets offer a different face to the daytime version – a busy, central area now quiet, almost no people, little traffic, all but deserted

Nocturnal Streets 01

Nocturnal Streets 02

All the same buildings are there, the traffic lights wink and change in their pattern, regardless of the lack of vehicles passing, but it is all just somewhat different, while still being the same place. I think that’s one of the reasons I like taking long exposure shots at night, it just reveals a version of the city your eye can’t see.

Nocturnal Streets 03

Nocturnal Streets 04

Nocturnal Streets 05

These were all improvised shots – I was coming home late from the cinema, and so no tripod with me. I had ten minutes to wait for a bus, so I set the timer and sat the camera on bollards, ledges and posts to steady it for a few shots while I waited, and this is what I got, all around Edinburgh Quay, the modern buildings around where the Union Canal now ends (although originally it continued on over the main road to an inland port nearby).

Nocturnal Streets 06

Blue Hour Reflections

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Walking home this week, and while it is still dark by the time I leave work, with it being lighter till a little later every day as we move into spring, there was a smidgen of blue light in the western sky. I didn’t have the tripod with me, so sat the camera in timer mode on the stone wall by the Walker Bridge over the Union Canal, where it runs between rows of Victorian tenements.

Blue Hour Reflections

And I was lucky enough to catch this gorgeous Moon rise over the Union Canal, as dusk fell, the Moon chasing the setting sun across the sky.

The Moon Chased The Sun Across The Heavens 02

Night Vision

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While many are depressed by the long, dark, winter nights in Scotland (dark by around 3.30pm by mid-winter), I tend to take the chance to snap some night shots of the city. I’m always fascinated by the way the camera, on a long exposure, can drink in more light to see more than the human eye can, and also how different the city seems at night, or how different again on wet nights to dry nights.

Wet Night, Bright Lights

Gorgie Road, Dusk 02

Dusk skies, the very tail-end of Blue Hour, just that little hint of fading colour in the western sky.

Gorgie Road, Dusk 03

Dreich Night 02

A wet evening by the Union Canal – the wiggly line you can see is a “light trail”, caused by a passing light caught in the long exposure into a line. When it is on a car or bicycle, it tends to be a smooth line, here it is dipping up down like a sine wave because it was a head torch on a jogger running alongside the canal

Dundee Street On A Wet Night

Passing traffic creating light trails on a wet evening

Warp Drive

Warp speed!!! A double decker bus, caught on a long exposure as it passed, creating this interesting light effect.

Union Canal On A Wet Winter Night 01

Union Canal On A Wet Winter Night 03

The Union Canal at night, the upper pic around a four second exposure, the lower image was a much longer (thirty seconds) exposure, capturing more light, even that light reflecting in the water and puddles, and a long, white light trail from the lamp on front of a passing bicycle, the bike itself invisible in the long exposure, only the light coming out as a solid line.

Picking Up Their Dinner

Picking up their dinner – person going into a restaurant at night, Dalry Road.

Travelling By Light Beams 01

Travelling by light beams – traffic stretched out into light trails by long exposure shots

Kirky After Dark 01

Light trails crossing the junction at Townhead, Kirkintilloch.

Lights in the Darkness – The festive lights at the Botanics

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For all the years I have lived in Edinburgh, I have never visited the annual festive sound and light show the Royal Botanic Gardens does each December. I’ve visited this huge site many times, to walk the enormous Gardens and the different plants and areas, plus the impressive, Victorian glass houses and palm tree houses, but during the day. A dear friend was marking a major birthday, so a bunch of us all went together for the long walk, which takes you right round the massive site.

Botanics Christmas Lights 02

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Fortunately there are several areas dotted around the entire walk where you can stop to warm up and enjoy some food and drink!

Botanics Christmas Lights 03

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Stars in the night…

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Water lilies in the Asian section of the Gardens!

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Vid - Botanics Christmas Lights 01

Vid - Botanics Christmas Lights 04

Edinburgh By Night

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With the British Summer Time ending and the return to good, old GMT, and the clocks going back an hour, it is now dark well before we finish work, and getting darker earlier every day now. For some this brings on SAD (Seasonally Affected Disorder), where the long, dark hours and scant few hours of daylight can cause problems. Not so much for me, as I am a Gothic Fiend and rather like the night, and also as a photographer I have, since I was a kid, been fascinated by the different faces the city wears after dark, and the way the camera lens, able to stay open for several seconds, can drink in more light to show more than the eye can see.

The Pies Of The Night

Bakehouse Noir – the Mor Bakehouse on Hunter Square, next to the Royal Mile. The contrast between the bright, warm lights inside and the dark street outside was begging for a monochrome shot.

Royal Mile, Remembrance Sunday

The distinctive “crown” tower of Saint Giles Cathedral lit up poppy-red for the Remembrance weekend, as were many other prominent buildings in the city, including the Balmoral Hotel, Edinburgh Castle and the Bank of Scotland building on the Mound.

Clearance Store

Shopping after dark – one of the (far too many) tourist tat shops that now infest the Royal Mile.

Rosie's Launch Night 01

Thorne Records at night, the excellent Indie record store near our bookshop, where I get most of my vinyl.

Moonrise

Huge moon rising over the buildings of the Quartermile, in the old Royal Infirmary grounds, on the other side of the Meadows. Could have used a longer exposure, but I didn’t have the tripod with me, so was just sitting the camera on a handy railing, but it wasn’t steady enough for a much longer exposure.

Night Traffic 01

Light trails from passing traffic in Gorgie

Waiting

Waiting in the darkness; person sitting alone on a bench at night by the Union Canal

The Green Barge

The green barge; houseboat at night, on the Union Canal

Union Canal, November Evening 03

Light trails along the canalside towpath – the rear one is from a cyclist, the very squiggly one in the foreground is a jogger who had a light on their head, which was bobbing around, creating this unusual pattern on the long exposure

Union Canal, November Evening 01

A view eastward along the Union Canal at night, rows of modern, waterfront townhouses and moored houseboats on the right

Southbridge After Dark

More light trails (I do like capturing a light trail or motion blur with long exposures), this time on Southbridge, where it meets Chambers Street.

Jimmy's Express Restaurant

Restaurant at night, George IV Bridge

George IV Bridge At Night

Looking along George IV Bridge at night

China Merchants

Traffic passing by the old China Merchant behind the Museum of Scotland, which has been there in that location since before I moved to Edinburgh many years back.

After The Sunset 04

After The Sunset 01

Tail end of Blue Hour over the Union Canal at Fountainbridge

Window Shopping After Dark 02

Window Shopping After Dark 01

Window shopping on Princes Street after dark

Coffee After Dark

Nocturnal coffees

Nocturnal Tram 04

Vid - Night Tram

Night trams.

Before And After

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Before

Before.

After

And after.

Improvised night shots, walking home from the cinema late night, so no tripod with me. Instead I set the timer adn rested the camera on the box that houses the push-to-cross button for the Green Man Crossing to steady it. First shot looking towards Dalry Road, as the traffic was awaiting the green light, second just after the lights changed, traffic moving, the long exposure creating motion blur and light trails.

Blue Moon

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Walking home last night, as the planetary parade was taking place. It was a clear night, the very tail-end of Blue Hour, most of the sky dark save a fading, blue glow in the west, and above the tenements running parallel to the Union Canal, Venus shining diamond bright. I didn’t have the tripod with me, so I set the timer and sat the camera on the stone ledge by the bridge over the canal to steady it for a long exposure and crossed my fingers:

Venus Shining Down

Then this evening, the 1st of March, walking home, same spot over the Union Canal, Venus in a clear, dusk sky, but this time joined by a gorgeous, large, crescent Moon over the old tenements, so I improvised again, resting the camera on the stone ledge of the bridge to get a long exposure:

Blue Moon, You Saw Me Standing Alone 01

“Blue moon, you saw me standing alone
Without a dream in my heart
Without a love of my own
Blue moon, you knew just what I was there for
You heard me saying a prayer for
Someone I really could care for
And then there suddenly appeared before me
The only one my arms will hold
I heard somebody whisper, “Please adore me”
And when I looked, the moon had turned to gold
Blue moon
Now I’m no longer alone
Without a dream in my heart
Without a love of my own”

Blue Moon, You Saw Me Standing Alone 02

Nocturnal City Scenes

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Although we are slowly edging towards spring, with it being lighter for a little longer each day now, it is still dark by the time I leave work, so I have been experimenting with the new camera’s night mode.

Bruntsfield At Night 01

Bruntsfield Place at night. Improvised night shot, setting the timer and sitting the camera on a flat-topped traffic bollard to steady it for some long exposure shots. This means you get no choice over angles, as you would with the tripod, but it’s a handy way to take night shots when you don’t have the tripod with you (like when walking home from work!).

Light Trails

Light trails from traffic crossing the junction of Holy Corner, where our old bookshop used to be (it gets its name from the fact there is a church on each corner of the junction)

Night Over The Union Canal 02

Reflections on the Union Canal after dark.

Nocturnal Roads 05

Nocturnal Roads 03

Light trails on the Western Approach Road at Fountainbridge

York Place With Added Light Trails

More light trails, this time as traffic passes the Conan Doyle pub at Picardy Place. The pub is named for the creator of Sherlock Holmes, who had his family home near this spot (a statue of Sherlock stands nearby, just a few metres behind the vantage point of this photo, near the tram stop)

Playhouse

Playhouse With Added Light Trails

Playhouse Theatre at night, then a closer shot as the traffic lights changed and the cars started moving, so I got some more light trails.

Ghost Lights

A couple of different light trails this time, the line of headlights, the cars themselves ghosted out of the photo, but the camera also picked up these unusual, overlapping light patterns lower in the image, which I rather like.

Wet Roads

I am a sucker for a night shot with streetlights glistening on wet roads after rain, especially a monochrome take. Took this the other evening walking home from the railway station after visiting dad.

As ever, to see the full-sized versions, click on the pictures to visit my Flickr stream (which somehow racked up well over a million views last year).

Bookshop at Bedtime

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I found myself last person in the bookshop recently. I had put out all the lights for the night, except the red neon sign with our shop motto (“we read past our bedtimes”). I didn’t have the tripod with me, so I improvised, sitting the camera on tables and piles of books to steady it for a longer exposure shot, setting the timer and crossing my fingers.

Bookshop At Bedtime 01

Bookshop At Bedtime 02

Sometimes these improvised shots work, sometimes not, but in this case I got lucky. Quite like these snaps of the bookshop going to bed for the night.

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Bookshop At Bedtime 04

The spooky, dark corner, where the shop ghost lives!

Bookshop At Bedtime 05

The shop motto!

The Moon and Venus, Dancing in the Heavens

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Walking home from my first day of work of 2025, frigid but beautiful winter’s night, amazingly clear skies, even over the city. Above the Union Canal, which was rapidly icing up, a large, bright, crescent Moon, with an incredibly bright Venus shining right next to it.

The Moon And Venus Danced Among The Heavens 01

As I was coming from work, I didn’t have my tripod with me, so I improvised, setting the timer on the camera, then resting it on the edge of the old, stone bridge over the canal to steady it for a longer exposure, and crossed my fingers. And while it isn’t as good as with the tripod, given it is a makeshift night shot, it’s not too bad:

The Moon And Venus Danced Among The Heavens 02

And this was the view looking east – you can just see Jupiter in the sky above the buildings at the end of the canal in this one, just right of centre:

Union Canal, Winter's Night 01

And a wee zoom in closer to the old Leamington Lift Bridge, and the cold waters starting to freeze over:

Union Canal, Winter's Night 03

As ever, click on the links to see the full-sized versions on the Woolamaloo Flickr stream (now north of 28, 000 photos on there!)