Well at this time of year, there is................

not as lot to photograph that doesn't include Autumnal colours. After a while it get a little monotonous, don't you think? So we took the camera a, Samsung Galaxy NX and its 18-55m.m kit lens, for a short trip around the valley.

 So we went for a walk up Pen-Rhys where we saw the statue of the Virgin Mary holding her baby Jesus.
At least the grass is green here.

In a lay-by we found some blackberries, and autumn leaves.

A little further, and we saw the road signs below. Someone should tell them, that's not a ramp, it's a hedge. Lol.

Then we went up Darran Parc in Ferndale where we found a very lonely bench, just sitting there by the lakeside.

 

 After walking a few times around the lake, we took a look back, snapped the photo below and said goodbye to the Parc.

That's all for now folks, take good care of yourselves. Regards, Twm.

I took the Samsung Galaxy NX to Barry Island

Hi there, last Saturday, Mrs. Twm, and myself went down to Barry for the day, for a bit of photography, then on for a few "jars," and a steak. So our day started with a few photo's of a lovely dawn sky. In the first you can clearly see how the Samsung Galaxy NX handled the darkness of the sky, capturing the crescent moon and the pre-sunrise coulours in the sky, along with the darkness of the hillside.

I think this image ably displays the Samsung Galaxy NX's abilities, regarding its sensor. Of course, we expected nothing else, seeing as it has the same sensor as the Samsung NX300, which we have shown on previous Blog entries. But have a look at another dawn shot below.

 The Samsung Galaxy NX shows a lovely colour tone, don't you think?

Then we set off for Barry Island, via Porthkerry Country Park. When we got to Porthkerry, we were treated to some beautiful colours, both on the trees, and on the ground.

 
The leaves still on the trees showed some lovely shades. But. look below too.

 

What a pretty coloured carpet.

 

After some time at Porthkerry Parc we moved on to Barry Island itself, where we went on the Clement Colley Walk to Jackson's Bay.

 

The building on the left is the Nell's Point Coastal Watch, the concrete path being the walk to Jackson's Bay. While strolling there we watched the Barry Harbour Pilot boat returning to its Berth.

Around the corner and we came to our first look at Jackson's Bay. Hmm. not many swim suits around today. I wonder why that could be?  ;-) After spending some time there, not to long as it was a little chilly, we walked back towards Barry Island, and Whitmore Bay.

Back, past the berries, and leaves. Back past the sum on the sea.

Back, to within sight of Barry Island and Whitmore Bay.

Barry Island is not normally this quiet, just try visiting here in the summer months and you'll quickly see the difference, lol.
The peninsular that one can see pointing out into the bay below, is Friar's Point.

Below you can see, we are back at Whitmore Bay now, and at the end of today's little outing with the Samsung Galaxy NX, which I am very pleased to say, has performed admirably.

 

 

 So, my friends, until next time, it's good bye for now. Take care everybody.

Kindest regards, and Best wishes to you all. Twm.

The Samsung Galaxy NX take photo's of a beautiful model.

Hiya there, I've already told you that I was approached by Samsung to be an Imagelogger for their Samsung Galaxy NX camera. Well, with the cold. wet weather that we've been having, I've been struggling to find something, or someone, to photograph. Then suddenly Shazam, right out of the blue, this stunning female turns up on my doorstep, just begging me to take her photo. Well, me being the gentleman that I am, I could not refuse her. So I grabbed the camera and snapped away.


This is Wendy, (Wendy Wood Louse). posing for the camera. as you can see, she is not in the least camera shy.  ;-)

Here below, is a 100% crop of the above photo of Wendy.

I think you'll agree, she really is a stunner, isn't she?

Obviously, I've taken a "LITTLE," bit of artistic liberty here, as I have no idea of my models gender.

   That's all for now gang, speak soon, take care. Regards from, Twm.

I've been out and about a little so...........................

Hiya there, I have been out using this Samsung Galaxy NX camera a little. It is the same sensor, as my beloved Samsung NX300, so I'm hoping for great images, ('cos that is what the NX300 delivered, especially during my trip to Germany, in very bright sunshine). I have to say, so far the camera has delivered on the image quality anyway. The Galaxy NX is a bit more of a "handful," than the NX300. It is more of DSLR size and weight. It is a fully integrated camera, in that it has the Android operating system built in. So, it has the ability to send pics straight out of the camera to the internet. One can also download any Apps. that they need and operate them on the camera. It has a huge rear screen, so you can do any post processing of your image before sending it to the internet, too. Marvellous!

 

The above photo was taken on our walk through the woods at Darran Parc, Ferndale.

 

The above image was taken at Pen-Rhys, in the Rhondda valley. It shows the statue of St. Mary, at the famous St. Mary's Well shrine, which is a site for religious pilgrims, and has been for hundreds of years. You can also see the flipping Wind Turbines that this Tory Government are erecting all over the place. What an eyesore. I agree with generating Green Energy, but why can't they be erected off shore, or use wave power and tidal force to generate it, instead of these God awful turbines all over the landscape.

 

 

 Above is another photo taken at Darran Parc, Ferndale.

Yet another at Darran Parc, it was very cold there, do you think the lady in the pic shows it to be cold?

Another pic of the St. Mary statue with a Rhondda Fach landmark in the background, to the left. It is Llanwonno Twmp. This is a left over scar, (landmark), from the days when Coal was King. It is a slag heap. This tump is now two thirds smaller than it originally was. After the Disaster at Aberfan, the N.C.B tried to clean up the mess it had left around the valleys. They wanted to remove this tip, but were prevented from doing so by the Civil Aviation Authority, (C.A.A). The C.A.A said it was a landmark for aircraft flying over Wales, and, as such, could not be removed. In the end, the C.A.A and the N.C.B came to an agreement and the tip was reduced in height, by two thirds, but left to serve as a plainly visible marker, for any aircraft in the vicinity.

                                      That's all for now guys, the Galaxy NX did well in documenting my little outing around the nearby area. Speak soon, take care all. Regards Twm.

Hello there, how are you all you doing?

I have just been given a Samsung Galaxy NX camera to try out. Samsung have invited me to be an Imagelogger for them, using this camera. This device was supplied by the Samsung Imaging Dept. I have this camera, complete with the 18-55m.m kit lens. This is the same lens that I was so happy with while I worked with the Samsung NX300, (which I loved, both camera and lens), so I'm expecting good work from the lens. Given the fact that the Galaxy NX has the same sensor as the NX300, I hope that this camera, can match the great straight out of camera, (SOOC), pictures that the NX300 produced. We shall see, over the coming weeks, if the Galaxy NX can live with the NX300, image wise. Physically of course, these two cameras are as different as chalk is to cheese. The Galxy NX is basically a smart phone with the ability to put different lenses on the front. By this, I mean that the camera has an Android operating system. So any user of a Samsung Galaxy smartphone, should be able to pick up this camera, and after a few minutes setting up the image capturing parameters to their satisfaction, be able to go out and start taking great pictures. Imagine your phone, only with a huge, (compared to phone sized sensors), APSC 20.3 mega pixel CMOS sensor. It may mean nothing to you, but what it means, simply, is, the larger the sensor, the better the Image Quality, (IQ). One can print out a good photo from one of these cameras up to 30 inches by 40 inches, and retain excellent image quality. Try that with any smartphone images. While the NX300 is a rangefinder style camera, smaller, lighter, and no view finder. Instead it has a tilting rear screen on which to compose your images. Conversely, the Galaxy NX is a DSLR style camera, having ab electronic viewfinder, and a huge rear screen, which is fixed.

Over the coming week. I shall be trying this camera out, in various places around Wales. Weather permitting, I hope that most of the photography can be done outside, but, well we all know our Welsh weather, don't we. Wales must be one of the few places in the world, where we seem to get samples of all four seasons in one day. ;-)

Above is a quick pic for you to look at. This will have to suffice, for now. But there will be lots more, over the coming weeks.


Speak soon, be good, and have a great day. Regards, Twm.

Well...................

Hiya, well thngs have taken a turn for the worse, haven't they? Weather wise I mean. Since my return from Germany, it has been almost continual rain here in Wales, making photography a real challenge, so it has been put on the back burner for a while. I hope soon, to resurect my hobby, and the use of my Samsung cameras.

On a side note, my wife and I just purchased a used, car. It is a 1400 Nissan Micra automatic. I won't tell you our ages, suffice to say, that we are NOT in our first flush of youth.  My wife, who is a great driver and has been driving for quite a few years, and never had an accident, got in the driving seat. After familiarising herself with the cars controls, she started the engine, put it into R, (reverse), and touched the throttle. We shot off doing about forty miles an hour, BACKWARDS, lol. You should have seen the look on her face, I wish I had my camera with me then, it was priceless. It seems that this little car, is a Sport, model. What had happened, we found out later, was there is a little button on the auto gear selector, with an "S" on it. Yes, you guessed it, this engages the "Sport mode," of the Micra. This mode gives the car a different range of gearing for, " a SPORTY driving experience." What an experience it was, lol. Luckily, there was nothing at all behind us, or she would have ruined her impecable driving record with dented vehicles, ours, and theirs. Now after a week of handling tyhe car, Mrs. Cati says she would never want to go back to a manual transmission vehicle. 

I'm not here to write a lot today, as I have to shave and shower for our little trip. We are taking the Micra for a little run today, down to Barry to try to take some photographs, and then go for a meal somewhere. Bye for now.
                                       Kindest regards Twm.

Following my trip to Germany..........

Hiya there, Well following my trip to Germany, I have now picked up on a "rumour," about some new Samsung cameras. I just have to say one thing about my trip to Germany first though. before, I say any more about the, "news." While I was in Germany we had constant sunshine and I was standing right next to another photographer using a Samsung NX300, (the same as mine). My neighbouring photog was having a terrible time of it, trying to use the camera in bright sunshine was a nightmare. This is due to the tilting Amoled screen on the NX300, which is all but useless in bright light. My NX300, on the other hand performed brilliantly, due to the anti glare screen I had fitted. I purchased this add on item from Amazon. I have nothing whatsoever to do with either Amazon or the manufacturers of the screen protector. I am just passing on a, (in my mind), vital piece of confirmation for any user of the brilliant Samsung NX300. I was able to go about my business, (taking photos), without even thinking about it. I could see my screen whichever way I turned my camera. Below, is the link if anyone is interested in the screen.
Think about it now, this was a bit like the old adage of, "taking coals to Newcastle," as I bought the screen from Amazon, but it was shipped from the manufacturers in Germany. I stuckit on my camera and travelled to Germany with it.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Vikuiti-hard-coated-dirt-repellent-anti-reflective-residue-free/dp/B00BDJ8ESW/ref=sr_1_fkmr2_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1372928277&sr=8-2-fkmr2&keywords=Vikuiti+DQCM300+3M+anti+glare+screen+protector

Right, I.m sorry about that, but I thought it would be of interest to other users of the NX300.

Back to my original intention of what I wished to bring to your attention today, the rumour of some (possible), forthcoming news from Samsung about new cameras. As I stated this is a rumour only at the moment, so I don't know how much faith I would put in it. But you are welcome to have a read at the link below.

http://photorumors.com/2013/10/22/some-samsung-nx-camera-rumors/

Bye for now gang, stay safe, and have a good day one and all.

regards form, Twm.

Day 3 in Germany

Hello all, well on the third day in the beautiful German city of Berlin, it was decided that we go on a trip along the river Rhine. So we got into the bus and toddled off to the Rhine Boat boarding point. They have a novel idea of a, "ticket office," in Germany, I must say. See below.

Once the tickets were purchased, we boarded the boat, and cast off.

The boat set off at a leisurely pace and we settled into our seats to watch Berlin go by. There are a number of boats plying their trade on the Rhine.

All along the Rhine river banks one can see buildings, both old, and modern in structure. Such as the one below, which is obviously NOT an old one.  ;-)

The older bridges over the river are adorned with faces carved into the stone.

Too far away, have a look at the picture below for a close up view. I don't know if these faces were of any significance when the bridges were built, or if they were just for decorative purpose only.

Here is another, "bridge face," lovely isn't it? No seriously, one has to admire the skill of the crafts person who did these carvings. look at the detail still there after Lord knows how many years.

Further along we get to see, The Reichstag, the, (then), infamous building out of which emanated the orders from Himmler, etc. to exterminate hundreds of thousands of Jews, Gypsies, and lots of other type of people who didn't match their ideas of perfection. Thankfully, this building is now used for far more peaceful purposes. It was destroyed during World War II, but rebuilt between 1961 and 1971. See the link for the history of this magnificent building.

http://www.visitberlin.de/en/spot/reichstag

In the photo below, one can see the glass dome of the Reichstag.

I could go on about this boat trip for ages, (but I won't). We left our boat after a very pleasant ride, and lots of sightseeing, and boarded another bus. This time nobody told us where we were going. What a shock when we arrived and left the bus. There, right in front of our eyes was the Berlin Wall. Not only were we at the Wall, but we were in East Berlin, (until a short time ago, this was controlled by the Russians), and there is no way that we would have been able to wander around it as we did. The gap in the wall here, was the actual position of Checkpoint Charlie, See the link for more information.

http://www.tenfactsabout.co.uk/0003berlinwall.htm

It doesn't look that formidable now does it? But remember, in its day this wall was topped by railings, and barbed wire, as you will see later on.

The image above, is of the West Side, (the Allied side), of the Berlin Wall. The image above portrays the other divided countries of the World, and the length of their dividing walls. This is the position of gap where Checkpoint Charlie, once stood. This is the left hand side of the gap, when looking from the Western side of the Wall.

Above you can see the, "Wall on Wall," gallery. This section portrays the Berlin Wall itself, as it was before it was brought down. Just on the right hand side of the picture, you cab see the, "Peace lines," of Ireland, dividing the North and South.

 

The photo above gives a better view of Ireland's "Peace Lines," and also, you can just see the Korean divide. In the photo below, the Korean DMZ, (Demilitarised Zone), is shown clearly.

So after photographing the Berlin Wall, and its surroundings for a while we boarded the bus and were taken back more towards the centre of Berlin for a photographic session around the area of the beautiful Berlin Concert House. I will not put up all the pics that I took in this area as there are lots. Below is one of the Concert House itself.

After an hour around this area, we headed off, on foot to a Restaurant for a nice Dinner, with some wonderful German Wheat Beer. Below is a picture of a Berlin Segway Tour. There are a lot of this type of tour operators around the city.

One last pic now, then it's back to the hotel and get things ready, as we leave Germany tomorrow for home. Farewell Germany. Auf Weidesain Pet! 

Sorry to any German readers, if I've got the spelling wrong. Bye for now and take care all. Regatds, Twm.

 

My second day in Germany

Hi there, don't forget now, all photo's here, were taken with the Samsung NX 300 and the 18-55 m.m kit lens, which by the way, I still find to be an amazing combo. However on to Germany.

On the second day we were taken away from Berlin to see Dresden, and Leipzig. Two beautiful cities. Our first point of call was the Zwinger Palace, in Dresden. Considering the amount of damage that was inflicted on this city during W. War II, you would never believe it, to look at it now. Dresden, is a truly wonderful city with its beautiful old buildings in the Baroque style of architecture. It is a world famous site, if you go to Germany, try to make time to visit Dresden to see this magnificent place and experience Saxon history.

Above is the Zwinger Palace. When one passes through the entrance, you feel as if you had gone back in time. The view of the inner courtyard is stunning. I cannot do it justice here, as you need to see it for yourself, or at least see it in a large photo.

It is a huge courtyard. this is the view looking straight ahead as you come through the entrance.

Turn your head to the right, as you enter the courtyard and you can see the three arches that are the entrance to the steps leading to the roof garden.

Above is a closer view of the garden entrances.
Below are the carvings by the archway.

Below is one of the many, many statues overlooking the courtyard from the roof garden.

 Here you can see an alternative view of the roof over the garden entrance. This photo was taken from the roof garden itself,

 

Below is a an image showing the inner courtyard form the roof garden.

 

I could spend all day here just showing you photo's of this lovely old palace, but we must move on or I shall run out of space here.

After a lunch, we moved on to Leipzig. This lovely church was the first building that we saw upon exiting our transport. 

after a walk around this pleasant place, I have to say, that there is not a lot here. Not that I could find anyway, other than a very old famous church. It is the Church of St. Nikolai, (the patron Saint of merchant's). Below one can see the welcome notice at the entrance.

 Once inside the front door, and through the huge glass door. Look up, and immediately overhead is the beautiful sight that you can see below.

After walking the short distance into the church you can see the wonderful architecture that this church is famous for.

 

 

Look at this wonderful building. Have you ever seen anything like it? I know I haven't. Not until I visited Germany, and, in particular Leipzig.

 

Here we are, outside the church again, still bathed in sunshine, and looking st the square, at the side of the church. We are in the street behind the church here.

 

 

The Church of St. Nikolai is on the left. and the Guest hose. (hotel?), of St. Nikolai is on the right. Look at the column standing just left of centre in the foreground here. It is the same design as those that are in the church itself.

 

Walking around the city, you will see various statues. The one below is of The Pied Piper of Hamlin. Remember the story? It is of a piper who was chartered to pipe all the rats out of Hamlin. After he had removed the vermin, the town reneged on the deal and refused to pay him. So, he picked up his pipe and proceeded to play again, this time, the children of Hamlin followed him out of town, until the town paid up, he would not return the children.

 

 

Walking around town now, heading back to the pick up point, and past lots of statues of various people when I noticed this guy. I think he wrote a tune or two, didn't he?

 

 Closer to the meeting place, I couldn't resist this picture, for the reflection in the glass of one building, of the buildings on the opposite side.

 

 

Well I'm nearly there now, just down the street, and round the corner, and I'm ready to meet the transport.

 

Here we are, I'm back at the pick up point, ready to be transported back to beautiful Berlin. Tomorrow we are going on a boat ride up the river Rhine.
I have to say, I am extremely pleased with all the images that my Samsung NX 300 and 18-55 m.m kit lens have produced today. It's a superb little camera. I would have hated to have to lug my DSLR around all this time. Phew, it doesn't bear thinking about. Take care me friends. Regards, Twm.