Fortress castle ruins

[puzzle]

A couple of weeks ago at the end of November, I took my parents to see the ruins of Dunottar Castle. It is a spectacular setting and one of my favourites, but really needs a good day to do pictures of it justice.

I'm going to include the camera settings at the end, because I'm still getting used to my first slr of any kind (D50) so I would love your opinions on what I am doing. Thanks!

Dunottar Castle stands on the cliffs at Stonehaven, and was the site of the seige to capture the Crown Jewels of Scotland by Cromwell's army. They did not succeed; the crown jewels remained safe. The castle however was never the same since.

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

That cloud above the cliff was blowing snow our way - we left very shortly after this and got caught in a blizzard on the way home

Settings: D50, 28-200 F3.5-5.6G, 1/320s, F varied between 13 for the longer distance ones and 4 for the closer wall shots, EV -0.7 for all, ISO 800 for # 1-3, ISO 200 for 4-6.

I know, 800 was far too high I forgot to change it from the previous time I used the camera. I used the shutter priority mode because I was using the lens at 200 mm for a few shots and wanted to be sure I could handhold.

#5 I didn't think was a great shot but fancied playing with B/W/Sepia options, this is Wally's action :blushing: thanks.

Thanks for looking, I'd appreciate any and all comments!

 

[JTHphoto]

that's awesome! great photos, i would love to be able to take photos at a place this cool! i don't want any part of any blizzards though, brrr.

 

[duncanp]

#5 is my favourite, the sepia tone works well with the picture

 

[Chiller]

Very nice shots. Looks like an amazing place to see. 3 and 5 are my faves

 

[aprilraven]

if i could ever get that close to a real castle, dont think i would ever leave.. this is just beautiful... love these shots...and it looks like the castle they use in led zep's song remains the same, during the rain song shot...i would almost swear to it...( is there a circular patio, courtyard in it by any chance???)

what a wonderful place.... looks like alot of my dreams...great show place..

 

[Mansi]

nice to see some shots from you puzzle!
sweet shots.. i totally dig the last one, the foreground needs a bit of a crop.. but that light is a beauty.. nicely exposed too
thanks for sharing

 

[Tsimiri]

Beautiful country, absolutly beautiful...unfortunetly I was unable to see this castle when I visted. I absolutly adore these photo's. The second one is my favorite, by far. The second one, I can't stress enough, is breathtaking. Wonderful Job!
~Fiona

 

[JonK]

Very cool shots. Love how it hangs on the edge of the cliff.
At first I though it was Dunluce across the way on the Antrim Coast of N. Ireland. Very similar in structure and setting.
Love to see more from you.

 

[puzzle]

Thanks everyone - that means a lot to me :blushing:. The castle itself, the weather and the camera should take the credit though. And my dad for bracing me when the wind was trying to level me :lmao:.

Aprilraven - I honestly don't remember if there is a circular courtyard! The last time I was inside the outer walls was a few years ago. Most of it is just a shell, they have rebuilt the rooves on a couple of the old halls and restored the ceilings but the rest is ruin. At this time of year, it is only open on weekends and so we just walked around the outer walls on the cliffs with our dog. I do know that it was the setting for Mel Gibson's Hamlet so it is possible it's been used for other things as well.

JonK - I've never been to Ireland, North or Republic, but from what I've heard some things and some areas are very similar to Scotland.

 

[LeadSister]

What a cool castle! Very nice shots... and thanks for the history of it. Can you only view it from a distance? Or can you get up close to the castle?

Pamela

 

[puzzle]

Thanks Pamela! The castle is open to the public throughout summer, but not as much during winter so on this occasion we weren't able to go in. It's kinda hard to tell from the pictures - in #1, if you follow the fence in from the left, there is some stonework that bridges the gap between one part of the cliff and the part the castle is standing on. Underneath this is a passage way, and I had walked through this and taken photos looking straight up (#4 and #5). That was the closest I got on this occasion.

 

[LeadSister]

Thanks for the reply. Such a cool looking place for sure. I want to visit places like that so bad! I love old castles but I've never been to one. There's one here in Connecticut called the Gillette Castle but it's just not the same. So for now, I just have to admire others pictures of them! LOL

Pamela