After being at Deeside Golf Club, Colin was going to Malmaison on Queens Road for a champagne and canapé evening to promote the Maggies appeal. The evening hosted by BBC sports commentator, Rob McLean heard Colin Montgomerie and Colin Welsh (Chairman of the appeal committee)  explain why a Maggies centre is so important for Aberdeen. Click here to see how much their centres can help suffers and their families, and click here for more information on Monty’s Maggie’s appeal.

The committee had kindly invited Sandra and I as guests. When I got my invitation, I noticed that there were 10 raffle prizes of a photograph of Colin with the Ryder cup. I accepted the invitation and emailed asking if they had arranged the photography and offered to do this free of charge, and my offer was accepted. Malmaison Set up a room for the photography and all the prize winners came up and got their photograph taken and they will get a print sent to them. The photograph above is of Colin and Andy Roger, the General Manager of Malmaison in Aberdeen. Malmaison and Andy have been great supporters of the appeal and last year Andy and a team of  Mal staff walked 164 miles covering both the West Highland Way and the Great Glen Way. Click here to read more.
 

Sandra was with me, and took the opportunity to get her photograph with Colin and the Ryder cup.

Click here to see all the prize winners and shots of the famous Ryder Cup.

Last Thursday, Colin Montgomeris was back at Deeside Golf Club with the Ryder Cup. He had kindly agreed to have a question and answer session for the junior members at Deeside Golf club. Colin established a relationship with Deeside last year when there was a special tournament at Deeside with Colin to raise funds for the Maggies appeal. Click here to find out about the event and the appeal.

The junior members had some great questions and Colin is very articulate and gave them a great insight into his amazing golfing career. Doug Watson, the club captain, made a very good job of hosting the session and finished up with a rapid fire series of either or questions so all the juniors and members present could find out more about "Colin, the man, as well as the golfer"

After the Q and A session, all the children and a few of the members there lined up to have their photograph taken with Colin and the Ryder Cup. When Lucinda, his assistant saw the number in the queue, she said it would be impossible as he was on a tight schedule but we started and went very quickly and took 64 photographs in well under 10 minutes. Colin was very complementary about how quickly it was done and although I would have liked longer, at least everyone got their photograph taken. I had a background set up which was only big enough for a tight shot of 2 people so Lukas had a lot of Photoshop work to do to "add background" where required. I have already had some very positive comments about the images (see below) which we are selling on-line with 50% of the sales going to the Maggies appeal.

Click here to view all the images.

Good Morning Neil,

The photos from the Colin Montgomery Juniors session at Deeside GC are superb.
……
Would you let me know sizes and prices please? I’ll probably go for standard sizes for all of them apart from the threeshot (NWG2816) which we’d like enlarged – it’s brilliant.

Many thanks, Kirstin

Kirstin Gove, Communications & Media Training Manager
AVC Media Enterprises

On Sunday night, Sandra and I along with friends Angela and Alister Sinclair and their son Don, went to Edinburgh Castle to see the incredible Mick Hucknall and Simply Red in what is going the their last year of touring.

Although a relatively short performance of just over 90 minutes , Mick played a very upbeat set full of energy, and the huge crowd spent most of the concert on their feet singing along with one of the best voices in the music business.

Sandra and I saw him in Glasgow last year when he played much more ballads and used backing singers which was very different to Sunday night but his voice was as impressive as ever.

We had seats relatively close to the font and using my favourite 70-200VR11 lens on the D3s, it was easy to get some good shots. The 80-400 would have given me more flexibility to get a range of shots as almost everything was taken at 200mm, but at the expense of the f2.8 aperture and the super sharp images of the nano coated VR11. After the concert, we went for a late dinner and I downloaded a few images from the compact flash card to my iPad and had a short slideshow complete with Mick singing to show my fellow diners in 15 minutes. The images on this post were sent from my Ipad so are exactly as they were taken with no adjustments or any enhancement.

Click here to see more images uploaded to gallery. The rest of this post (click on more below) includes a slideshow of images set to Mick singing live.

Unlike the Rod Stewart concert at the castle on Wednesday where everyone got soaked we had a lovely evening up to 10.00pm and only the last 2 numbers were performed in the rain.

If you have the opportunity to see Simply Red in this, their last year, I would thoroughly recommend it, and we may go to the O2 in December to see them again as there may be seats available now that another date has been added.

Click here to get details of the O2 concerts.

The beautiful setting of Pittodrie House was the venue for the wedding of Claire and Stephen. It was a beautiful sunny day but was quite breezy which made it more pleasant for the guests but wind and sun are not a photographer's best friends but at Pittodrie House, it is always possible to get good photographs. Click here to see the formal shots and click here for the informals taken by David.

The service was outside and with Benachie in the background, it is hard to think of a better and more scenic and traditional setting. Quite a lot of the guests were from the Glasgow area and were all captivated by the setting. There is nothing much more "Scottish" than a Piper in front of Benachie and the beautiful setting. Norman Fiddes of Pipe March Ltd. always wears the full highland outfit which looks fantastic.

Rev. Andrew Christie was the Minister and as a football fanatic, he was very interested to chat to football legend, Billy McNeil  MBE, (Captain of Celtic when they won the European Cup in 1967, and manager of Scotland and several clubs (ncluding Aberdeen) who is Claire's Uncle.

There were a lot of family groups to take but with everyone mingling outside with a drink in their hand, there was a very nice atmosphere.

After the family groups in front of Benachie, we moved to another spot to have the beautiful country house hotel in the background.

The close-up as always were taken with a simple background with the 70-200 VR11 at f2.8 which throws the background out of focus to give a nicer effect.

Claire added a few more groups and then it was time for dinner and the reception which as you can see below, Claire was pleased about.

Click here to see the formal shots and click here for the informals taken by David.

On Wednesday this week (12th May, 2010), Deeside Golf Club hosted the Colin Montgomerie Ryder Cup celebration. This event was organised to raise money for the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation to fund the building of a Maggie’s Caring Centre in Aberdeen. Colin started the foundation in memory of his Mum who died of lung cancer in 1991.

A Maggie’s Centre is a place to turn to for help with any of the problems, small or large, associated with cancer. Click here to see how much their centres can help suffers and their families. Having lost my Dad to cancer at 51 (my age), and having to support my Mum through this, I realise how much a Maggie’s Centre could have helped. I was therefore delighted to provide our services and a photograph for every team member as a contribution to such a good cause. Click here to view the photographs of the golf and here for a few shots taken at the dinner.

Colin gives a clinic at the Deeside golf club driving range

The day started at 8.30am with a clinic for the Deeside members. To learn and watch the best ever European golfer , and this year’s Ryder Cup Captain was something very special for the members. Click here to see detail’s of Colin’s incredible record which includes finishing first on the European Tour Order of Merit every year from 1993 to 1999 (a record for most consecutive Orders of Merit). He has thirty one victories on the tour, including the 1998, 1999, and 2000 European PGA Championships. He first reached the top-10 in the Official World Golf Rankings in 1994 and spent almost 400 weeks in the top-10. His highest ranking was number two. In his prime Montgomerie was considered one of the best drivers of the golf ball in the world and became a very precise iron player, often able to judge the distance he hit the ball exactly from long range.

Colin arrived a few minutes late and joked that he took 20 minutes to get from his bedroom to the front door at Stewart Milne’s house where he was staying. A large crowd of members were gathered behind ropes set up beside the driving range. The first thing that Colin did was ask everyone to come inside the ropes and get closer and it was immediately apparent that he was very affable and approachable. He was scheduled to do a 45 minute clinic but he stayed for an hour and gave an excellent insight into his approach to the game, and some great advice to large number of lucky members watching. After this, it was off to a press call, and then down to meet me for a photograph at the 18th green.

Frank Coutts, Colin Montgomerie, and Doug Watson with the club house in the background

I photographed Frank with the Club Captain, Doug Watson, and the professional, Frank Coutts. David, my assistant took the file back and printed a 24 inch print and mounted it. He brought this back later when Colin and I were on the 14th tee. Colin signed it and David then got it framed and returned ready to be presented by Colin to the club at the dinner at night.

The second clinic was for the players competing and Colin once again captivated those watching with his tips and advice and stories from his long career. He described how it felt to stand over the 5ft putt to win the Ryder Cup in 2004 at Oakland Hills. This year he is Captain of European team and with his incredible Ryder cup history, and his obvious passion for this contest, I am sure he will be a great Captain. In a quote from his website, he says “If I tell you that I can remember virtually every shot I have hit in a Ryder Cup, it will go some way towards explaining how much this biennial contest means to me”

He spoke about his approach and made it look very easy to decide where to place the ball on the fairway simply by making very small changes to his very smooth swing. Click here to get some of Colin’s tips. The 80 players were then all ready, with their new lighter grip, to set off to their designated tee for the shotgun start. I got a golf cart and Colin loaded his clubs and I loaded my camera bag and I took him to 14th tee where we were to spend the next 4-5 hours photographing all 20 teams for the official commemorative  team photograph. Every team got a print for each player posted or delivered to the 20 captains.These were 10×8 prints on a new pearl metallic paper which looked very good. However some of the best shots were of Colin chatting and playing the 14th with each team.

The winning Halliday, Fraser and Munro team playing the 14th with Colin

We were very lucky with the weather and as I knew so many people, I had a very enjoyable few hours with Colin and the teams and got a lot of informal shots. I think looking at the photographs it easy to see how personable he is, and nothing like the image portrayed occasionally by the press.

Stewart Milne and his team on the 14th tee

Neil Cordiner (another of many past wedding clients, who I met on the day) had the last team to play at the 14th and Colin’s Dad, James was in this team.  At 80 years old, he still plays off 11.This finished the golf and after this, it was back to the office to give my files to David and Greig, while I changed into my dinner suit before heading to  Stewart Milne’s amazing home, Dalhebity House, which I had heard so much about.

Colin and his Dad watching on the 14th tee

Stewart and Joanna Milne have been great supporters of the Elizabeth Montgomerie Foundation and very generously offered their home as the venue for the Captain’s dinner on Tuesday and the Gala dinner on Wednesday, where 180 lucky guests, myself included, gathered for a great evening in a stunning setting. After my car was whisked away for valet parking, I entered the hall where the guests were getting a glass of champagne while the grand piano was being played.  The entrance can only be described as stunning. Then we walked through the huge dining room to the marquee which looked amazing with the beautiful table settings.

Dougie Donnelly addresses the dinner guests at Dalhebity House

Dougie Donnelly welcomed the guests and arranged the heads and tails to start off the fund raising. We had an excellent meal while being entertained by Dougie and Colin.

Dougie Donnelly chats to Monty at the dinner

Between the starter and main course Dougie and Colin took seats on the stage to chat and for Dougie to ask questions submitted by the guests. This format worked very well and I think everyone enjoyed it.

(L to R) David, Mark, Michael, and Dad, John Halliday receive their trophies from Colin

After dinner there was the prize giving and the winning team was a very proud John Halliday and his three sons – Mark, David, and Michael who play off +3, scratch, and 1. After the prize giving we heard from Colin Welsh and Monty about the Maggie’s Centres and then on to the auction conducted by Peter Mitchell. An amazing figure of £100 000 was earned in the evening which when added to the money raised from the tournament is a great start to raising the £2.5 million needed to build Aberdeen’s Maggie Centre.

(click to see a larger version of the posters)

Posters – Design and Print

Although most of the page layout, design, and print work we do is for our commercial client’s, (click here for blog on this) we are often asked to create posters for personal use. Above are three different ones done recently.

Eastenders: One of my best friend’s son’s- Barry, Jordan, and Josh Clarkson were in restaurant in Spain and had their photograph taken with Kara Tointon who plays Dawn Swan in Eastenders. The photographs were not great and had red eye and were low resolution. The mutual friend who took the photographs wanted to give a framed poster size print as a gift so we enhanced the images, added The Estenders logo and background, and added text to create a nice poster, which when framed looked great. Click the thumbnail above to view it.

Old Trafford: Barry Woods took his Dad to Old Trafford as part of his 50th birthday celebrations and wanted to give his Dad something to commemorate this. He had taken photographs on his phone but they were no use for a poster size print so we got a shot of Old Trafford on-line and scanned the ticket and added it, the phone photographs , and text to create something to frame and keep as a memory of a great Father and son trip. Click the thumbnail above to view it.

12 portrait display: This was done for my daughter (so not very lucrative). A friend of hers had bought a frame with 12 apertures for prints and when I saw Natasha trying to fit the small prints into the flimsy mount, I suggested creating the same effect by adding the images to a 20inch x 20 inch layout and printing it as one print to fit the existing frame. Click the thumbnail above to view it.

If you need to present something or create something with artwork and photographs, call us and see what we can do for you.

Tito and Nicole Jackson and Gladys Knight at the AECC, 20th October, 2009

Last night (Tuesday 20th October), Sandra and I went to see Gladys Knight at the AECC. The support act was Tito Jackson. Tito’s set included Blues, Motown, and a tribute to the Jacksons where he enlisted the assistance of 3 great female singers including Nicole Jackson, a cousin of the famous brothers. This opening was so good and entertaining that I was not sure if Gladys could match them.

I should not have worried – from the time she stepped on the stage to the closing number – Midnight Train to Georgia, she was amazing. Her voice is incredible and the audience was in awe of her talent. She was also a great entertainer, and had a superb 19 piece Vegas band backing her. Her brother Merald “Bubba” Knight was a special guest and he joined in a great medley of Motown tracks. She sang all her hits – including Help me make it through the Night, Thats What Friends are For, The Way We Were, and the Bond movie theme – License to Kill.

The only disapointment was that the exhibition centre was not full and so many more people could have heard one of the greats on her farewell tour. Several people commented that this was real talent and echoed what I was already thinking – why would you watch programs like X Factor when there is so much good music to listen to!

There was a very strict no photography policy (which I never understand) so I only got a few high iso shots from my seat in the audience.  I did buy the USB stick of the concert which is already on iTunes and linked to the images I did take so when playing the live tracks, the images add to the atmosphere when watching and listening with Apple TV.

I have been to several concerts this year and have photographs at them all so future blogs will show these – Van Morrison, Paul Weller, Simply Red, and Eric Clapton at the Albert Hall.

]]> http://aberdeenphoto.eu/2009/10/gladys-night-and-tito-jackson-in-aberdeen/feed/ 0 http://aberdeenphoto.eu/2009/10/chancellor-alistair-darling-returns-to-aberdeen/ http://aberdeenphoto.eu/2009/10/chancellor-alistair-darling-returns-to-aberdeen/#comments Tue, 20 Oct 2009 17:06:06 +0000 Neil Gordon http://aberdeenphoto.eu/?p=185

Chancellor Alistair Darling with Catriona McPhee-Smith, Chief Executive of Inspire

Last Friday (16th October), Chancellor Alistair Darling was in Aberdeen and visited Inspire at the Beach Boulevard. We were asked to take photographs but were sworn to secrecy for security reasons. Greig took a series of photographs of the Chancellor while he was there – click here to see the images. These images are for Inspire to use in promotional material and their website.

Inspire is a charity that aims to offer opportunities for an excellent quality of life to people with learning disabilities in North East Scotland. The Chancellor met with the team at Inspire’s new multi-resource centre on the Beach Boulevard, Aberdeen. Included at the new centre is Café Coast, a social enterprise operating under Inspire Ventures Ltd. They provide training and employment opportunities for people with learning disabilities within Café Coast and its partner enterprise, Inspire Conferences.

Click here to visit the Inspire website.

The Chancellor is no stranger to Aberdeen. He was educated in Kircaldy and the private Loretto School in Musselburgh , then attended the University of Aberdeen where he was awarded a Bachelor of Laws (LL.B). He became the head of Aberdeen University Students Union. He entered Parliament at the 1987 General Election in Edinburgh Central defeating the sitting Conservative MP Sir Alexander Fletcher by 2,262 votes, and has remained an MP since.

In June 2007, the new Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, appointed Darling Chancellor of the Exchequer.

Wikipedia entry for Alistair Darling here.