Lakelandlass

An absolutely stunning show. Maureen

Hi Colin Thank you for your comments and glad you enjoyed. Maureen

Thank you, Mary. We were indeed well blessed with the weather. Maureen

Thanks, Dave. I must admit that all of this carnage and mayhem is well beyond me so I leave it all to you guys. As it is I have been struggling to rid myself of the a/ver's equivalent of 'writer's block'. Maureen

Thanks, Ken. Maureen

The latest and last of shows created following my visit to Italy in March this year. This was my second visit to Burano, the first being 18 months previously, and this time photographed in very different (contrasty) light. With grateful thanks to Bill Hines on www.beechbrook.com.pte Maureen

Join the Club. Maureen

Patrick - Thank you. I am very grateful for your kind comments on both my 'Florence' and 'Siena' shows and I have now made a note to (hopefully) remind me in future to hide the cursor. Thank you for pointing this out to me. With best wishes Maureen

[ [Of course each to their own, but in my view in city shots like this, the problem with converging verticals I feel is far more of a distraction, and using very wide lenses, just shrinks everything down to minuscule detail.] Thanks, Morturn, for your comments. I must say that I agree with you on the above statement. Maureen

Thanks to you again, Daniel. Unfortunately we were in Florence for just 4 nights and as we were using public transport, not having a car this time, we didn't have the time to visit Lucca. It would also have been nice to visit San Gimignana but again, no time. Maureen

Hi Snapman Unfortunately, we were in Siena for a very short time and at the wrong time of day to get the beautiful light we were blessed with in Florence. However, I am grateful for your comments, as always. Maureen

Mick/Ant - Exactly my thoughts! Maureen

Daniel - thank you. I thought of you when I saw the parade. Maureen

Thanks, Bill. Have reloaded amended version. Maureen

Dave - thanks for that. I hadn't noticed that until you pointed it out. Isn't it amazing how many times you can look and not spot something. I found with the Florence A/V after I had posted and viewed many times that I had not cropped one shot properly. Will rectify it straight away. Maureen

Hi John - Really nice to hear from you again, although I have noticed you keep popping up in other parts of the Forum. Regarding narration - personally I don't like it. I find I can't quite sense the atmosphere of a place when I am also listening to what someone is saying, but that's just me of course. Also, it is vital to have someone with a really good voice - or the 'right' voice to do it, not always easy to find. How are you doing with your A/Vs? I recall a super one you did of Edinburgh quite some time back. Bye the way, many thanks for commenting. Maureen

Mick - thanks again for your comments. Yes, the ending of the music has bothered me somewhat but I wanted to use both pieces and there was nowhere else to fade the music out without extending the A/V considerably and I didn't want to do that for the sake of it. I think I may have another go as it does niggle. As you know I have always liked to use borders until recently but have been advised several times by people more experienced and knowledgeable in these things than myself to drop them. I thought I would give it a go. Maureen

Thanks to Ken, Eric and Bill for your comments. Greg - No, I didn't use a tripod but used ISOs of 800 and 500. No doubt I was leaning on something, though. Thank you for commenting. Maureen

Whoops, Xaver. I should have said 'slideshow' or 'presentation'. Must remember in future that my shows are not A/Vs. However, thank you for your comments. Maureen

Oh dear, Eric! 9/10! Must try to do better. Seriously though, I take on board your criticisms, especially about the music ending somewhat abruptly, so it's back to the drawing board with that one. However, as regards missing tops of buildings off, the campaniles are extremely tall and unless one is using an ultra wide-angle lens, it is pretty difficult to get everything in the frame, especially when cutting it down to 16:10 format for an a/v. If you had tried using keyboard control you would have been able to absorb the pictures in the middle sequence. Thanks for comments, always appreciated. Maureen

Whilst in Florence we decided to take the 1.5 hour bus ride to visit Siena, the centre of which is a World Heritage Site, and to see the famous Piazza del Campo and the beautiful Cathedral of Siena, especially its richly decorated interior. With grateful thanks to Bill Hines, the presentation can be downloaded from www.beechbrook.com/pte Maureen

Ant - thank you for your generous comments. I do think the colour of the buildings in Florence is an advantage when trying to get nice warm light. Maureen

Eric - sorry but I missed your comment earlier. Thank you. Off topic, we were in your old 'neck of the woods' a few days ago. Almost got drowned in a torrential downpour leaving the Posthorn Tearoom. Maureen

Good morning Snapcam Thanks for your very generous comments. However, as we were there in March the light was good without the need to get out too early in the morning or stay out late in the evening and, of course, we were very fortunate to have such good weather. All of the images used in this A/V were taken with the Nikon D300 and Nikon 16-85 lens. I bought the lens about 18 months ago and really love it. I also use a Nikon D80 with the Nikon 18-200 zoom and most of the images in 'Simply Venice' were taken with that combi. However, my favourite is the D300 with the short zoom. Again, your comments are very much appreciated. Maureen

Gary - thanks for your comments and I was interested to read what you said about the old church high up on a hill. Some really good views from up there. Maureen