India 2015: Mahabalipuram

Traveling through Stellenbosch when driving to Cape Town. We stopped for lunch at this vineyard and winery. Whilst my travel companions sampled the wares, I went for a little wander. I don't know if I was really allowed to poke my nose in the places I did, but it was fascinating to see all the machinery used to produce the wines.

Sometimes you make a mistake, and sometimes that mistake is utterly avoidable. The day before this trip I got the then new iPhone 7 took a couple of shots in nice light and thought, 'this is good'. I'd taken some online comments to heart. Something along the lines of 'only 'cause you've got an expensive camera'. Rather than dismissing it, I thought I'd challenge myself and set off to Amsterdam with only the iPhone. As it turned out, I fell in love with Amsterdam that weekend and wished I'd had my X-T1 with me. The iPhone looked alright in good daylight and on a phone screen, but quality simply fell apart as soon as the light dimmed and seen on a laptop or larger. In December in a city filled with beautiful illuminations the good light fell away quickly and what was left on the sensor did not do the city justice. The next time I went, I did not make the same mistake twice.

A dull but crisp morning walk around Greenwich Market a few days before Christmas. I knew there would be Christmas lights all over so shot with a star filter. I'm still not sure that was the right call, but it's good to try something different occasionally.

I love epic train journeys, and three days straight-through from the north to the south of Australia in backpacker class certainly sounds epic. That is until the reality of the 5am New Years Day hangover start time, the small seat which is now your bed, the lack of stops to get off and explore and that the Australian bush is near unchanging until you near the coasts! Great experience overall. Just split it up with a break in the middle if you can, unlike me that fit it between flights.

A night in luxury aboard the RMS Queen Mary. A once proud jewel of the oceans reduced to a floating hotel. She may have been grubby and crumbling in places, but the charm and beauty remained.

My 2nd visit to Iceland. This time in Springtime. One glorious day followed by another in which the heavens opened and the wind raged.

I tried my hand (with a lot of assistance) at batik painting in Kasongan, Indonesia.

Tartu Cathedral is one of the biggest churches in Estonia and the only medieval church with two spires in the country. Its construction began in the thirteenth century and continued until the early sixteenth century. The final parts completed were its spires. The church was destroyed during the Livonian War and has not functioned as a place of worship since. Today, the University of Tartu Museum operates in the Cathedral.