I went for a hike up around Whiteadder Reservoir the other day and was lucky to catch a break in the clouds just as I was passing the overflow area. The low sun cast stark shadows across one side of the circular concrete steps, creating an interesting combination of contrast, symmetry and texture. I don’t often take architectural photos, but I was drawn to this shot by the repetitive play of the light and shadow over the curving steps. When it comes to photos of the Scottish Borders it’s not what most people would immediately think of!
Since the end of the hot weather we’ve had thunder storms passing by quite regularly. This evening a storm was tracking west to east along the Tweed Valley, with warm clear skies being swallowed by a dark, sinister, swirling cloud. As the cloud approached the thunder and lightning intensified, the breeze picked up, the temperature dropped and a sheer wall of rain could be seen behind the cloud to the west. I had noticed that the cloud was beginning to spiral and lower, and just before I started filming what looked like a tornado spout began to form and lower towards the rolling fields over the Merse. The video doesn’t really show the enormity of the dark, spiralling cloud mass that sat almost directly over the top of Cothill (just to the south west of Duns, Berwickshire). I experienced a bizarre mix of wonder and terror when recording the twister trying to form – it would have been amazing to actually see a full tornado in Berwickshire, but as the storm seemed to be moving toward the north I was terrified that if it did touch down Cothill might take a direct hit! Just after I stopped filming the spout seemed to tear itself apart and the cloud drifted harmless by. Not something that I ever expected to see in my lifetime – a tornado forming in Scotland!
I went for a walk around Hen Poo at the weekend and managed to capture a photo of the pond in Castle Wood. Traditionally photos of reflections have bright skies and dark hills mirrored by a pond or lake. This scene captured my imagination as it almost appeared as a negative. Instead of light skies the background the trees were almost black in the long winter shadows, with the delicately frosted reeds vivid white in comparison.
I went for a walk along the old abandoned Duns to Greenlaw railway line yesterday. As a result of all the recent rain, a huge swath of this field was underwater. The cold nights had frozen the flood waters a peculiar milky white colour, and in the bright full sun of the early morning the distant ridge eerily looked like a misplaced sand dune.
Smart Swing Solutions, Melrose Just completed the logo files for the new Smart Swing Solutions project. A range of different logo ideas were formulated around the curve of a golf swing, the shadow cast on the dimples on the surface of a golf ball, as well as a few concepts based purely on font selection. This logo (with the clearly recognisable outline of a professional golfer in mid swing) was chosen because of the immediate visual impact and the curve of the rising ball underlining the text. Onto the site design now.
Border Motorhome Hire, Stow Following the design of the logo earlier in the year, Scottish Borders Website Design launched the new Border Motorhome Hire website today. The brochure site features information on motorhomes, photos, rates, a route planner and newsletter sign up form. To add an extra level of creativity the statement “Wish you were here” (normally found on postcards) was turned into a question and repeated over the banner photo. After all, you can holiday wherever you want when you hire a motorhome!
License Production Music, Duns Scottish Borders Website Design is very excited about this new venture. LPM is the music side of the business – a source of unique and highly original rights cleared music that will shortly be available for licensing in film, TV, radio, advertising and the games industry. LPM needed it’s own identity, but the shades of pink used within the icon connect it to Scottish Borders Website Design. The icon itself adds an element of symmetry, balance and movement, and is based on a spinning CD (or record, if you’re old school). We’re moving onto the website design and online music catalogue next.
Scotia Welding, Lauder Many business website design briefs make use of terms such as “smart”, “professional” and “trustworthy”, but that doesn’t have to mean “boring” too. By adding one or two design elements it’s possible to lift a business website so it becomes visually stimulating and leaves a mark on site visitors. In this instance, Scottish Borders Website Design used a photo of blue sparks flaring from a welders torch as the background to the website. The intensity of light from the torch highlights the logo, and a semi-transparent page edge adds depth to the site design. Visit the new Scotia Welding & Fabrication website to take a look!
Border Motorhome Hire, Stow Just finished a new logo design for Border Motorhome Hire over near Stow. Combination of a flowing 3D illustration of a motorhome (to suggest movement) and a warm handwritten font (which always adds a personal feel).
Palmer Campbell, Melrose Scottish Borders Website Design started this project with the design of a new logo for the newly formed property and renovation specialists. “Crisp, clear and refined” was the brief for the logo, and that needed to carry through to the new site design too. The photos of the recently renovated properties clearly showed the style, finesse, elegance and attention to detail inherent in the work of Palmer Campbell. As a result, photos of the range of renovation work and property types feature across the whole site, instantly showcasing the level of service and skill provided.
