On the cusp of catching what may be my last round of freshers flu, I can now greet you as an aged fourth year. A large portion of my time this semester is spent preparing for my final year research project/dissertation. I'm so, so, SO excited to be researching in such an interesting area of psychology... but the details will have to wait for another post when I'm able to give more information away without compromising the results...

I'm living back on campus again this year in an astonishingly gorgeous en-suite room in the new halls. I've got a beautiful view overlooking the Hermitage Woods towards the back of campus which is going to look amazing when autumn really takes over. 

On one of my less busy days, I decided to make the most of the unseasonably good weather Scotland was having and take my camera for a walk into the woods.  

One way or another, Scotland has been having a lot of blue skies for September. I'm sure this post will jinx it but it's been very refreshing after a comparably damp summer in London. As this semester ramps up with work, I won't have much free time to go gallivanting into nature (nor will I be able to if the reports about this coming winter are to be believed!), so it's been nice to seize the opportunity while I can.

Mainly, I was letting my 50mm lens have a bit of an outing. It's rarely my go-to lens due to my SLR's cropped sensor, meaning I can rarely get wide enough for my subject when it's attached.  

Contrasting with that, I do love using prime lenses quite simply for the fact that it forces you to think about framing a lot more. When (and only when) time is on your side and you're able to play about with angles and focus, you can get pretty creative. 

The low F stop capability also doubles up as a pretty nice macro too, allowing for a lot of bokeh...

These pictures makes it look like a tranquil woodland. For the most part it is, although I was also almost run over by a mountain biking group who were taking the slopes a little too fast.

I found a fantastic opening in the trees where I could spy both the Wallace Monument and Stirling Castle. The skies here reminded me a lot of my trip up Mount Douglas back in Victoria, which is pretty appropriate as it was around this time of year when I made that trip as well. 

I descended from the hilly forest thinking that was all the hiking I'd be doing both that day and that week but two bonfires had been organised at the viewpoint/Witches Craig half way up Dumyat hill itself. The view in and of itself from there is incredible but the route up is certainly tricky and steep in places. Despite the fact I've done the walk more times than I can count, it was a little daunting to realise that, once we had the fire going, we'd be going down in the dark!

It was definitely worth it for the view of Stirling and its surrounding towns and villages. Of all the areas of photography, I find night photography the most difficult. It's an area I really ought to focus on (particularly now I have a lens that can cope with low light!) but I'm pretty pleased with how this misty shot has turned out.