Xponorth

Julie /IsleMum picked me up at 9.30 and we headed over to Inverness. We were lucky to get a parking space near to Eden Court and even had time to grab a drink before we went into the One Touch Theatre to take a seat before a talk about The Making of the Highlands took place.
We were first in and surprised that hundreds did nt follow so just a small gathering which was fine as the place was silent.
A brilliant session by Nigel Pope , Creative Director of Maramedia and Keo North. He has produced so many fantastic wildlife programmes including Big Cat diary, The Secret Life of Elephants, Hebrides:Islands on the Edge and the most recent Highlands- Scotland Wild Heart. Fascinating to hear the stories behind the shots and the music. So many great photographers with an amazing amount of knowledge and patience. Over three years in the making with the Summer of 2014 being quite dry and sunny and the following year a complete contrast.
New behaviours discovered and filmed especially by Raymond Besant from Orkney with his shot of the seals on Copinsay, he only just made it off the Island before the weather became to bad and he would have been stuck there for the next three months !
Lindsay Macrae's shot of an Osprey fishing has gone viral on Social Media. At just 25 he's becoming one of the best wildlife photographers. I remember his early start on Spring Watch and have been interested in following his career. Find the clip on facebook or YouTube and press like :)
It was also great to hear mentioned some of the locals including Charlie Phillips , Whale and dolphin Conservation officer and Sarah from EcoVentures. Several clips were shown on  big screen and the sound was really brought alive from the sound system. Brilliant to see the dolphins, pinemarten, red squirrels, guillemots and seals in such detail !
If you have nt seen the programme catch it on iPlayer or I believe it will be shown Nationwide later in the year.
A quick run to another theatre to see a short clip of Mark Beaumont's cycle along North Coast 500 , a look at the trade stands including a 3D machine and then down to the River Ness for break.
In the afternoon I went to part of the talk about storing Camera Data, some great tips and then our final session at  Virtual Reality going beyond the Frame .Mainly about Googlecardboard, VR, AR, 360 Cinematography. I can hear a lot of you thinking WHAT ? but these words will become part of our vocabulary just like the internet or Facebook. It's the future , there's a whole new world out there and it was interesting and all the presenters were again passionate about their work.
The photo is of one of  Davids friends ,Ray , performing as, The Ramisco Maki, Maki Rocking Horse on stage and being filmed. A bit of one man banded with a range of colourful instruments and a good voice.