Blofeld’s Lair from the air
Filming and photographing at the mountain-top restaurant made famous by James Bond.
Published on 28th March 2019
Blog posts about snow
Diemtigen Valley from the air
Aerial sequences of the quiet and peaceful Diemtigal Valley in Switzerland.
Published on 3rd March 2019
As far as the barrier, and beyond
I love the alpine Susten Pass road and the mountain scenery there, particularly the area around the Steingletscher glacier and nearby hotel. It’s been a long time since I’ve visited in spring – before the upper reaches of the…
Published on 13th May 2018
Grindelwald, December 2017
The best time to visit the mountain villages near our home is between the tourist seasons, when many hotels are closed and the valleys, cable cars and mountain cableways are much quieter. We drove up to Grindelwald shortly before…
Published on 6th January 2018
A cold, cold afternoon
It had been a beautifully sunny start to the day, but by the time we’d driven up to Grindelwald, the clouds had taken over and the temperature had plummeted. We had to use a plastic loyalty card to…
Published on 19th December 2017
Lombachalp–Augstmatthorn–Suggiture
A testing and rewarding hike from the peat moorland of Lombachalp to two summits on the vertiginous Brienzergrat ridge.
Published on 16th June 2016
The early bird and all that
I was half an hour early for an appointment at the Spiez council offices this morning, so I went for a brief stroll through the woods to the top of the vineyards while I was waiting. It was so peaceful, with fresh…
Published on 8th March 2016
Changeable Sunday
Views from home across the lake to the Niederhorn on a winter Sunday.
Published on 6th March 2016
Schiltgrat to Mürren
A hair-raising sledge run - our first of this season - in the awe-inspiring Schilttal valley above Mürren.
Published on 30th January 2016
Riffelsee to Riffelalp, Zermatt
Before the proper snow arrived at the start of this year's winter season, we visited Zermatt and visited the famous, much-photographed view of the Matterhorn from Riffelsee.
Published on 20th January 2016
Faltschen, Kandertal, Switzerland
Dense, grey fog on the lakes in the Bernese Oberland means that it’s best to head for the surrounding hills and mountains to get above the cloud and into the sunshine. We took a drive up a road we’d never…
Published on 6th December 2015
RAW-format panoramic images at Permanent Tourist
Part of the joy of photography for me is the ability to travel in time. Not like Marty and the Doc in my favourite ever films, which celebrated a big milestone a few days ago, but in the…
Published on 24th October 2015
Jungfraujoch, Switzerland
The Jungfraujoch is the prime tourist destination in Switzerland’s Jungfrau region. High atop a mountain “saddle” between the Mönch and Jungfrau peaks, it’s accessible by taking a cog-wheel train which makes its way to the summit through a tunnel…
Published on 12th July 2015
Bachalp, Switzerland
Bachalp is an area of the mountains which ring the northern side of the Grindelwald valley. It’s a popular tourist destination, as its fairly easy to reach on foot in around 45 minutes from the cable car station at First. Hardier…
Published on 12th July 2015
Locarno, Switzerland
At the end of a long afternoon’s drive from home, via Kandersteg, Brig, the Simplon Pass and a very narrow and windy road through the Ticinese mountains, we arrived at Locarno, on the shores of Lago Maggiore, just in time…
Published on 10th July 2015
First to Tierwang via Bachalp
A picturesque hike on the way to the Faulhorn, from Grindelwald First in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland.
Published on 6th July 2015
Gries Pass
Attempting to get away from baking temperatures, we headed for the mountains and a hike across summer snow fields to the Gries glacier.
Published on 5th July 2015
Melchsee Frutt, Switzerland
The Melchsee is a lake in the mountains, tucked away in the lee of a range of peaks between Meiringen and Engelberg. Nearby, the smaller stretch of water called Blauseeli (little blue lake) is a haven for frogs after the…
Published on 26th June 2015
Grimsel Reservoir, Switzerland
This view may look like winter or spring, but the photograph was taken in June 2012. The Swiss alpine passes – here at Grimsel – are largely between 1,500 and 2,500 metres above sea level, and their location in the depths…
Published on 10th June 2015
Niesen, Switzerland
The pyramidal peak of the Niesen, in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland, towers over the surrounding countryside. It heads a range of mountains leading from Adelboden and Lenk and is the “Hausberg” (home mountain) of Spiez and the Lower Simmen…
Published on 1st June 2015
Solothurn, Switzerland
Historic towns in Switzerland make the Christmas period especially magical for the photographer. In particular during the “blue hour”, between sunset and darkness.
Published on 28th May 2015
Hondrich Hill, Switzerland
There are viewpoints all over the place near where we live. But this one proved to be a bit of a surprise. The sun had woken me comparatively early on a Saturday morning, so I wrapped up warm against the cold,…
Published on 7th May 2015
Männlichen, Switzerland
The mountain slopes near the world-famous Eiger are a destination for thousands of skiers and snowboarders in winter. On the Männlichen plateau, above Grindelwald and Wengen, the best time of day for photography is shortly before sunset, when the sports people have left for…
Published on 29th April 2015
Männlichen, Switzerland
Low cloud drifts through the Lauterbrunnen Valley, below the level of the cable car station on the Männlichen plateau.
Published on 29th April 2015
Winteregg, Mürren, Switzerland
The mountain station and restaurant at Winteregg, halfway between Grütschalp and Mürren, is a great place to enjoy a sunny lunch on the large terrace and enjoy the terrific, panoramic views of the Eiger, Mönch and Jungfrau.
Published on 11th April 2015
Memories of Thirlmere
An old haunt, which I first visited in very similar conditions in the mid 1990s. This weather and this landscape were where I first began trying to take “proper” landscape photos using a Mamiya C330 on loan from a…
Published on 19th November 2013
Frau Holle
There are many unusual phrases which crop up from time to time when you live in a country where the national language is predominantly foreign. In the German language, there are a great number of phrases or unfamiliar references, from…
Published on 15th November 2013
And so it begins
Just as summer arrived in the Bernese Oberland late this year, so the first snow fall has arrived early. But that’s OK: the sun is shining and it looks beautiful.
Published on 12th October 2013
Away from the world
The alpine passes in early or late season offer a reminder to the untamed nature of the mountains.
Published on 15th January 2013
Winter season on Lake Thun
Local lake shipping company BLS now runs a daily ship service in the winter months.
Published on 2nd December 2012
Upright and proud
The new, re-designed website is now online and is automatically optimized for visitors with iPads and smartphones. One of the aspects of the design is an improvement to how images in vertical format are displayed.
Published on 2nd December 2012
The cold north west
I’m back from an extended break over Christmas and the New Year, which I spent with family in Scotland. My photographic goal was to get out and capture the landscape no matter what the weather threw at me, and I’m…
Published on 9th January 2012
The Saddle
The Jungfraujoch station, tourist destination and meteorological research centre sits on the “saddle” between the Mönch and Jungfrau peaks. The weather was fine enough to spend some time outside when we visited, so I took the opportunity to…
Published on 14th November 2011
Going the extra mile
I decided to take advantage of glorious warm weather and the Easter bank holiday to visit the closed stretch of road near the upper reaches of the Susten pass in Switzerland.
Published on 26th April 2011
Monte Limidario
Published on 31st December 2010
Katzenstein, Spiez
Published on 22nd December 2010
Driving off-piste
Jo and I took a drive up to Grindelwald last night to take some moonlit landscape photos. After an abortive attempt to head up to Bussalp–which saw us having to reverse back down a single track lane which got too…
Published on 21st November 2010
Seasons Change
The rain clouds lift and show what beauty they have strewn across the higher mountains in our region.
Published on 22nd October 2010
Down our road
Published on 8th April 2010
Experiments in HDR
I've been meaning to spend a little time to sit down and really get to grips with the High Dynamic Range editing process. For the unititiated, the HDR is a photo which contains detail within a much wider range of…
Published on 3rd April 2010
