Got a late booking to cover an incentive travel visit to Edinburgh by Spain’s 2nd largest bank. They wanted me to take photos of around 45 couples in hired kilts at their hotel, the 5 star Balmoral Hotel, and then at Edinburgh Castle where a grand Scottish dinner was held. This was in the Queen Anne room at the very top of the Castle.

Guests assemble in the hotels foyer prior to going to Edinburgh Castle

A Piper leads guests to the Queen Anne room

Scottish Dancer

Lovely evening and good weather for them, and a pipe band at midnight as a surprise in the main square at the top.

More photos >>

Jim Mather, Scottish Minister for Enterprise, Energy & Tourism (his portfolio covers Official Statistics) welcomed over 450 delegates attending the RSS – Royal Statistical Society’s – annual conference at Edinburgh Castle on 7 Sept 2009.

Jim Mather, Scottish Minister welcomes RSS delegates Edinburgh Castle

In the Great Hall right at the top of Edinbugh Castle

Sorry - I am looking for the shot and not at what they are looking at!!

RSS conference Edinburgh 2009

I completed three and a half days covering the Royal Statistical Society conference in Edinburgh last week – WOW an eye opener that was too.

We just don’t know how much these experts in statistics affect our lives. In one session there was a statistician talking about her company’s work on the gap between trans Atlantic flights in terms of a safety gap and improving air traffic from the UK to the USA.

There was a talk on ” Genomewide multivariate association discovery in imaging genetics studies” and another on ” Spatial variability in relative survival from female breast cancer”. The first probably won’t mean much to most of us but the latter may well. I think we don’t realise how much statisticians and their research,  the ‘controls’  they implement, and the interpretation of it affects us.

Another great conference to cover.

I am in the middle of covering the 2009 annual conference in Edinburgh over three and a half days at Edinburgh University for The Royal Statistical Society which is an international membership organisation with members in over 50 countries worldwide.

This is the Society’s 175th year.

Another fascinating conference that actually I thought might have been quite boring. But we the public are provided with the results of statistics in pretty well every facet of life today and without which the human race would very messy affair. One session was about the movement of flies, another about bananas and manure, and in aother I learnt that in some parts of South America massive fields being harvested by rows of around 50 machines are followed 30 minutes later by another row of machines planting the next crop. The machines were fueled from bio fuels from sugar beet so all eco- friendly. No talk though of any use of fertiliser though that would be in the equation somewhere.

I never did get to grips with algebra at school but some of what I saw today was just incomprehensible to the lay person.

Will comment more after the conference.

www.rss.org.uk

I received an enquiry from a pr and marketing agent in Ballachulish a few months ago to quote for food and hotel photography for two hotels on the Isle of Skye.

Duisdale Hotel, Isle of Skye

Toravaig Hotel Isle of Skye

Despite the distance I was delighted to get the commission at the end of August. A Sunday evening – well until 1 am – and a full day and then back to Edinburgh by midnight the next day with 5 mins for lunch it was ‘harem scarem’ to get all the photos done in that time. These blasted low energy lamps, as photographers know give off green light, and I prefer the warm welcoming colours of traditional bulbs. So a few burnt fingers (and bust bulbs) changing them all the time as I went from room to room.

Amyway a good shoot and two fabulous privately owned hotels.

More photos of the hotels and food photography….

Order photos here >> http://images.simonwilliamsphotography.co.uk/thunder

Despite gloomy weather forecasts the 2009 Harley Davidson Thunder in the Glens enjoyed another great August Bank Holiday weekend in Aviemore.

Now the largest rally in the UK, the HOG brings Chapters and members from all over Europe. The Saturday rideout to Granton on Spey brings crowds to line the streets as over 2000 Harley Davidson motorbikes and riders ride from Aviemore.

I was shooting for the organisor George ‘Mad Dog’ McGuire (don’t know what the Mad Dog refers to). Great event and great fun to do.

Fergus Ewing MSP greets the Rally organisors just before the Rideout

Arriving in Granton on Spey

Brief spell of rain - but someone came prepared