Edinburgh Castle, Scotland

Making Memories with Nikon | A Day in Edinburgh

Edinburgh Castle with Princes Street Gardens in the foreground

maternity style: biker jacket and jeans

flower clock in Princes Street Gardens, Edinburgh

retro ice-cream van in Edinburgh, Scotland

pink flags in Rose Street, Edinburgh

Five Guys Burger and Fries

Tram lines in Princes Street, EdinburghEdinburgh Castle, Scotland
I’ve always been a bit of a Nikonfangirl.

In my first “real” job after university, I worked as a journalist on our local weekly newspaper. Our paper was too small to have an in-house photographer, so, once a week, a photographer from our parent title, The Scotsman, would come out, and spend the day driving around with either me or our editor (or, most often, both) taking photos for all of the stories we were planning to run that week.

As well as being great company, Norman was also a fantastic photographer, and I always enjoyed watching him at work. I was just starting to get interested in photography myself at the time, so I was constantly asking him for tips and advice, and two things he said have stuck with me ever since:

01. Get the best quality lens you can afford

and

02. Get it from Nikon

I duly went out and bought my very first Nikon SLR camera (Because these were the days when you had to get your photos printed out on paper and everything: so quaint!) (Actually, they weren’t: we totally had digital photography, but I’d done a photography course in high school, which had included developing print photos, and I had this image of myself setting up a dark room in the bathroom or something, and developing my own photos from scratch. In retrospect, it’s a good idea I didn’t share this idea with parents, given that I was still living with them at the time…), and I’ve been loyal to the brand ever since.

Terry estimates that our various Nikon cameras have taken over half a million photos in the time we’ve owned them. Our current DSLR (The Nikon D7000) has taken 157,868 (Yes, I counted them all individually. OK, no I didn’t – I checked it here…), and although it’s still going strong, given that this particular camera is rated to last for around 150,000 “clicks”, we’ve been thinking about upgrading it for a while now. Not only is photography an essential part of my job as a blogger, it’s also an essential part of, well, my life, basically: I’ve always had a passion for documenting everything (It’s the reason this blog exists, basically), and, with a new baby on the way, it’s even more important to us right now that we be able to take some good quality photos, to document his life, too.

Enter the Nikon D7500, which, as I’ve mentioned, Nikon have very kindly been allowing us to test-run for the past few weeks. I’ve already talked a bit about how this camera has revolutionised my blog photography by allowing us to take much better photos, even in locations, and weather conditions that we might not otherwise have considered, but we also wanted to be able to use it to document some of our memories, too, so, last weekend, we took the camera for a day out in Edinburgh, taking in both the city centre and the beach front at Cramond:

Cramond rooftops, Edinburgh, Scotland

boats in Cramond Harbour, Edinburgh

Cramond Island, Edinburgh, on a misty autumn day

Cramond Harbour, Edinburgh, Scotland

causeway to Cramond Island, Edinburgh, Scotland

As it turned out, this ended up being a pretty thorough test for the D7500, because, true to form, Edinburgh decided to basically cycle through all of the lighting conditions known to man, so we were faced with everything from harsh sunlight to glowering skies, and even some fog: thanks, Edinburgh! We also took the opportunity to test the camera out indoors (Well, you didn’t expect me to walk down Princes Street and NOT go into any of the shops, did you?), and at night, and I’m happy to report that it beat our expectations every single time. This camera really is just an absolute dream to shoot with: as I said, our existing DSLR is still going strong, and I was honestly pretty happy with it, but this newer model has made such a difference, both in terms of the sharpness of the images it produces, plus the colours, which I feel are much more “true” than the ones we were getting previously.

One of my favourite features is the way the D7500 uses Bluetooth to wirelessly sync with my iPhone using the Snapbridge app. This means we can take photos with the DSLR, and, within minutes, I can have them up on Instagram, without having to download them first, and it also allows me to use my phone as a remote control, so I can take selfies with the D7500, using my phone to look at the live view from the camera, and then to trigger the shutter:

Nikon Snapbridge app

Making Memories with NikonI’ve also found that the photos it produces require much less in the way of editing – most of the shots in this post are direct from the camera, with me only having to adjust the brightness/contrast in a few of them, which is such a time-saver, seriously.

As for Terry, meanwhile, well, as much as he loves taking photos, his real passion has always been videography, so he was particularly keen to try out the video capabilities of the camera. The results are below, and, just to answer the obvious question, while the majority of this video was filmed on the D7500 , the shots of the camera itself obviously were not – those were mostly done with our existing Nikon D7000!

To answer the other obvious question, meanwhile: YES, we totally need this camera. Because I honestly don’t think I can live without it, now…

My thanks once again to Nikon for collaborating on this post, and to Terry for working so hard on the photos and video!

P.S. If you'd like to hear more from me, please consider subscribing to my newsletter…

books by Amber Eve
COMMENTS
  • Žanete

    REPLY

    That video is so sweet, Amber. 🙂

    October 3, 2017
  • Dying to get a decent DSLR camera so all tips are great. I’m using my boyfriend’s LUMIX LZ30 which isn’t bad, but I do want one of my own. I’ll have to start with a simpler version, but I have heard lots of good things about Nikon so I’ll be plumping for one by them.

    I love those photos out by Crammond, especially the shot with the people and the birds. All the more so that they were taken on a grey day.

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Even the lower price range DSLRs from Nikon take great pics. If you ever want any advice in the future please ask, I’ve used many different cameras and lenses so can give you impartial advice 🙂

      October 3, 2017
    • Thanks Terry, I may well just do that in the near future. 🙂

      Love the photos on your Flickr account, by the way. I clicked on Amber’s link in last week’s article.

      October 3, 2017
      • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

        REPLY

        That’s so kind of you. Those pictures had been sitting on my computer for years and I just decided recently to start sharing them! Surprisingly quite a few have been selling as well so happy days 🙂

        October 4, 2017
  • Chiarina

    REPLY

    Hahaha, I loved the look on Terry’s face when he held up that lovely baby T-shirt… That camera takes some mean shots and videos! I imagine the hands that use it are also quite skilled…

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      It’s 99% the camera and 1% my hands 🙂

      October 4, 2017
  • Sun

    REPLY

    I have a Nikon D3100 which I love but I’ve had it for years so I think an upgrade might be on the cards ! I love how this camera, with the app, syncs with the phone.

    Great photographs Terry! Superb video I really enjoyed it, I feel like I’ve been with you both on your day out in Edinburgh.

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      That’s very kind of you, if you need any advice on the camera front just let me know!

      October 4, 2017
  • Nickolina Jacoby

    REPLY

    That is a great video!

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Thank you!

      October 4, 2017
  • Thanks for sharing and being a tour guide for me. I just love when the cameraman gets in front of the camera.

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Hopefully Amber let’s me out more often 😀

      October 4, 2017
  • Justine

    REPLY

    Thankyou for the delightful video, the music was a perfect accompaniment, you are both so clever!!

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Thank you and you are very welcome!

      October 4, 2017
  • Brenda

    REPLY

    I loved that video! Really great job! You guys are a sweet couple and will be great parents. I can’t wait to see some baby videos!!! Oh, and you could pretty much be spokespeople for Edinburgh tourism (or all of Scotland tourism, for that matter). All of the stuff you post on your tours makes me want to visit even more. Someday I’ll get there!!!

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Thanks Brenda!

      October 4, 2017
  • Love that glimpse of Edinburgh. Got a Nikon as well so appreciate the information. Also cute video. Inspiring. Loved the blurred background.

    Was wondering if you got any tipps on a tour thru Scotland? Must-sees? Best smonth? Would be a great help if you could spare a sec. Xxxx Sabina

    October 3, 2017
  • Maria

    REPLY

    Smiled all the way through your video … gorgeous x

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Thanks Maria, makes me smile as well 🙂

      October 4, 2017
  • Myra

    REPLY

    Me too ❤️

    October 3, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Glad you enjoyed it Myra 😀

      October 4, 2017
  • Awesome camera, and beautiful pictures. I’m always a fan of Terry’s videos; loved it!!!

    October 4, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Thanks Erika! 🙂

      October 4, 2017
  • Petticoat

    REPLY

    Very nice video, congrats to Terry!

    October 5, 2017
    • terry@hotigloo.co.uk

      REPLY

      Thank you 🙂

      October 7, 2017
  • Teresa

    REPLY

    Such a lovely video! You actually made me drop a few tears….
    Also, really nice pictures! I’m now dying to visit Scotland and Edinburgh 🙂 Hopefully it will be one of my next destinations

    October 8, 2017
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