Continuing our focus on Jordan this week, I wanted to share with you this image of The Treasury at night. We’d timed our trip to ensure that we could attend the moonlit walk through the Siq to the Treasury, and what an experience it was. The entire path was lit with thousands of candles which cast dancing shadows across the landscape and illuminated intense patches of pink rock. Everyone was silent – talking was discouraged.

Awed by the spectacle, Alistair and I soon fell to the back of the group and the guides walked right past us. Allowing the group to progress without us, we became alone. Walking hand in hand in the candlelight it was one of the most romantic experiences on earth.

The entire walk took us about an hour – we stopped frequently to take pictures, marvel at the rock houses and stare at the beautiful moon. When we turned the last corner of the Siq we stopped to catch our breath – in front of us was the Treasury, illuminated by hundreds of candles. We took a seat on the warm floor and listened to local folklore and songs. After half an hour it was time to return – but Ali and I decided to stay behind, we wanted the Treasury to ourselves. Amazingly everyone left very quickly and we were soon alone again, daunted by the incredibly Treasury once more. We walked slowly among the candles, enjoying the silence and the spectacle. This image (above) is engraved into my memory from that evening.

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided.

For more images of Jordan, visit the Taraji Blue Jordan photo gallery.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+

This week, at Taraji Blue, we focus on the incredible country of Jordan. We will share our favourite photos and experiences here on the Taraji Blue blog. I wanted to kick start with this iconic image of Petra as glimpsed through the Siq.

This was our first glimpse of the marvellous Treasury which was immortalised in the Indiana Jones movie. I had practically raced through the Siq, desperate to see it in the light of dawn. It’s immense and incredibly beautiful. As the sun rises it gradually bathes the Treasury in a soft amber light which accentuates the pink of the stone and casts shadows which dance across the walls. If you get there at the crack of dawn you can enjoy the whole thing practically to yourself. Just make sure you return at sunset for the repeat performance.

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided.

For more images of Jordan, visit the Taraji Blue Jordan photo gallery.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+ gplus.to/aknock

After investing in new photo processing software we’ve been busy re-doing many of our photo galleries and have been gradually re-releasing them over the course of the last few months. Every launch is shared in the Taraji Blue photo gallery and showcased on our Taraji Blue facebook page, so be sure to like us to receive the latest updates.

Recent re-releases include;

• The Taraji Blue Jordan photo gallery
• The Taraji Blue Costa Rica collection
• The Taraji Blue USA photo galleries, including Boston, Chicago, Florida and USA West.

As ever, we welcome your feedback and comments on our photography.

We’ve had a great start to 2013 – we’ve managed to see and photograph many a species in the UK including Grey Herons, Great Crested Grebes, cute Goslings, Buzzards, Ospreys, Oystercatchers and Gannets.

We’ve also been lucky enough to locate and photograph a subject I’d never seen before in the wild – the UK Red Squirrel. I had longed to see these magnificent creatures for so long, and we struck lucky on a weekend in the UK Lake District. We were supposed to be photographing and observing the mighty Ospreys, but the cheeky Red Squirrels darting around our feet were far too distracting and our attention turned to photographing them. I must admit – the environment was less than perfect – they had been baited by some nuts, and the afternoon sun (a rare sight in the UK) was very bright indeed, making it very difficult to capture the perfect shot. But we persevered and, whilst these are not my best shots, they are all I have to prove I saw and spent time with these fantastic creatures – and for that reason, I am sharing them on this blog today. We’d still be there now if it wasn’t for our car parking ticket running out!

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided. You can also see more of our Red Squirrel shots on our newly launched “Springtime in the UK” photo collection.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+

Here’s a shot from the Taraji Blue archives.

We’ve been spending a lot of time recently reviewing our photography portfolio and have enjoyed rooting out shots that we did not feel made the grade previously – but that we now like. It’s amazing how much our photographic eye, style and preferences have changed with time.  Take, for example, this image - previously shunned in favour of close ups of wildlife photography, I now love it for its vastness, the way it captures not only the immense landscape of the Maasai Mara, but also how it captures the volume of animals that freely roam its plains. Everywhere you look – every black dot – is a wildbeest or zebra participating in one of the world’s greatest spectacles. This photo captures this in a way that action shots / close ups couldn’t.

We’re now finding that we are keen to capture the incredible landscapes we see and we aim to extend our photography kit to help us improve the art of landscape photography.

In addition to sharing photos here (on the blog) and in our Taraji Blue photo galleries, we also share new and never seen before photos on our Taraji Blue facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue . Please do check us out and, in you like what you see, please like us.

You can also follow us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connect with Alistair and myself on Google+

I find that late Sunday afternoon’s in spring are a great time to explore York city centre. With the markets closed, the tourists at home and the sun peaking out, the city takes on a rare silence and allows me, as  a local, to have some peace and quiet to explore the back alleyways, historic properties and marketplaces of the city.

This image is a vacant market stall on York Market – taken early evening once the stallholders had packed up and gone home. It’s silence and absence of items tells a tale. The marks on the tables are evidence of traders,exchanges and items for sale. Of bustle, chaos and eventual calm.

This image is shared in support of our “Yorkshire” week here on Taraji Blue where we put aside our wanderlust for a week and instead focus on the beauty and experiences we can find in our own backyard.

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided.

For more images of York and Yorkshire,  visit the Taraji Blue photo gallery.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+

For me, this image is straight out of an Enid Blyton novel. It’s the real enchanted forest.

In fact, it’s the RSPB reserve at Fairburn Ings captured one cold winter’s morning. I love how the mist is settling across the landscape, muting winter’s colours and textures. The concealed pathway offers an air of intrigue, and, for me, the entire image is shrouded in mystery. I’m waiting for  life to show itself – whether it is a bird in the trees or a rabbit among the leaves.

This post continues this week’s Yorkshire theme here at Taraji Blue – where we celebrate our favourite experiences, photos and places from our homeland.

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided.

For more images of Yorkshire,  visit the Taraji Blue photo gallery.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+

We live right next to a river in the city centre, and every day for the past 5 years we have been woken by the screams and squeals of the waterfowl outside (the odd goose has been known to enter our bedroom at night through open windows and provide a very unique wake up call!).

I have often stared at the birds and geese, wondering how we can make the most of this opportunity on our doorstep and profile these animals in a new way. I am not seeking the same old tried and tested photos that we always see of waterfowl, I wanted something different – something unusual. I was therefore delighted when, one winters’ afternoon, my husband captured this photo. He’s titled it “Mallard Messaih”, as it looks like the duck is walking on water. In fact, the duck is standing on a pristine piece of frozen river which is reflected the cloudy skies perfectly.

This image is the final one in this week’s focus on Yorkshire. I have really enjoyed spending the week focussing on the beauty of my hometown and appreciating that you don’t always have to venture to far off shores to obtain a different perspective or unusual photographs. Sometimes we just need to open our eyes to what is all around us everyday.

We welcome your thoughts and comments on this picture – and this week’s theme. If it’s made you look a little closer to home to do let us know – and please do share your pictures with us.

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided.

For more images of York and Yorkshire,  visit the Taraji Blue photo gallery.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+

The branches of a tree spin viscous water viciously around a deep spark filled cauldron, splitting colours and descending into the oblivion of light.

This image was taken in York’s Museum Gardens. This effect was created by simultaneously zooming the camera out whilst physically spinning under the tree whilst taking the shot.  Warning…it can make you a little light headed!

This photo continues our celebration of all things local here on Taraji Blue this week – we’re focussing on York and Yorkshire to ensure we don’t overlook the beauty of our own backyard.

Seabirds swim under the mighty rock folds at Flamborough Cliffs, Yorkshire.

I share this photo today in celebration of our “Yorkshire” week here on Taraji Blue. We’re sharing our favourite images and experiences from our own backyard and focussing a little closer to home.

It’s all too easy to get carried away with wanderlust and dream of far off shores – I can often forget about the beauty of my homeland.

If you like this picture, please feel free to share using the social media links provided.

For more images of Yorkshire,  visit the Taraji Blue photo gallery.

You can also show your support for Taraji Blue by liking us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/tarajiblue following us on twitter https://twitter.com/TarajiBlue and connecting with Alistair and myself on Google+