Yesterday Marion and I have visited the town of Wijk aan Zee, which is not really far away from Heemskerk. But it is a very nice area to wander around. And of course I took my new camera along.
Lets talk first a bit about photography. Not interested or have no clue what it is about? Just skip it :-).
With my new camera I have over-thought they way things I have done and which tools I have used.
For my normal photo-editing I will stick to The Gimp. Some will claim PhotoShop is better. Maybe, but I am not going to pay over €1000 for a software package. And yes, as software developer I have an issue with illegal software. Specially when there are good alternatives available. The Gimp is such an alternative. It can do anything one may need for normal photo processing.
For the RAW-conversion I always used UFRAW, an open source package. Really a great working application, but there were some bugs in it (specially in the Windows version) that are now untouched for years. So I have looked around for other RAW converters. Currently I am looking at ViewNX2, a free application of Nikon. As someone said once: “Who will better understand Nikon RAW-files as Nikon themselves”. I believe that is correct.
ViewNX2 does its work good, but it has some nuisances I have to deal with. But it will do for now. I have to alter the workflow I am used to, but that is not a problem (I think). The finishing touch will be done in The Gimp anyway.
Anyway… Wijk aan Zee!
Someone told me a while ago that the dune-area north of Wijk aan Zee was beautiful and great to make long walks. And yes, it is indeed a wonderful place. And very silent, which I like. In the walk of at least 3 hours we made there we saw one person walking a dog (very in the beginning) and a jogger later on.
From the dunes we walked towards the beach. The idea was to walk over the beach towards the town of Wijk aan Zee again. There I had the opportunity to play around with my camera again. The sea is always a wonderful subject for pictures. It always changes and never is the same. Yesterday the weather was a bit “gray” and so the sea looked more “gray” yesterday. Over the two years that I am living now in Heemskerk, I made so many pictures of the sea. And yet, the atmosphere of those pictures are never the same.
Here some of the pictures that I made yesterday…
Over beach we walked to “Het Strandhuis”. Marion and I have been before to this restaurant. It is located directly to the beach. And from the terrace you have a very clear view on the sea. On the terrace we sat yesterday and enjoyed these great views of the sea.
We already knew from the last time that we visited “Het Strandhuis” that the kitchen is very good. And they proofed that this time again. The burrito’s we had were great. Spicy, but not too spicy.
A wonderful spent afternoon again!