Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh

Meeting place - Inverleith Row entrance (east gate) 

Weather - Sunny intervals 

Optional theme - Shapes

Refreshments - John Hope Gateway - long queues, and no hot food before 11:30! Scones were excellent but very pricey. 

Sandra photographed this emergent peony

Ada found a Monet-like tranquillity in this pond scene

Alex found a triangle in this reed bed 

Arthur found this scene from Alice in Wonderland

Shapes everywhere in Dorothy's view of the east gate

Ian found fractal shapes in a monkey puzzle tree

The shape of Edinburgh Castle is immediately identifiable in Maggie's photo

The magnolias were a highlight. This photo is by Eileen

Mandy found a beautiful stone gateway

National Museum of Scotland

Meeting place: National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh

Weather - Bright but bitterly cold with a strong wind - a good day to stay indoors

Optional theme: Colour

Refreshments - The museum café 

Eileen found shapes and colours in the lens of the old lighthouse in the main atrium

Ian managed to isolate this figure from the busy background of museum exhibits 

Sandra framed an architectural scene with a window from the musuem

Ada found simplicity in a red chair 

Colin found colour in a selection of tourist pamphlets 

Dorothy photographed a colourful selection of children's souvenirs in the shop 

Closes of the Old Town

Meeting place: Outside the Writer's Museum, to explore some of the closes at the top of the Royal Mile  

Weather - Fine 

Option theme - Flat - interpret it however you want! 

Refreshments - Coffee shop at National Library of Scotland 

Ian found a moment of serenity in Riddle's Court 

Ada found a dragon, and flipped the photo sideways to make it look oh-so-tired

Alex artificially aged his photo of New College

Arthur found a very grand piece of street furniture

Beryl found a reminder that the Old Town is very much a bustling business area

Colin was one of the few who took the theme very seriously, photographing this flat surface in front of two flats 

Dorothy found this ghostly figure

St Giles Cathedral

February 2026

Weather - Cold and dreich - we were glad to be indoors 

Optional theme - Textures

Refreshments - Café at the National Library of Scotland 

Kate found a moment of minimalism

Maggie found contrasting textures of stone and fabric

Sandra found lots of detail in the carving surrounding the main entrance 

Ada pointed her camera to the grand details of the stone-vaulted ceiling

Alex did the same - this time for the painted and gilded vaulted ceiling 

Arthur found texture in the stone setts of the car park behind the cathedral 

Beryl picked out a detail from a carved screen 

Colin zoomed in to the detail of the cane seat on one of the cathedral chairs 

"Are you looking at me?" - Dorothy channels her inner Robert de Niro 

Eileen's detail of the same sculpture reveals a very different scene

Ian managed to capture a sense of space 

Scottish National Portrait Gallery

January 2026

Weather - Rainy and horrible, hence the indoor venue 

Optional theme - Warmth - Cue lots of photos of radiators!  

Refreshments - Portrait gallery Café - Pricey, but very good. The chai latte was excellent. 

Sandra found a lovely detail in the stonework

Ada photographed the warm colours of the lanterns in the main hallway

Beryl photographed the warm colours of the historical mural

Colin captured this very architectural radiator 

Dorothy found a warm spotlight illuminating the brickwork

Eileen found warm colours in a collection  of pencils

For Ian, warmth came from an umber lampshade

Kate reminded us that we were in a portrait gallery by photographing this colourful portrait of Nicola Benedetti 

Bonus photo

Alex was inspired by the exhibition "Alfred Buckham, Daredevil Photographer" to create this composite from his own photos