For most people the New Year revelries are well and truly over and by mid January it’s back to business as usual. But here in Inverness we’re doing things a bit differently this year. Unlike across the other cities in Scotland, our Hogmanay went without much of a bang and instead, last night became the night to remember with a torchlit parade and fireworks display to celebrate the Old New Year.

There has been a great deal of controversy over the cost of the event which was to mark the end of a year of events to celebrate Highland Culture. But despite the moans and groans, most of the city gathered for the event, the highlight of which was the fireworks display from the Kessock Bridge which could be seen for miles around.

The bitterly cold evening helped make the display even more spectacular with the reflections on the calm water below. Unfortunately, my camera decided it didn’t like the cold much and the photo above is all I managed as a memory of the evening but thankfully there are some real photographers around here who captured the event a bit better! From browsing a few blogs this evening I’ve seen some spectacular photos including the one below from www.meejahor.com

Shopping Bags have long been used as a marketing tool by high street retailers and supermarkets. What better way to remind other shoppers to check out your store than creating crowds of shoppers unwittingly acting as walking billboards?

Retailers recognise the value of providing carry bags emblazened with their name and logo to their customers, indeed we’d find it a bit odd now if Next or Marks & Spencer’s provided our purchases in a plain, unprinted bag.

For some, the design of their carrier bags is becoming almost as important as the collections they stock. I read recently that the Saks store in New York spent nine months deliberating over the design of their carrier bag, envisioning it as “a piece of modern art”.

More recently, manufacturers have caught onto the idea of buying advertising space on shopping bags, and using the space to promote their specific product. This has led to some clever marketing campaigns and created some carrier bags that provide a memorable experience. The photo opposite is a great example of an effective, eye-catching advertising campaign for a product to help people stop biting their nails.

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Hope you all had a nice time over the festive season and are looking forward to a happy and successful 2008! I’ll start the blogging year with a photo I took of the frost on the golf course in Dornoch during my seasonal break, I’ve been enjoying getting out and about taking photo’s this last while so I’m sure you can expect a few more during the months to come My aim is to build up a library of interesting images that may be of use in clients projects in the future…

You may have noticed my site has had a bit of a makeover for 2008. Don’t know what it is but the new year always seems to get me in the mood for change and fresh starts, and after sorting out the cupboards and clearing the loft, my website always get’s the next hit!

Hope you like the new look site and all the best for the year ahead,

Sarah