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After departing northeastwards from Edinburgh, our first scheduled stop is Stirling Castle. Stirling is renowned as the 'Gateway to the Highlands', and has the distinction of being the smallest city in Scotland. |
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At right is the William Wallace monument, as seen from the old Stirling Bridge, see below. It sits atop the hill known as Abbey Craig, and was completed in 1869.
It was on the former bridge which stood nearby, that Wallace conspired with Andrew Moray to defeat the English army in 1297. One of Scotland's brighter moments.
For more details of the battle go here.
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Stirling Bridge. |
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This is a valley known as 'Rest and be Thankful' and follows photography at Loch Lomond as we head for Oban on day one of the Scotland photography tour. Scotland is no 'blue sky postcard' but does get days like this from time to time. |
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The approach shot of the town of Inverary on Loch Fyne in the Scottish Highlands. |
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The second of four castles on day one of my Scotland photo tours, this one the classic straight on perspective of Inverary Castle on Loch Fyne. |
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On opening day as we head to the Isle of Mull I make a point of stopping short of Inverary on Loch Fyne to explore this type of close-up among the rock strata. One looks for pebbles that have been washed into crevices of 'flowing lines', and all that is left is to create a pleasing composition.
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Kilchurn Castle on Loch Awe is very foreboding, but needs just a little bit of light to set it off.
I opted for some foreground interest with this one, and needed to stop down to at least f.16 for sharpness from front to back. |
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| Light permitting, this is THE shot when taking the ferry from Oban to the Isle of Mull. The subject is Duart Castle which sits on Duart Point on Mull's northeast corner. As the ferry putters past all that is needed is a steady hand, and something akin to a 200mm lens. |
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Oh, talking of ferries, these small ships chug between the inner and outer Hebrides and provide photo ops of their own.
At left, wild Irises abound in Scotland damp areas in the early spring.
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At right, while on ferry rides among the many Scottish Hebridean islands there is the opportunity to photograph Gulls in flight. This one is a Herring Gull.
Wait on deck and they'll come to you, but be ready with a lens in the 200 to 300 mm range coupled with a fast shutter speed. |
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Oh hang on, maybe this is THE shot on that ferry crossing! It's the Eilean Musdlle lighthouse, and it's spectacular in it's own right but very different from the castle shot above. |
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A Highland cow, and a whitewashed cottage . . . OK, this must be Scotland! We're on the Isle of Mull for this one, and you can just about make out the Heather in the foreground.
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Black-faced sheep are synonymous with Scotland, and they'll climb and pose anywhere for you just so you can take their picture. However, modeling fees don't come sheep.
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The wide view of the Tobermory Harbour on the Isle of Mull. |
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A different kind of wide-angle perspective, but with foreground interest.
Tobermory is 'Balamory' in a TV series for British children and broadcast by the BBC.
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| Tobermory harbour has a history of sunken ships and lost treasure, but I'll happily settle for photographic treasures such as this instead. Exposed with a lens in the 200 mm range to compress the perspective. |
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Tobermory harbour once more as the boats settle down for the night.
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Aahhh, the blessed Isle of Iona off the Isle of Mull. It's a tiny, spiritual place with plenty to point the camera at. I chose this contemporary wide-angle shot for the Scotland photo gallery even though the angle of view was guaranteed to be distorted. Even the two pebbles at bottom right appeal to me.
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On another trip the twilight went on 'forever', as it tends to do in Scotland, and was blessed with this shot as the last light of the day faded on Iona. A magical moment in a very special place.
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More in keeping with the Isle of Iona's heritage is this Celtic cross that is around 10 feet high.
The shadow is cast by the Abbey behind me, and adds a bit of depth to an otherwise 'standard' shot.
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Iona is such a gorgeous place, and I'm privileged to have photographed it so many times.
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The nicely lit gate that leads to the . . . erm, . . . . erm, . . . Parish church!
The name escaped me there for a moment. ;o) |
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I literally lived among sheep while in Wales a few decades ago, and had 'almost' captured something like this back then. 28 years on, and my patience was rewarded on the Isle of Iona.
I had to prepare though, which meant seeing the image coming, increasing my ASA on the digital camera so that I could freeze the action, setting it on drive, and then anticipating that special moment.
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When one crosses to the west coast of Iona - an island that is less than a mile across - one frequently is blessed with Atlantic sunsets such as this one. |
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At the end of a pretty 'monochromatic' day on the Isle of Iona the group stepped out for some air. We weren't expecting anything spectacular, but when it was offered we gladly accepted.
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St. Columba used Iona as a base from which to evangelize the British Isles, and consequently it led to the current Iona Abbey being a place of pilgrimage for those following in his footsteps. This is a night shot using a tripod, with the moon reflected on the water that lies between Iona and the Isle of Mull.
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A coastal still life that could be anywhere, but shot on the jetty on Iona. |
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The famed and very moody Glen Coe.
Of course, all the white-washed cottages are built in just the right places. |
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Then the same mountain and cottage, but on a different day. Great side-lighting maketh the image. |
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Glen Coe again with another white-washed cottage for perspective. Glen Coe may ring a bell as it was the spot where the Campbell Clan rose early to slaughter their MacDonald hosts back in February of 1692. Revenge came several centuries later when the MacDonalds opened a slew of fast-food restaurants.
On a serious note, Glen Coe translates as 'Weeping Valley' in Scottish Gaelic, which is very appropriate. |
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 And the winner amongst all white-washed cottages in Glen Coe has to be the Black Cottage!
Oh yeh, boulder, cottage, f.16 or f.22 and the use of a tripod.
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The Cuillin Hills on the Isle of Skye.
On some days this is a very dour scene, but this dawn shot was worth waiting for. |
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The Old Man of Storr, the lone rock, as viewed from the opposite end of Loch Leathen near Portree.
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Same spot in Cuillins on a 'better' day? Fine weather is nice, but the pictures that make lasting impressions are often the result of changes in weather such as the one above.
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| Perched on the corner of Skye is one of my favorite scenes, the Neist lighthouse. It's quite amazing how frequently one gets some nice changeable light at this spot . . . must be the wild Atlantic! |
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A completely opposite view of the Cuillins, shot across Loch Scavaig. The low angle with foreground interest carries more impact than does an image standing up at the same spot.
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Then swinging the camera right on a different day, there is this holiday cottage on the shoreline.
What a wonderfully refreshing and privileged place to spend a holiday.
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One of my favourite Scottish moments is the return of the fishing boats to Portree harbour on the Isle of Skye. The flocks of hungry Gulls are what sets images like this apart.
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Dunvegan castle shot from a small boat while out shooting Sea Lions not far from the castle.
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The Old Man of Storr off in the distance on the Isle of Skye. I needed this image sharp from front to back, so used a tripod and an aperture of f.22. This in turn gives one a slow shutter speed and 'soft' water. |
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A replica of an old Scottish dwelling in which Peat was burnt for warmth. Known as a croft house, or black house, they can still be seen in remote parts of the Scottish Highlands, and Hebridean islands.
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Moody light par excellence not far from the Skye bridge, and more again below. Some may not care about the British Isles' weather, but it's the ever-changing weather patterns that produce the better light.
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| Sometimes one just gets to meet the locals head-on. I suppose you could say he didn't see me coming! He's a Highland cow, and quite harmless. |
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THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDS - West coast
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| This is a pair of Eilean Donan castle shots on the shores of Loch Duich. This one is a silhouette with my exposure being made for the dramatic clouds. Dour, and consequently extremely Scottish. |
Then the late light made all the more dramatic by the dark, stormy background. This castle is on the approach to the Isle of Skye. |
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On my first trip to Applecross in the 1970's there was only one road in and out, and even now with narrow coastal access, it still retains that out-of-the-way feel.
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A rare sighting of a Red Deer buck out on the moors in the western Highlands of Scotland. |
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Looking back to Skye from the west coast mainland. The thing about changeable weather is that you often get this kind of lighting between passing weather fronts and storms. Not all the time of course, but it adds up to images with 'character' which you don't get with constant blue skies. |
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'Art' in the Star Moss.
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| Just as I was saying, and it's true that ya' gotta have the rain if you want rainbows! This is Loch Sheildaig. |
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A distressed Odonata Dragonfly - notice the loss of front legs - gives one the opportunity to get close.
A 200 to 300 mm lens on a tripod, plus the use of macro or extension tubes will give you this kind of magnification. Go easy on these fellows as they consume vast amounts of Mosquitoes! |
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With so many Sheep about it follows that wool and tweed production is a major industry in Scotland. A shot like this can be found at most of the many small wool producers that are scattered throughout the islands, and western Scotland. |
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A meeting head-on with Sheep on a long and winding road through the Highlands of Scotland . . .
. . . with 'Passing Places' of course as the roads are just one vehicle wide. |
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| This 'monster' of a castle sits on the shore of Loch Ness, and this twilight image of Urquhart Castle was supposed to be secondary to the first light shot the following morning. As it happened it was fogged in, so it was especially good to have got this one in the bag. |
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THE EAST COAST including EDINBURGH
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This section will be completed shortly.
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A rustic boat scene in one of the many harbours along the Scottish eastern coastline, that just happens to be nicely lit . . . plus I did some dodging and burning.
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Edinburgh Castle. |
One can't have a Scottish photo gallery without a bagpiper can you? There are many pipers who make a living playing and posing for such shots around Scotland, and there is always one commissioned for a short session of pictures on our photography tours. |
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The Firth of Forth railway bridge a few miles from Edinburgh. |
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The Firth of Forth road bridge. |
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| This is a typical harbour scene, but you still have to 'see' the shot, choose the best composition, and expose it properly. So who was it that said that photography was a relaxing hobby then?! |
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Scotland by Shawna Scherbarth | Scotland by Carmen Sewell
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