Loched and loaded
An annual photographic pilgrimage to the Scottish Isles and Highlands yields some rather lucent landscapes
Iregularly make the long trip north from my native Cornwall to Scotland, for three weeks of photography in late October and early November. It’s a great time to visit the Scottish Highlands and Islands as the autumn colour is at its best; there is a good chance of snow; the accommodation is affordable; and sunrise and sunset are at amenable times.
In the autumn of 2016, I spent two weeks in the outer Hebrides and a week based
near Glencoe. I booked a cottage on the shore of Loch Ob Leasaid on the southeast coast of the Isle of Harris, which is a photogenic location from both high vantage points and the loch side. There was a photogenic boat next to the accommodation that made a good focal point for sunrise shots. I captured it on quite a few occasions using a wide-angle lens, and a neutral density graduated filter to balance the brightness levels in my pictures.
Having good locations nearby was important, as the narrow, winding roads on the part of the island I was staying were not easy to drive on in the dark. Fortunately, there were several locations from
which I could return safely during twilight, including the salt marshes at Northton. Here, pools of water could be used as foreground interest with the peak of Ceapabhal in the distance. I captured some compositions at sunset using a long exposure to flatten ripples on the water’s surface, and a neutral density graduated filter again to balance the exposure.
The nearby Island of Scalpay could also be driven to, and Eilean Glas Lighthouse at its most easterly point is spectacularly situated. I captured it across a cove with rocks as foreground interest, using a ten-stop neutral density filter to slow the camera’s shutter speed in
Having good locations nearby was important, as the narrow winding roads weren’t easy to drive in the dark
order to blur the movement in the clouds and ocean.
There were two heavy snowfalls after I returned to the mainland. Following the second of these, I visited the Rannoch Moor, where I was able to capture the snowcovered peaks of Black Mount reflected in the River Ba. I used a two-stop neutral density graduated filter to balance the exposure and to hold the highlight detail in the sunlit snow. Later, I visited Loch Etive where I shot the sunset reflected in the still water, with snow-covered mountains in the distance. A three-stop neutral density filter was required to balance the brightness levels.