Friday 19 January 2018

Scottish Highlands

Travelling over Christmas and New Year's in the Scottish Highlands brings some rewards to the Landscape photographer. It is a unique time that provides unique lighting with muted colours and changing weather to challenge your photography skills. Documenting the area around the Alness area, including Loch Morie, Ardross and Boath, you will see what I mean...



Looking toward Ardross Castle from the south

The weather in the Highlands tends to change quickly, with predominant west winds blowing in clouds and precipitation that changes regularly. The sun does come out occasionally, and it highlights the colours when it does.


Higher in the Highlands on forest trails

Hiking further into Boath on forest trails, active forest industries can be found that also add specific details to the area. All of this creates opportunities for my 10-24 zoom lens! Note the changing weather.


Rogie Falls near Strathpeffer

Not far from Alness, you can venture to Rogie Falls. Again, the changing (challenging) winter weather provides for opportunities in landscape photography. Specifically, in the darker lighting conditions, slower shutter speeds allow for moving water photographs allowing you to see the complexity of the water falls.


Loch Morie


Loch Morie


Loch Morie

Heading to Loch Morie, on a calm winter's day is a hike worth taking. The completely calm surface of the Loch creates ideal conditions. The colours that appear in the photos become unreal. This is a very secluded spot and quiet. You can spend a lot of time here!


Dam on Loch Morie

There is a small dam where Loch Morie drains into the River Averon, and again, with light conditions fading in the early evening, slow shutter speeds are helping to make the photos interesting! I can usually find solid camera positions that occur in the environment, some man made, some natural. This was taken from a small bridge over the River Averon. In the winter, the sun doesn't rise until almost 9 am, and it starts to get dark by 3 pm, with night arriving by 4 pm. 


Ullapool harbour

Driving to the west coast to Ullapool, you can find similar lighting challenges. This was around 10 am. The sun doesn't rise very high in the sky and of course, the weather adds to the photos.


View of Loch Assynt from Ardvreck Castle

Heading further west, the hill beside Ardvreck Castle provides a great viewpoint overlooking Loch Assynt. This was shot with the 10 mm lens in the misty rain that was falling. Care must be taken when shooting with a really wide angle lens in rain, otherwise the lens gets coated in water very fast. The rain gives a much softer contrast to the scene.