Photographing Glencoe - Not as easy as it looks

I’ve been to Scotland before, but only for business trips and once for a bit of golf. Never with a camera.

As any landscape photographer will tell you, if you get the chance, you’ve got to go... and I had the chance, so I did.

The Buachaille - pronounced The “Buckle”

It’s a long drive from Northamptonshire; too far for one day. I didn’t want to split the trip evenly and the plan was to break the back of it on day one and turn day two into something closer to a photography day than just more time on the road.

I probably went too far and the weather got progressively worse the further north I went. By the time I reached my stop, at the northern end of Loch Long where it starts to feel like it’s merging into Loch Lomond, it was raining hard and the wind was up.

The hotel will remain nameless, but let’s just say I have a fair idea where Basil and Sybil ended up after leaving Torquay… ;-)

The weather didn’t hold back. Day one was heavy rain and strong winds. Properly difficult conditions.

Not complaining, but it does change how you shoot. I started on Loch Lomond and with the image below, it was all about the drama in the sky and the layering through the image. There is a little light trying to break through and that’s great for pulling the eye through the image, but it’s not the hero in this case.

Leaning into the weather

As the wind picked up, I had to embrace the conditions and change my approach even more. For this shot, I couldn’t get a fast enough shutter speed to freeze the branches and twigs of the tree, so instead, I slowed the shutter down to accentuate the motion blur.

With a few stops along the way, I headed up the famous A82 and checked in at my hotel for the next few days, The Glencoe Inn. It was a little more upmarket than I expected and I felt slightly underdressed in the restaurant, but the welcome was warm. First names, genuine conversation, and, most importantly, a very comfortable bed. I would highly recommend it, especially as they replenish the chocolates in your room every day: https://www.crerarhotels.com/collection/glencoe-inn/

I think March is a good time of year to visit the area. I’m not an experienced hiker, and winter in these conditions feels like it could be a step too far unless you’re happy staying close to the car. I prefer to walk, get away from the road where I can, and work my way into the landscape without needing ropes and crampons!

That said, I can see the appeal of winter. There was a little snow remaining on the high peaks, but a proper snowfall would transform the place completely and maybe next year I might try a month or six weeks earlier.

Summer, for me, is a no. Midges and coachloads of people. Even on this trip, by Friday, places like the Three Sisters viewpoint were busy. Lines of people, tripods out, all facing the same direction which I understand, but is not how I want to experience the place.

So, all things considered, Spring felt like a good balance. Some snow still on the peaks, proper weather moving through, and not too many cars and people about for most of the time.

From a photography perspective, it’s exceptional. It’s also one of those places where an image feels very different printed than it does on a screen.

Mountains, waterfalls, lochs, castles, and more detail than you could ever get through in one trip.

The highlight for me was the road to Glen Etive.

Twelve miles in, twelve miles out, single track. Not many places to stop, but when you do, you can get out and move. Walk, scramble, climb a little. It opens up very quickly.

It wasn’t busy, and it gets quieter the further you go. I drove to the end, parked up, and walked a couple of kilometres along the shoreline without seeing another person and for me, that’s what these trips are all about.

I even put the drone up, which I rarely do, and only when there’s nobody around.

Road to Glen Etive

Here’s a link to the first video of that road trip if you want to take a look (click on the image)

Sun through the dramatic clouds on the Road to Glen Etive

Detail, detail, detail…

Sometimes I have to remind myself that the beauty is sometimes in the intimate shots rather than the grand vistas

I think you could spend a full week on that road and not run out of ideas. I’ll add a few of these images to the landscape page over time, but some of them have already made their way there.

Glencoe has a reputation for being difficult to photograph. I think that’s partly because there are limited obvious places to stop, so most people stop in the same places and don’t stray far from the car.

That leads to a lot of very similar images.

If you’re prepared to walk, get wet, and occasionally come away with nothing, you can find something different. Not in the mountains themselves, but in the foreground, the detail, the way you build the frame.

Weather…

Personally, I’ve got no issue with photographing iconic locations in a familiar way. They’re iconic for a reason and I’m not going to ignore a great shot just because someone else has taken it before. This cottage has been photographed countless times. I drove past it a couple of times because it was a little busy, but as soon as I had the opportunity to spend an hour there alone (or nearly), I took it.

‘That’ Cottage

Overall I had an awesome time in Scotland and I will be back - just not in the summer!

No wildlife opportunities, which, if I’m honest, was a relief. I didn’t take a long lens and if a stag had walked out in front of me, I’d have spent the rest of the day annoyed with myself.

The landscape was more than enough and I am very happy with the images I made whilst I was there (there are more from this trip on my Landscape page)

A couple of these may well find their way into future print releases, but I’ll leave them to settle for a while first.