One one of the things that has really struck me about living in Scotland is not only how dynamic the weather is on a daily basis but how it is constantly shifting from one season to the next. Every day the landscape seems to take another small step towards the next phase of the never-ending cycle. This post captures the highlights of my travels across Autumn but even in this short series of images you will notice as the colours and tones of the landscape shift in the space of a few short months.
Highand Drive
A rainy morning’s drive into Glen Etive and Glencoe, the colours are still lush and green even though the weather has clearly taken a bleaker turn!
Race Weekend in Aberdeenshire
Another weekend in Aberdeenshire, this time for the final round of the Aberdeenshire Enduro series. I chose to return to St Cyrus for my stay, this time in an old converted fishing shack on the shoreline, which afforded me the chance to see the sunrise over the ocean, something I have missed dearly from Australia. As was often the case, the dramatic pre-dawn colours did not make for a colourful dawn but I enjoyed the moment all the same.
A morning walk in Culross
A morning spent exploring the historic town of Culross in Fife, recently made famous for its use in the ‘Outlander’ TV series but truthfully had much more to offer than the chance to pose in a fantasy TV scene- the town is maintained by the National Trust and is overlooked by the ruins of the Culross Abbey and the neighbouring church tower which turned out to be hiding a treasure trove of ancient artifacts yet still functions as the parish church.
Scottish Enduro Series Final: Fort William
Only a few months before I had been over the moon at the chance to watch the World Cup Downhill at Fort William. So when the opportunity to race there myself came along, in the final round of the Scottish Enduro Series, I was absolutely overwhelmed with excitement and a health dose of fear! This mountain has a well-deserved reputation for being a bike (and rider) breaker and to play host some of the nastiest weather conditions in the highlands. It lived up to its reputation for the conditions although thankfully despite many crashes, no damage done to bike or rider. Naturally I brought my camera along to document some of the pre-race moments, which is something I wouldn’t often do at a race as I am too focused on the task at hand, but in this case I was simply so excited to be a part of the event that I relished the chance, and look at those beautiful golden autumn colours in the morning light!
Sunrise over Edinburgh
This is a location that will probably appear here a few more times yet, this was my first chance to visit the iconic viewpoint from Carlton Hill, which enjoys a unique viewpoint of Edinburgh Castle and Princes Street. These shots were at a sunrise on a bleak day- it was clear I would need to return on a day when the light was on my side.
Picnic in the Highlands
Lina and I set out for an afternoon picnic in the Highlands to soak up some sunlight and hopefully capture the autumn colour in the trees. The location we chose by Loch Laggan, turned out to be a poor choice for autumn colour, however the picnic was excellent!
Bike road-trip that went off script
With Lina away for the weekend, I decided to hire a van and head back over to Fort William for another ride at Nevis Range before the bike-park closed for the season. However, my plans started to look a little shakey by Friday afternoon as I collected the van- Ben Nevis received its first big snowfall for the season and more was on the way. Despite this, I optimistically set off before first light on Saturday, hoping the conditions would be on my side when I arrived. However as the first rays of light began to shine, it became clear my day was taking a different route- thankfully I had packed the camera! I rushed to pull over at dawn to capture the first ray of light hitting the Glen Ogle Viaduct. As my drive continued across the moors along the A82, my favourite strip of tarmac in the country, I stopped another half-dozen times as the morning light was doing magical things to all of my favourite viewpoints. When I arrived at Fort William, an hour later than scheduled to find that the bike-park was closed due to more snow, I was hardly bothered- instead I carried on driving to the famous Glen Finnan Viaduct, famously captured in the Harry Potter movies. Miraculously a rainbow appeared as I pulled my camera out and did so once again when I hiked up to the viewpoint on the hillside. If further proof that of the old ‘go with the flow’ adage was required, I certainly didn’t need it.
Edinburgh Sunset
In a return to my photographic outings of old, I returned to the Carlton Hill viewpoint to capture one image only: to capture this iconic view of Edinburgh in its best glowing light.
A Weekend with Friends
Another drive across the highlands, this time to visit some friends. The camera’s saw plenty of action, as the autumn colours were blazing through the final throws. After a long evening of conversation by the fire, we were refreshed by a morning hike to the ‘Lost Valley’ near Glencoe.
Finding inspiration in the landscape again
As is probably evident in this post, recent trips have seen me turning to my ‘big’ Nikon DSLR and tripod once again, after they had been shelved for many months- favouring the smaller Fuji camera for street-style photography and travelling. While the street/documentary style of photography is perfect for capturing impressions of a new place, I also found myself inspired to capture some slower images of the stunning landscape too, expect more of these soon. My parting shots below are of the River Etive on a moody Autumn morning.
