A change from Newcastle Wedding Photography.

For Emerson Photography - a week visiting parents on the Isle of Skye - lovely!

Summer holidays are usually off the menu for wedding photographers but this year our little family managed to squeeze in a week on Skye, staying with my parents in Struan, where they run three cosy, self catering cottages above Loch Beag, bang in the middle of the island.

I've mentioned the importance of keeping fresh with photography skills on this blog before.  It's easy for wedding photographers to get in a rut, especially after a full season of busy north east weddings and portraiture sessions.  I see it every day on social media - photographers taking the same photos at the same venues, too busy to try a new angle.  Too worn down to attempt a fresh approach.  "If it's working, don't fix it" is all too often the mantra...  

This is precisely why it's absolutely essential to be a photographer and artist first and foremost and a wedding / portrait / kids / dog photographer second.  Getting out into a beautiful and fascinating landscape is an easy way to blow away the cobwebs, clear out the photographic routines, try heading out with just one prime lens...  Whatever floats your boat!  Lots of us rarely spend the same amount of time on our own family's photographs that we do on our clients' photos, so that's another great starting point for experimentation.

Trying new genres of photography, be it landscape, street, strobist or portraiture can only bring solid learning to your wedding photography work.  It's something I've always done ( I was a photographer decades before I set up as a professional wedding photographer ) and it's stood me in good stead.  I still love my cameras, my work and my hobby and this is bound to show in the work produced - every day really is a learning experience, even after all these years in business...

Mum has a new Siamese cat!  He's still a kitten but very leggy!  Normally, I just photograph dogs in the north east, so welcomed the opportunity to try a bit of feline photography!

That's our wee lad on the left with his cousins, enjoying a (very swift) sit down on the lawn of The Wee Tea Room and Photographic Gallery - well worth a visit for the cakes alone.  Mmm...

This one ( above ) is taken from just above my parents' self catering cottages in Bracadale,  Struan and shows Loch Beag and the slipway.

The landscape above, depicting The Cuillin Mountains taken near Sligichan, was actually the only trip I took purely for landscape work, complete with neutral density ( ND ) grads, polariser, tripod etc.  All the rest were just taken whilst walking around with the family, or on days out.

Above is the wonderful beach right in front of Glen Brittle campsite, which has to be up there in the top ten best beach campsites in the UK.  Also, the beach is perfect for toddlers as it is very long, the water is very shallow and it's easy to keep an eye on them!  And yes, that's the original Hairy Dog Kasper :-)

The next two photos ( below ) use a technique called narrow flash, which involves direct, unmodified on camera flash, with the head of the unit zoomed in to give a 'spotlight' effect.  I hadn't used it for years but given the brightness of the sun, it seemed like a good time to try it out again.  Very glad I did!

Very, very early in the morning ^^^^ - a quick landscape back on the mainland on the way home.  The two below were taken using my converted Nikon D70 infrared camera - I spent years shooting, processing and printing infrared film at home but the digital IR camera is just much easier to use...

And that was our trip to Skye - I don't doubt we'll be back soon - miss it again already!  If you're looking for an extraordinary documentary wedding photographer to make you the most beautiful photos at your wedding, please don't hesitate to get in touch through my site - documentary wedding photographer newcastle or just give me a call on 07866127732.

Glen Sligichan, MTB, Skye.

Got back late last night from an all too short trip to visit family in the Isle of Skye. Took adavantage of the reasonable weather to ride Glen Sligichan on my mountain bike. Did the ouit and back route - there are alternative routes back to Slig, but all of them involve a fair old road bash and those who've tried the other glens reckon they're a bit boggy at the best of times... The going is very rough - loads of melon sized rocks, drainage channels and other 'interesting' obstacles. It really has to be ridden with a bit of speed just to keep you rolling over the rocks. This was a wee bit harder omn the return leg as I was cold, tired and because I bent my rear brake disc within half an hour of setting off (comedy over-the-bars moment). The disc was bent back roughly into place by standing on my frame and heaving until a relatively flattish shape was acheived, but it still rubbed pretty badly and I had to pump the rear brake three or four times before it would work. The vid is shot on a £15 MUVI camera from Hong Kong - as you can see, it's not at its best in low light - probably best not to watch if you suffer from epilepsy! Enjoy!

Glen Sligichan MTB out and back, Skye. from User Removed on Vimeo.

Another Skye Trip!

Please click on any of the pics to see them at a decent size!

Just realised how long it's been since I updated this! Lots of beautiful weddings which I absolutely will get around to posting here......

In the meantime, I've just returned from visiting my parents in Struan, Skye, . Managed to squeeze the bike in this time - always wanted to take it, but somehow there's never been enough room, what with dogs, luggage and the wife :-)

I really fancied doing Glen Sligichan, but was told that a lot of the river crossings would be impassable, due to the huge amount of recent rain. Didn't really fancy cycling hub-deep through a bog, so turned my attention to Glen Brittle, and the Forest of Brittle instead.

I parked up at Carbost and cycled up the road a few miles (and I do mean UP!) to the start of the forest track.  Then realised I'd left the map in the car and had to go back for it.  Grand.

The pic at the top is right at the start of a nine mile circular route through the Forest of Brittle.  Not exactly hard core, but enough to whet the appetite.  Good variation in terrain and lots of routes to choose from.  Pretty hilly too, so warmed the muscles up nicely.

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Unfortunately, the route I chose led to the situation above - after a good three minute steep descent, the track was completely blocked by felled trees.  Great big fir trees at that.  No getting through them, but determination will out, and I managed to scramble above them and make my way along the treeline - even managed a few pedals!!  On the other side, three forestry workers stood with their mouths open as I attempted to climb down a muddy cliff with my bike on my back, using felled trees to hold on to.

One joker quipped, "Did ye no' see the signs?  Ye'll hae to go back"..  Ho ho, how I laughed.

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After flailing about in the forest for a while, I popped out right at the start of the trail which leads up to the fantastically named, 'Fairy Pools' - a series of pools and waterfalls overlooked by the massive bulk of the Cuillins.  The sun came out and I knew I'd have to take the trail or forever feel like a total woose.  The pic above ^ ^ shows the start of the ascent.  It was a ratio of about 20% riding to 80% pushing / carrying all the way to the top of the pass - around 360 feet (height, not distance!!).

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Looking back down into Glen Brittle from Bealach a Mhaim ^ ^  The going was pretty rough - lots of unrideable rocky sections and some hoppable drainage channels.

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The start of the descent ^ ^  I had to force myself to get off the bike to take a pic - this was the most fun I've had on a bike in years!!  Who needs trail centres?!  The same features which were unrideable on the way up the other side suddenly flowed under the tyres - the faster I went, the easier it got!

Stopped to take a quick 5 shots for stitching into a panorama later....  Shortly after this, had my one and miraculously only fall.  A crazy dog was bounding up the hill towards me with its anxious owners bellowing at it to stop.  Because I was watching the dog, I lost my line, and took a header off a three foot drop.  No lasting damage and the dog was fine too.

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Final shot of the day - I was glad to see the hotel nestled in the glen below.  Would have stopped for a pint, but had a 14 Km uphill road bash back to the car at Carbost - some of the hardest riding ever - I was pretty shattered.....

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Cameras for Pleasure....

Well, it's just gone Christmas, and everyone deserves a break, even wedding photographers.

My wife and I (still sounds wierd!) are at my Mum's house on the Isle of Skye for a few more days before heading home. It's been many a month since I've used any of my photography kit for fun - shooting weddings is a passion for me, and the creative possibilities are endless. Now and again though, it's absolutely necessary to get outdoors with a tripod and shoot stuff for fun!


I find it stops any staleness creeping in - other photographers will know the strange compulsion which sets in when let loose in wonderful scenery with a camera. Everything starts to look like an image waiting to happen - any time spent eating, drinking or sleeping feels like time wasted.....

No? Just me?! Can't believe it! Anyway, here's a few from the last few days. Click on any of the pictures to see them at a decent size.


The road from Portree coming down into Struan, sunset yesterday.




Sunset over Loch Beag




Panoramic shot near Storr



Panoramic shot taken from Mum's front garden this morning - the size of the image doesn't do the scenery justice... you can view this one large here:

http://www.ephotozine.com/photo/1086933/large

Ah well, it's been a grand week or so - New Year headaches beckon - looking forward to it!