Journey to Middle Earth: Scottish Highlands and Isle of Skye
Turas gu Meadhan Talamh
December 2024
In December 2024, I made a once in a lifetime trip to Scotland and Skye with my step-dad and good friend Joe solely to take pictures. After returning home, I printed a selection of my favorites and created a portfolio to show with friends and family over the holidays. This post is the online version of my printed portfolio.
Day 1: The Highlands near Glen Coe
As soon as I picked Joe up at the Edinburg airport shortly after sunrise, we headed for the Highlands. The countryside was stunning in the morning sunlight, and we were hoping we could make it to Glen Coe while the light was good. We arrived at Rannoch Moor just in time to get a few photos, but then the clouds rolled in and we were taking photos in fog for the rest of the day.
Days 2, 3, and 4: Isle of Skye
Our time on Skye was the focus of the trip. The original plan was to spend the first day with our photo guide from Skye Photo Academy, then spend the next day on our own. The weather had other plans for us, so Harry rescheduled our tour for the second day. Despite the wind and sleet, we visited the Storr the first morning (hiking in those conditions was probably not the best decision but the photos are incredible).
After getting warmed up with some coffee and cakes in Portree, we spent the afternoon at Sligachan where the winds were a wee bit calmer (although I still had to keep two hands on the tripod to keep it from blowing over).
Old Man of Storr, Isle of Skye
River Sligachan and the Red Cuillin Mountains, Isle of Skye
Marshes and Sgurr nan Gillean, Isle of Skye
Our second day on Skye was a private photo tour with our guide Harry. He picked us up in the dark to visit the Quirang at sunrise. As a landscpae photographer, I don’t have many iconic photo locations on my bucket list, but the Quirang is one of the few that has been on my list since seeing a photo of the legendary lone tree early in my photography journey; I was thrilled that Harry was taking us there for a sunrise photo shoot.
After a moderate hike to Harry’s secret viewpoint, we had to wait for a couple of hours through several rain showers until we got a break in the clouds; but mother nature did not disappoint when the sun finally broke through. I also captured some great images on the walk back to the car park, and we did make a stop at the iconic tree.
After leaving the Quirang, Harry drove us across the island with stops at several beautiful locations along the way. We ended the day on the rocky beach at Elgol photographing the sunset on the Black Cuillin mountains across the bay.
Quirang, Isle Of Skye
The storm system cleared out overnight, and we were greeted with clear skies and frigid cold for sunrise the next morning. These were perfect conditions for our last photo stop on Skye at Mealt Falls on the northeast coast of Skye. Joe was able to get a fantastic image from the overlook next to the falls, but I came prepared to use my flying camera to capture the waterfall and cliffs from offshore. We finished the morning with a tour and tasting at the Torabhaig distillery before heading back to the mainland.
Kilt Rocks and Mealt Falls, Coast of Skye
Day 5: Frozen Highlands
Joe had an early flight, so I was on my own for the final day in the Highlands. The forecast called for clear skies and temperatures in the mid-40s, so I wasn’t particularly excited about getting out for photography. Fortunately, the weather forecasters were completely wrong. I arrived in Glen Coe early with freezing fog and bitter cold which covered the landscape in rime ice, perfect for capturing some unique landscape photos.
Bonus Photo: Aside from the Quirang, I had two photos on my bucket list for the trip-the stag and a Highlands cow. In the case of the stag, he was posing next to the parking lot when I pulled in at Kings House. The cows were standing on the side of the road waiting for us to drive by and take their photos!
As I mentioned earlier, this post is the online version of my printed portfolio from the trip; I have many more photos from our trip to Scotland and the Isle of Skye in my Scotland gallery. I’m also working on a collection of black and white fine art images.
Printed Portfolio
The printed portfolio is an (absurdly) unique way to share the photos from the trip with my friends and is so much more engaging than a phone or iPad.
I printed the 13 images on Moab Juniper Baryta paper and put them in a folio folder that was sent to me by Les Picker. Les hosts portfolio workshops in his studio; from his portfolio video I got the idea to print cover and divider sheets for the images on translucent vellum.
