The End of the Road
By Melanie M
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From March 24 to April 12, 2010, the PTR Team, Melanie M, Claire Carter, and Bill Lockhart went to the Isle of Lewis, Lochinver and Torridon for a PTR Seminar. The Team was joined by friends Dougie Salteri and Herman Cater. The journey was initially about wind and snow and sleet and hail and gray skies but ended very differently. Did we mention the wind? Yes, wind at gale force. But, the light found the team, as it did passages along the way. 
Passing Place
By Bill Lockhart
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Did we mention the wind?
Storm on Beach
By Bill Lockhart
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Did we mention the light?
Tràigh Uuige
by Melanie M
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Bill:
“Much like this gentleman who walked among the stones of Callanish, I found myself in contemplation of light and wanderlust. Like him, I stood among the stones and thought about passages.
En Passant
By Bill Lockhart
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“I was home again among the hills of my ancestors and anxious to explore.
The Bridge
By Bill Lockhart
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“Here I discovered a bridge one morning at Camas Uig. A magnificent bay lay before me with beaches absent of footprints; and not a sound heard except for the wind, and the call of the Oyster Catchers as they flew along the shore.
Dancing Light Among the Stones
By Bill Lockhart
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“And did I mention the cold? Or the wind? Or the stray rain clouds that seem to always place droplets of water on my lens just at the wrong moment? Or did I mention the people who show up at the wrong time and sorta mill around among the stones? Or, perhaps a friendly dog who chooses to run to me in the twilight for a quick inspection of me and my equipment? Did I mention the wind? Did I mention that my nose is running again? Did I mention that the wind keeps making my eyes water to the point that I cannot see what I am doing? Did I mention getting my left knee wet again, stooping as I do to get low for a shot? Did I mention the sheep droppings?”
Claire:
“Eventually the whole party were to be together in Lochinver (see accommodation link below). Herman, our mountain man from Slovenia, joining us for his second adventure to Scotland. On the journey up from Glasgow he was admiring the trees and typical highland views and I was wondering what he would make of the area we had chosen for his adventure. To my eyes this region seems almost alien and can be bleak and and I was hoping he could see the beauty I had found during my last trip.”
Bleak but with its own Beauty – Quinag
by Claire Carter
“I need not have worried, at times I could see he was spell bound by the unique quality of this ancient landscape.”
Above Lochinver – Quinag Dawn
by Claire Carter
Melanie:
“What a joy to find a rainbow at Ardvreck Castle! Built in 1490, the ruins of what was once the home of the MacLeods of Assynt stand near the eastern end of Loch Assynt.”
Advreck Castle and Rainbow
by Melanie M
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While Melanie was finding rainbows, Bill was finding a tight shot with his telephoto.
Castle and Mountain
By Bill Lockhart
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Dougie:
“Enroute to Lochinver I was always mindful that Herman wouldn’t have seen most of the things that I take for granted, Stirling came up on the right and the Castle and Wallace monument were pointed out, Perthshire’s rich farming land and mountains passed by, the Cairngorms loomed on the horizon and always the time passing so quickly, road works and slow lorries, caravans, cyclist all get in the way when all you want to do is get to the North. Herman was ever watchful out the window, and I watched him to see his mood. Inverness passed and the next town Ullapool and the start of Assynt, then the camera stops would start, weather permitting.”
Quinag Reflection
by Dougie Salteri
Melanie:
“We visited the magnificent area along the shore of Loch Stack and here found one of the Ghillie’s boats sitting near a boat house.”
Sound of Silence
By Melanie M
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Claire:
“It is almost impossible to second guess the weather on the west coast. What is definitely true is that you have to be out there. Watching and waiting for a brief gap, that moment when for a few moments the clouds and the sun decide to dance together.”
Inverpolly – a moment of light
by Claire Carter
Dougie:
“We had a walk around the village one morning when the weather was being awkward, ever watchful Herman spotted a road up the hills behind our cottage, a possible vantage point for Suilven, the jewel of Assynt mountains.”
Canisp and Suilven
by Dougie Salteri
Bill:
“Sometimes just getting to the right spot for a photograph can be a challenge, especially in Scotland. The hill leading down to this spot was a particular challenge for me!”
On the Beach
By Bill Lockhart
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Claire:
“Dougie was a star, he seems to survive on very little sleep and still be able to drive for miles (whilst I caught some sneaky zzzzzzzzzz’s in the passenger seat). His knowledge of Scotland is amazing and on one memorable day took us for a grand tour that included Loch Stack. There is no doubt that one needs to be prepared to put some miles in here. Not that there are few opportunities but there is just so much to miss. Every corner hold the promise of a possible picture as Herman proves here.”
Antlers at Dawn
By Herman Cater
Dougie:
“Being the driver has its drawbacks on single track roads, Oh look at that!… can be fatal, if you do look at what a passenger has spotted. But the expressions when you arrive somewhere beautiful that you know and they don’t is worth the miles of concentration.”
Achmelvich
By Dougie Salteri
Claire:
“One would imagine that being in a group would result in images being duplicated. This is far from the truth. At one particular location, whilst the three photographers were within sight of each other, the following images were taken.”
Inverpolly
By Herman Cater
Inverpolly
By Dougie Salteri
Inverpolly
By Claire Carter
Claire:
“I am a sea junkie – don’t know why but waves do it for me. There is nothing better than a dawn following a period of wind, the waves still containing all the energy of previous days. It is hard work, you have to stay focused so not to damage yourself and equipment but every second presents a different view. You start off in near dark, long exposures and the morning blues. The light emerges and you turn up the ISO to try and catch some splashes. The dawn gives some colour and the possibility of reflections in pools. Bliss. Two hours can pass as if a few minutes. You are oblivious to the fact your hands are frozen and you have the ocean in your boots.”
Culkein – getting my fix
by Claire Carter
Dougie:
“Sometimes prizing Claire’s tripod out of the sand or mud is like tearing a child away from the sweetie shop window, never easy without the promise of something else around the corner. Herman was always up for the next image, as he documented our journey as well as doing landscapes. His style was different from us, but his energy and stamina knew no bounds when the mountains were close.”
Suilven
By Herman Cater
Claire:
“After Lochinver we headed a few hours south to Kinlochewe in Torridon, an area I had just travelled through once before but not had the time to stop. We had just two days and two lochs had been selected by Dougie as essential shooting. The first, Loch Maree, is huge and worthy of a week’s visit. Landscape photography is usually about finding a location and “playing it” over many days, searching for an angle. Having Dougie guide us to a spot proved essential as I would have been like a kid in a sweetie shop and would probably have chased my tail rather than finding a place to settle. When we arrived the light was harsh, the sky was clear and I walked around a bit trying to get to grips with where we were and where the light was going. I eventually decided to head down to the loch, a bit of a clamber into the unknown. I eventually found a loch side puddle. I like puddles. They stay flat when lochs won’t. I then began to see the sense of the chosen location.
Loch Maree – reflection in a puddle
By Claire Carter
“The sun was setting behind (fight your own shadow for a while) and the mountain beyond took on an extraordinary colour. And then the show started. Someone let the clouds out. I had a few hours of joy, totally alone and totally absorbed. It is a good job I was alone as at various points I was lying flat out in boggy water, camera inches from the ground and anyone watching might have wondered at my sanity.”
Loch Maree – Torridon
By Claire Carter
Dougie:
“Whilst Claire was wallowing in the mud down by the Loch, Herman had a little snooze his head propped against a rock, drinking in the air of the Wester Ross rugged landscape & I hatched a plot to move a few miles down the lochside. Herman was all for moving and we shot down towards Kinlochewe for a different perspective on Slioch & some golden light, & then a further stop on the way back for Claire. She hadn’t missed us and knew nothing about it till we showed her the images later.”
Loch Maree
by Dougie Salteri
Claire:
“The next morning took us to Loch Clair. Wind, what wind? It had gone. The one tiny cloud didn’t move for an hour. It was so still I ended up throwing in a rock to make something move.”
Loch Clair – making a splash
By Claire Carter
Dougie:
“Your turn to catch me off guard, I thought it had been a fish rising in the Loch. One of the drawback of flat water quite often is the lack of clouds in the sky. High pressure can do that, and it did it here. We did get some red light with the coming of dawn as compensation though. The thought of breakfast at Mary Ann’s B&B back in Kinlochewe wafted through my head.”
Claire:
“The following morning saw us here again – still no wind or clouds but Dougie managed yet another fine panorama.”
Loch Clair – panorama
by Dougie Salteri
Claire:
“Travelling home through Scotland is always part of the trip, especially when you have to head through Glencoe. Sometimes you just drive through as the it can be grey and uninviting but when there is a promise of light you have to explore and we stopped at Loch Achtriochtan. This is the first time I have taken a photo here that I like but the stillness and angle of the sun gave an opportunity to catch the colours of Scotland.
Loch Achtriochtan – Scottish Hues
by Claire Carter
Dougie:
“On the journey home despite some stops in Torridon and a run up part of the Bealach na Ba towards Applecross, a stop in Loch Carron and the obligatory shots at Eilean Donnan Castle we made good time. Herman spotted the cliff which you see on Ben Nevis from the road down the side of the Caledonian Canal, towards Corpach and this resulted in a quick stop. As ever the light was playing but no clouds over Ben Starav but Loch Etive was fairly flat and reflecting the wonderful blues and golds. A fitting end piece to another wonderful journey through Scotland.
Liquid Gold – Loch Etive
By Herman Cater
Loch-Cul-Dromannan
by Dougie Salteri
Claire:
The journey had started out with wind and snow. The report of closed roads due to snow had made us question if we would make it there. However, on our final day we recorded a temperature of 20 degrees C just a few miles from a place just seven weeks previously Melanie, Dougie and I had experienced minus 15. But that is Scotland, unpredictable, often challenging but always guaranteed to take your breath away (even if it is by the wind).
Recommended accommodation: Lochinver
Recommended accommodation: Lochinver
Recommended accommodation: Isle of Lewis
A magnificant series of images from a magical place – the west coast of Scotland from a group of excellent landscape photographers in what sounds like extremely challenging conditions, but thats the west coast for you.
. . well done team, jaw dropping scenery and a fitting trimute to the area, glad the weather played ball finally . . the conditions encountered make so excellant images also . . .