WAR MEMORIALS, PART 1: LEWIS & HARRIS Earlier this year I was commissioned by the Gaelic Arts Agency (Pròiseact nan Ealan) to photograph a series of War Memorials throughout the Western Isles as part of a project commemorating the 100th anniversary of World War 1. The resulting images are being incorporated into large display panels as part of a touring exhibition which will visit a number of venues in the Western Isles and further afield during the remainder of 2014 […]
’52 BUS I spotted this vintage bus parked up on Leverburgh Pier recently. It was en-route from its home in Howmore, South Uist, to attend a wedding at Scarista Golf Club on the Isle of Harris. Owner of the bus, Donnie Macdonald, told me it was a 1952 Bedford OLAZ, with bodywork by Duple. It’s powered by a 28hp engine! Donnie’s well used to people taking photos of his pride and joy. Fortunately he didn’t seem to mind when I […]
EARTH MOVER Following my last moonlight outing in February, I realised I’ve been accumulating a collection of digger pics over the past few years. Not sure why… it must be a ‘man’ thing 😉 The first of the bunch dates back to March 2010. It was my first attempt at a star trail shot and by a very convoluted route has a tenuous royal connection: My comments that accompanied the resulting image (as posted on Flickr at the time): […]
LA’AL BOTHY Small but perfectly formed, La’al Bothy, on the Isle of Harris will be available to rent as self-catering holiday accommodation in time for the summer months. The compact residence has been designed and built by Alan and Ellen McDougall, next to their house in Scarista, on the west coast of Harris. The building was originally intended to serve duty as a garage and storage space. Plans changed and it’s now nearing the end of its transformation into a […]
JIMMY BULLAR’S TEA HUT This strange contraption is living out the remainder of its days in the middle of a peat bog on the Isle of Lewis. I stumbled across it (almost literally), in February 2011 during a full moon night photography trek to the shielings of Cuishader. When bad weather cut my outing short, depriving me of a decent shot of this weird vehicle, I knew I’d have to return to complete unfinished business. In the meantime I dug […]
SCALPAY: LAND OF THE FREE TAKEOVER In honour of the recent community take over of the island, I’ve dug out a few photos I shot in Scalpay last year. In November 2012, the residents of Scalpay voted to take over the running of their island. The then owner, English businessman Fred Taylor, had offered inhabitants the island for free. When put to the vote, 197 voted for the takeover, eight against. The island’s population is around 300. In 1997 a […]
“A BEAUTIFULLY AWFUL PARADISE” Salton Sea: a 21st century Twilight Zone – the place where the American Dream died, along with millions of Tilapia. Salton Sea was a thriving waterside resort in the 1950s and 1960s – a playground for aspirational post war fun seekers. But in 1976 the dream transformed into a desert wasteland, when Tropical Storm Kathleen swept through Imperial Valley, followed by Tropical Storm Doreen in 1977. Above average rainfall for the next seven years, along with […]
YES AND SNOW! Yes Scotland, the campaign group for an independent Scotland contacted me in November 2012, enquiring if I had a night photo suitable for their official Christmas card. Rummaging through my files I found a few images I thought might convey a suitably festive mood i.e. snow! Above is the original version of the one they opted for. After a bit of (spin?) doctoring, which consisted of adding the ‘Yes’ campaign logo subtly written in the stars and […]
TORN TROUSERS AND MOANING ABOUT THEE WEATHER Slim pickings from last month’s full moon period. All told, 2012 hasn’t been a great year in terms of favourable weather conditions for full moon night photography in the Outer Hebrides. I got a few shots in February but January, March and April were complete write-offs due to heavy cloud and rain. May, June and July are always a no-show due to the long summer days we see at our northerly latitude i.e. […]