Easy straightforward hiking generally over good trails with no major ascents. The days are fairly leisurely and we spend about 6-8 hours outdoors. Terrain underfoot is mainly on paths or hill trails which may be muddy in places. Daily walks are mainly glens or coastal hikes with some ascents up to 450m (1500ft).
Situated in a secluded bay with its own stone pier and views across the Sound of Sleat, to the Knoydart peninsula, the Eilean Iarmain Hotel is ideally located for photographic locations throughout Skye. All guests have private accommodation, with excellent en-suite facilities. Dinner is at the Birlinn Restaurant and Sea Breezes both of which have an excellent reputation for delicious food. Complimentary internet is available in the sitting room and bar area.
There are mountains, but you first see them across spacious moors in one of a thousand different kinds of light. The outstanding feature of this primeval land is that you can encompass it. You can take it to yourself and feel it’s strange wild intimacy.
Our base at the Eilean Iarmain Hotel is perfectly situated to experience and photograph Skye and Torridon’s wild intimacy with an itinerary designed to give the best opportunities at dusk and dawn – in addition to the daily excursions. During the workshop, Colin will give tutorials and a group critique which will provide feedback for every participants work.
Below is a typical itinerary, which inevitably will change to take advantage of the optimum weather conditions on the day. The decision about the following days location is usually made the evening before when the most up-to-date weather forecasts have been studied.
Day 1 – Pickup and Dunscaith Castle, Tokavaig
Colin will meet you underneath the main display board in the arrival hall at Inverness Railway Station at 0830 on Wednesday. Inverness is a small station so it will be easy to identify Colin. On the final day of the workshop, we will return you to Inverness Railway Station at 1500, allowing clients to connect with the evening services south. After the group has assembled, we will drive to the Eilein Iarmain Hotel where we check in and head out to Tokavaig and Dunscaith Castle. Dinner at Eilean Iarmin
Day 2 – Ord and Old Man of Storr
A 0500 rise to shoot sunrise on the Cuillin. The full ridge, including Blaven, rise in a panorama above Loch Eishort which creates great opportunities for capturing the dawn colours. We return for breakfast, after which our journey takes us northwards, to the Old Man of Storr, where we follow the path to the basalt pinnacles – a rise of 675m which overlooks Raasay and Torridon beyond. We descend and for an early dinner at Portree’s best fish restaurant, Sea Breezes, to allow us to be in position for a sunset.
Day 3 – Elgol and The Quiraing
Another 0500 start to capture the sunrise from Elgol. The headland and beach area offers endless photographic possibilities with views across Loch Scavaig towards the Cuillin ridge and Blaven. We return for breakfast and following a tutorial session, we depart for the Quiraing in north Skye stopping at a variety of locations, en route. Early dinner at Sea Breezes, Portree, which will allow us to position again for sunset.
Day 4 – Torridon and Loch Maree
Following breakfast, we will depart for Torridon where we will have the opportunity to photograph some of the most spectacular mountains in Scotland, including Beinn Alligin, Liathach and Beinn Eighe. In the afternoon, we will drive to a location where Slioch rises from the north shore of Loch Maree, behind stands of ancient Scots pine. Dinner at Eilean Iarmin
Day 5 – Kintail and Glen Shiel
After checking out, we will drive to Kintail to photograph a wild and spectacular series of waterfalls on the River Shiel. The river, at this location, drops around thirty metres and has created deep pools overhung by rowan, hazel and willow trees. After lunch we will depart for Inverness at 1300 to facilitate an arrival at Inverness Station at 1500 where the workshop will conclude.
This trip starts and finishes in Inverness. For train time-tables, costs and reservations follow these links:
Colin will meet you underneath the main display board in the arrival hall at Inverness Railway Station at 0830 on Wednesday.
At the end of the workshop on Sunday, we will return you to Inverness Railway Station at 1500.
The trip price is £1599 per person.
THE PRICE DOES NOT INCLUDE:
The ability to respond to Scotland’s changeable weather with appropriate clothing will enhance your enjoyment. The key is to bring comfortable clothing, which will maintain your body temperature under a variety of weather conditions.
If you are at all susceptible to the cold, a down jacket or windproof fleece is the most effective way to keep warm and can quickly change your mental outlook.
Cameras – camera equipment is very much a personal choice and is dependent on individual preference, budget, and experience. Whether you shoot with a 35mm DSLR or a mirror-less system is unimportant. What is important, however, is that you are familiar with your camera’s layout and menu structure and the difference between shooting modes. An understanding of the relationship between shutter speed, aperture and ISO is essential.
Camera bag – bring a camera bag that allows you to comfortably carry your equipment over rugged terrain. Backpacks distribute the weight between your shoulders and hips making walking much easier than a bag with a shoulder strap and are normally weather-proofed.
Tripod – the ideal tripod needs to be light enough to carry comfortably but sufficiently robust to be used in winds. A tripod engenders a more contemplative approach to the photography and allows the use of slower shutters speeds. A wide range of models are available from Manfrotto and Gitzo and for more advanced photographers, carbon fibre tripods offer a lighter weight solution but essentially do the same job as those made from aluminum.
Lenses – like cameras, these come down to personal choice and will be determined by the type of subject matter normally pursued. Many photographers choose two zoom lenses; a 24-70mm and a 70-200mm, which will account for 90-95% of the images taken with only two lenses. Another popular combination is 24-105mm and 100-400mm. Some photographers prefer to work with prime lenses which offer improved performance at their respective focal lengths however, it usually means carrying more weight. If exploring the intimate landscape interests you, then a 90/100mm Macro lens can be ideal.
Filters – The most commonly used filters in digital photography are graduated neutral density filters. These differ from neutral density filters in that they allow you to control luminosity locally. They come in a variety of densities and gradations but in my experience, the most useful is a 0.6 soft and 0.6 hard. Several brands of ‘grads’ are available but by far the best is manufactured by Lee Filters. They also offer a professional filter holder which allows the gradation to be moved within the holder, relative to the scene. A polarising filter is useful for removing reflections from water and increasing contrast. Many photographers favour Lee’s ‘Big Stopper’ which transforms water and clouds into amorphous forms by increasing the exposure by 10 stops.
Backup and storage – Ensure that you have adequate memory cards and a means of backing up your work, either on a laptop, iPad or supplementary hard drive. Bringing your own laptop will allow you to see what you have shot each day and will facilitate critique sessions.
Remote release – essential to eradicate camera shake when the camera is mounted on a tripod.
Spare batteries – cold will adversely affect battery life so make sure you have extras.
Lens cloth – useful for removing rain or sea spray.
We accept bookings online, by phone and post. Booking online is straight forward and enables us to confirm your reservation immediately. Before booking, it is important that you read the relevant Trip Dossier and our Booking Terms and Conditions. If you have any doubts regarding your suitability for a trip, please contact us.
To book online, simply click the relevant link from the trip page on our website. You will then be asked to complete the online booking form and proceed to payment. All payments made are directly through Worldpay in a totally secure environment.
For online bookings we accept payment by Maestro, Visa Electron, Visa Debit and Solo debit cards or Visa/Mastercard/American Express credit cards. Please note that there is no charge for payment by debit card but a 2% surcharge for payment by credit card. A deposit of 25% is required at the time of booking unless you are booking less than 56 days before departure. In this case, full payment of the trip price is required.
Should you prefer, you can call us with your reservation and card payment. This will enable us to confirm your place although, in all cases, we require a completed booking form (either online or by post) with details of all persons travelling. If booking by post, we accept all of the above payment methods plus cheque or bank transfer. If booking online we will confirm your booking immediately, including a copy of the Trip Dossier and an invoice for payment of the balance. If booking by any other method, we will confirm your booking within seven days of receipt.
It is a condition of booking that you are insured against medical and personal accident risks. This must include cover for the activities to be undertaken during the trip. We also strongly recommend you take out cover for cancellation and curtailment and baggage cover. We work with and recommend Campbell Irvine Insurance whose policies are specially designed for adventure holidays and are underwritten by AXA Insurance.
Insurance can be arranged directly at Campbell Irvine.