The risk which didn’t pay off….
Another early start to our day as we faced a 2 and half hour journey to a location I wanted to take my workshop guests. Buoyed by a positive weather forecast and a trip to one of my favourite places in Assynt, we set off at 7am.
Stopping off first at the pricey self service petrol station in Lochinver. The only good thing about this station is that it is 24 hrs and self service. But very expensive. Another full tank, the third of the week, we set off in high spirits. The chatter for the journey was entertaining and the journey passed very quickly, albeit in total darkness. That is until we reached Ceannabeinne (I still don’t know how to pronounce this in spite asking every Scot I meet) when the first light of the day began to reveal itself. The promised “no rain” forecast was developing into something completely different.
Driving down the 25 mile single track road towards Altnaharra in thick low cloud with strong winds and driving rain. Bloody Met Office!! My increasing sense of fear was only fully realised when we reached the first destination. A stand alone half derelict stone cottage set in the foothills of a majestic northern Assynt mountain range. I have photographed it several times before and it is a gorgeous image. One I had always penned in as a location for my Assynt Workshop.
I stopped the car in a nearby passing place and walked back to where I wanted to photograph. I had also forgotten my coat and was freezing and wet by the time I climbed the small hill to the exact place I wanted to be. I was absolutely gutted that this risk hadn’t worked. I had dragged my guests out of a warm bed, driven 2 and half hours in the pitch black on the promise of a great shot. I was embarrassed and apologetic as one of my guests walked towards me. I vaguely heard the words. “It’s not your fault Dean”, but it was and I took full responsibility. I had taken a huge gamble on the Highlands weather and it backfired.
There was no way we could photograph in this weather, we could hardly see the cottage let alone the mountains behind. We were in the middle of nowhere in an almighty storm with no phone signal to check on any weather forecast.
Back in the truck, we had to get out of here and find somewhere with more potential. We had to get to the coast and fast. By the time a phone signal was achieved and a new location time was calculated, it would be 10:30am. I had wasted 20% of the available daylight on a hunch, a risk, which had backfired.
I know, better than most, the weather in Assynt, but I allowed myself to only believe the best forecast and was made to look a fool. Lesson learnt.
I decided to head towards the coast believing my tried and tested belief that there is usually a different weather system at the coast to the mountains. As we approached Bettyhill, we were encouraged by the breaks in the sky and so it proved. Our first stop was the above image….a lone derelict croft sitting on there hills with the beach in the background. Our spirits were lifted with this chance to at last capture our first image of the day. We then continued down to a secret little spot of mine where the full beauty of the beach and coastline is fully visible. I was beginning to feel a lot better about the day as the group spent a couple of hours photographing along the coastline. Bettyhill, an unscheduled visit was saving the day.
However, we had eaten a lot into the day for available light. Only 7 hours of light a day puts enormous pressure on me at this time of light. Not only have I got to be well organised I also have to be lucky. Luck had deserted me early on and we were completely out of position for the day. Bettyhill, although a beautiful place is way off track. Miles away from anywhere and a long drive back to where we ought to be. Therefore, I decided to call in on another hunch. If I was going to screw the day up, I may as well screw it up big time. Just before reaching Tongue, I took another huge gamble and turned left heading along another single track road in the direction of Altnaharra. The same direction as earlier in the day albeit a different road. Again the weather deteriorated badly and I grew increasingly annoyed as the next location neared.
I have spent many hours photographing this near abandoned building in the foothills of some beautiful mountains. I knew it was a worthwhile location for my group who had already expressed a keen interest in this type of photograph. Probably more so than photographing the beaches. However, today, it was cold, raining and incredibly windy. We decided to wait it out to see whether the conditions improved. After 20 minutes or so, we had a chance. The weather abated and we were able to get out of the truck and take some photographs. As we were pushed for time, I showed them where the best compositions were. There wasn’t time on this occasion to allow them the luxury of assessing the composition on their own. We had half an hour before the weather closed in, but I was delighted that they loved the location and were able to take some wonderful images.
We really were pushed for time now and only had enough time for one more location. Because we were out of position, an hours drive to Balnakiel was my only option. It is a great location and the scene of one of my favourite images taken in 2021. We did drop in another location, Moines House for a cheeky shoot. I remained in the car for this one. My guests had already photographed it and knew what extra shots they wanted to take and I had to process another workshop booking which had come through on my phone. This was for a collaborated workshop with Paul Thomson, our first together next month to Harris & Lewis. There are 6 spaces available with 4 now secured. I am really pleased how this particular workshop is going as it was recently arranged with little time to promote it.
With my guests back in the truck, we sped off to Balnakiel. We arrived to some of the most brutal winds I have experienced in this area. It is an amazing location which has so much to offer. Unfortunately, we only had an hour and with the 60mph winds, the use of a tripod was impossible. We all walked along the first beach and climbed the hill to the second beach. We got some amazing moody, atmospheric shots. The strong winds meant the sky and light was forever changing which made for some incredible images.
I have been so proud with my guests this week. They have come to an area which they do not know and photographed in conditions they seldom if ever have photographed before. But they have embraced everything put in front of them, never complained and only taken the positives from every type of experience. The pure exhilaration on their faces to experience the weather at Balnakiel made the whole week for me. It makes you feel alive to see the enjoyment on other people’s faces. It makes me truly humble to know that the experiences I am providing them is doing this.
By the time we returned to the vehicle, darkness had descended and another days photography was over. A long 2 hour drive back to Lochinver followed.
But the day of a workshop was not over. There was a fire to light, emails to reply to, supper to prepare, editing to supervise and most importantly, my daily phone call to my wife to make sure she’s ok. Finally, to bed. Another exhausting day but one, I hope my guests have enjoyed. After all, this is my only priority and one in which motivates me and a priority I will never lose sight of.
Tomorrow is our last day and I can’t wait to see what it brings.