Finding a best castle spot in Scotland

[oleg_boldyrev]

I am really asking this question on behalf of someone else, so pardon

for it's somewhat naive setting, but...

 

An acquaintance of mine wants to shoot castles in Scotland. He's

never been to UK and, what's more, is restricted in his ability to

travel by being afraid to drive on the left side. Ideally, he wants

to find an area with 3-4 good looking castles (not ruins) in great

locations which would be serviced by a combination of train and,

possibly, a short taxi ride. I have been in Scotland many times, but

my speciality is North-West, where castles are not that numerous. He

plans to go in January.

 

A comment from anyone either living in Scotland or having specific

knowlege of it's castles will be highly appreciated. Thank you,

[Brian]

If your friend has restricted mobility may I suggest he stays a few days in Edinburgh. There's a castle and a host of other spectacular old buildings, and King Arthur's Seat, all in a very small radius. He can probably find out about other castles that are accessible by rail at the tourist office there.

[p._neil_ralley]

This <a href="http://www.dlc.fi/~hurmari/castles.html">website</a> looks very helpful in planning such a trip. I would 2nd David's suggestion of Edinburgh from which several castles should be accessible by public transport. Edinburgh, Stirling and Tantallon are 3 I would recommend but enquiries should be made ahead because (a) not all tourist sites will be open in January and (b) public transport between these places and even a city like Edinburgh may be infrequent. Neil Ralley, <a href="http://www.stainedglassphotography.com">Stained Glass Photography</a>

[david_henderson]

Look at the work of David J Osborn on

www.BritishPanoramics.com. It isn't all Scottish castles, but

what there is, is very good indeed.

[marco_hidalgo]

Oleg:

I did a castle photo tour around Scotland a few years ago. I must

say the best thing is to rent a car and drive, as I did. But if your

friend wants to go by taxi, then the number of opportunities are

much less.

Near Edinburgh there is a castle, not ruins, but without roofs that

was one of the nices to shoot indoors. It is called Linlithgow.

Edinburgh's castle has it's own charm. and of course Glamis,

this last one is quite far from Edinburgh but it can be reached

easily in a one day tour.

Good luck with January's awfull weather.

[40mm]

If your friend is looking to produce pictures of the 'romantic ruins in the landscape' genre, I'd be more worried about the lack of interesting light, shortness of the days and generally grey, flat and miserable weather in January. Looking for interesting pictures in Edinburgh is good advice.

[scott_lewis3]

I was in Scotland may last year and around every second corner is another rune or castle. Edinburgh is well photographed by every one. Get a Scottish castles trust card (or is it called Scottish trust) and you get in to lots of them for free. Personaly I foung some of the castles out on the Islands much nicer than on the main land.

[darren m green]

I found the isle of skye a great sprt and laid back and small enough to hitch hike around with no problems at least 3 great castles there.

http://www.wildlightnaturephotography.com/Scotland_Expedition_Page1.htm is the link to a site that runs workshops to Scotland where I personally act as a guide after a two year period phtoographing Scotland. also some good workshops on my own site at www.darrensworld.com. Good luck

[scott_sampson1]

As I come from Scotland I would have thought that the best bet is to start in Edinburgh (obviously), get the train up to Dundee(1 hour trip) there are 3 castles within the city limits. Then you can go up the coast towards Aberdeen(train or coach) or back to Edinburgh. From Edinburgh you can get a "tour" on a coach that goes up to the highlands and around a few Lochs it is a long trip but would be well worth it. My personal favorite castle is Dunnottar Castle near Stonehaven it has a stunning setting and is easy to get to by bus and train. (Up the east coast)

 

Enjoy