ian cameron

Loch Bad A Ghaill, Inverpolly, ScotlandA stunning beautiful and extraordinarily still misty morning greeted me on Loch Bad A Ghaill. The beaches around this freshwater loch are beautiful, but it was the grey watermarked stones that stepped outwards into the misty recession of the Coigach peaks bathed in watercolour blue that really struck me in their ethereal beauty. I hope you enjoy this delicate high key representation.Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, 0.3ND Hard Grad, f/22 at 1 Second. Fuji Velvia 50

Strathconon, Highlands, ScotlandA pink band of mist floats clear of the concealed river that runs through the glen and hangs suspended like a large string of candyfloss above a scene of spectacular rural and pastoral splendour. Even the grazing flock of sheep have obligingly lined up to have their photograph taken on this magnificent late autumn morning. For me though it would be nothing without the warmth of the early morning sunlight glowing pink in perfect cold opposition to the chilled fields as yet untouched by dawn's first kiss.Please view LARGE....Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome Velvia0.45ND hard grad, f/22 at 1 Second.

Lochleven, Glencoe, ScotlandA wall of Autumn colour on the slopes of the Mamores is reflected in the water at the end of the tidal loch at Kinlochleven. A low slung island with a ring of black rock and a small islet of grass harbours a few scrawny birch trees, the water flows lazily around it breaking up the purity of the reflection leaving glazed areas of autumn splendour. For it to show at its best it was important for me to wait for the suns shadow to move over the loch and island leaving just the slopes lit. A pleasant enough way to spend an hour or two waiting.Pentax 67II, 90-180 zoom, 0.3ND Soft Grad, 2 stop ND, f/22 at 2 Seconds, Fuji Velvia 50.

Loch Maree, Torridon, ScotlandAt the edge of Loch Maree on a pretty dreadful winter afternoon I saw this water logged tree and the roots of another exposed and snaking into the loch. They had a quite an eerie appearance and this eeriness was significantly enhanced in a deluge of rain that passed through with myself hiding beneath an umbrella protecting the lens from water droplets, for now the backdrop become shrouded and the water logged tree stood out clearly without the obvious distraction of a horizon line cutting through it.Pentax 67 II ,45mm lens,Fujichrome Velvia2 Stop ND filter, 0.3ND Hard Grad, f/16 at 8 Seconds.

Mellon Udrigle, Laide, ScotlandAnother perfect evening on the beach at Mellon Udrigle began to unfold whist I was there with my two children. I had already worked out the likelihood of a moonrise shortly after sunset and sure enough the most fabulous example of earth shadow (the blue haze on the horizon) was painted on a glorious pink sky whilst the moon rose into the sky and the ambient light was still strong enough to capture some moon crater details.Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, 0.45ND hard grad, f/22 at 4 Seconds. Fuji Velvia 50.

Nairn, Highlands, ScotlandStunning summer sunlight scythed through a break in the clouds and painted strips of golden sunlight on a billion buttercups in a field below an attractive scots pine grove sitting atop a grass covered hill near the Highland town of Nairn. I have many variations of this striking scene but few compare with the quality of golden light that I witnessed on this particular evening. Pentax 67II, 300mm lens, 0.75ND grad, f/16 at 1/8 Second, Fuji Velvia 50.

Nairn, Highlands, ScotlandA billion buttercups in a field backlit by the setting sun glow enthusiastically, with my favourite copse of pine trees isolated on a small cnoc (hill) which fortuitously offers them prominence almost silhouetted against a glorious sky. The difficulty was avoiding lens flare, so I looked out my cleanest filter and waited until the sun became partially hidden by cloud yet still lit the field. The window of opportunity is seconds.Pentax 67 II, 90-180 zoom, Fujichrome Velvia0.75ND + 0.6ND Hard edged graduated filter f/16 at 1/8 Second.

Loch Hakel, Sutherland, ScotlandMy personal favourite shot of Ben Loyal on a particularly fine Summer's evening with low cloud dappling the sky and catching the last dregs of blood red sunset light. Although the wind occasionally ruffled the surface of Loch Hakel, the incredibly shallow water at the leading edge liberally sprinkled with stones remained still enough to generate some fine reflections. My moment of transient light was realised at the appearance of moonrise near the outline of Ben Loyal and the flaming brilliance of blood red light just nudging the highest peak. It is just mind blowing when everything comes together, even though the accumulation of circumstances was very short lived. Shame I didn't shift my position 6 inches left to get the full separation of the reflected moon but by the time I thought about it the light had changed.Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome VelviaPolariser, backed off 50%, 0.45ND Grad, 2 stop ND filter, f/22 at 8 Seconds.

Loch Hakel, Sutherland, ScotlandOn a beautiful serene Summers morning with just a slight chill in the air. I worked my way around Loch Hakel towards a small reed at the southern end. I already had a perfect reflection and I would have been pretty happy with that but as the first rays of light struck the mountain I saw greater opportunities a thin veil of mist lifted off the loch and with the clouds still full of colour from the sunrise I waited for light to strike the peak eventually capturing this at its peak of performance. The atmosphere is tangible looking at the picture I can still smell the colours of that very fine morning.Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, 0.45ND Grad, f/22 at 0.5 Seconds, Fuji Velvia 50.

Glen Torridon, Torridon, ScotlandThese pine trees were singed in a grass fire blackening their trunks but fortunately not killing the trees. The grass took time to recover but when it did it was rich and golden in hue which made a wonderful contrast with the blackened trunks. I used one of my old favourite techniques of vaseline smeared horizontally across a very light and soft graduated filter, doing so causes the highlights to smear more than the darks and by partially clearing the lower section of the filter the lower trees and grasses become progressively sharper. It's much more organic and more beautiful than any digital filter.Pentax 67 II ,90-180 zoom,Fujichrome Velvia0.3ND grad, f/22 at 1/4 Second

Portknockie, Moray, ScotlandI have taken a few shots of this place not least because it's only a few miles down the road, but this is probably the finest shot I have ever taken of the Bowfiddle rock stack off the Portknockie coast. It was a year in the planning and the execution took three years but I am delighted with the results. The thrift is at its peak in early June and it layers the cliff tops, a storm the previous day had left the sea boiling like a hot cauldron yet it was predicted to be still the following day (no flower movement)and the weather and tides were finally optimal. The light was as ephemeral as my namesake Transient Light, lasting all of two minutes, but I won't ever forget that feeling when the small hairs on the back of my neck stood to attention with the sheer exhilaration of it. I have a more dramatically lit version but this one does it for me.Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome VelviaPolariser, 3 stop ND and 0.3ND grad, f/27 at 16 Seconds.

Sligachan, Skye, ScotlandA gorgeous rich rust red alpine glow is left flaming the top of Marsco in the cirque of Sligachan's Cuillins peaks. The breathlessly still conditions in late Autumn sunlight permit some superb reflections through which yellow reeds and grasses protrude. I wait for the last vestiges of colour to tinge the slopes and the pinkening sky above before taking one of my favourite shots of this fine location.Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome Velvia0.45ND grad, f/22 at 6 Seconds.

Loch Maree, Torridon, ScotlandI have uploaded this at a larger size than normal as there is so much information in the file so I hope you enjoy it. A single isolated Scots Pine looking resplendent in its cloak of emerald green looks slightly incongruous growing beside his skinny white limbed silver birch tree neighbour topped with a maroon coloured swept back hairdo of fine birch brush. I used a long lens to isolate them in brilliant sunlight against the massive imposing bulk of snow capped Slioch beyond.Please view it at original size.Pentax 67 II ,300mm lens,Fujichrome VelviaPolariser, f/22 at 1/2 Second.

The wind that blew through the dunes was vicious and needle sharp grains of sand peppered my face and camera gear between periods of relative calm. The sky remained heavy and oppressive hanging over the Inverpolly mountains like a drowsy veil of velvet that revealed their gloomy semi-silhouetted outline. The sand dunes were on the move being driven back from the beach and carving complex and extraordinary sculpted ridges including this beautiful dune spiral out of red and white sand of differing density and granularity. Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, 0.45ND hard grad, f/22 at 2 Seconds, Fuji Velvia 50.

Slattadale, Torridon, Scotland,A very fine winter morning that never-the-less had the appeal and warmth of a fine Spring morning, at least it did when the sun hit our location, revealed some wonderful ice contours in the frozen surface of Loch Maree around the periphery.Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, Polariser, 0.45ND grad + 0.3ND soft grad, f/22 at 1/2 Second, Fuji Velvia 50.

Slattadale, Torridon, ScotlandSlattadale is at the western end of Loch Maree and from there you can look across the sheltered bay towards mighty Slioch an imposing Munro. On still mornings a good reflection often generates itself and a majestic cloud flecked sky doubles up. It was on one such shimmering cool winter morning with soft sunlight playing across some flooded birch scrub that I was able to capture this delightful quiet and pastel scene. Motive is a difficult thing to quantify or describe but I find scenes like this evoke more than just my optical appreciation, it is a tangible feeling of being there, smelling, tasting and hearing the view conjures up a magic that transports an image to an altogether higher plane - this quiet, unassuming picture does that for me.Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome Velvia0.45ND grad, f/22 at 1/2 Second. full exif

Mellon Udrigle, Laide, ScotlandAs the light got better and better the sky turned to apricot, the distant peaks of Coigach, Suilven and the rest of the Inverpolly mountains turned scarlet and just about anything you found on the beach made a delightful foreground subject. The extreme low tide revealed a few stalks of seaweed protruding through the sand so I got down low and utilised them as a solitary and simple foreground that was small enough in magnitude and general significance not to distract from the distant peaks.

Mellon Udrigle, Laide, ScotlandJust occasionally Mellon Udrigle pays off handsomely at both ends of the day and on this occasion a phenomenally good sky lit up behind our wee group of photographers and the clouds reflected all that light onto the beach whilst the setting sun painted the mountains of Coigach, Suilven and the Inverpolly reserve scarlet. I found a very simple low amplitude foreground to use with this scene that ensured that nothing dominated attention but never-the-less gently guides you to the mountain line at the horizon. That same sky became even more intense later on but the mountains receded into darkness in the twilight.

Loch A Chroisg, Achnasheen, ScotlandThe most outrageously gorgeous light I have ever had the good fortune to witness lasted but thirty seconds as the sun peeped beneath the stormiest looking sky imaginable and turned every frozen blade of grass and ice encrusted fence to spiced ginger. I confess the manual winder on my old Pentax was hot to the touch and consumed film at a rate previously only dreamed of. More to come in the series but this is my current favorite of the images I took.Pentax 67 II, 55-100 zoom, Fujichrome VelviaPolariser, f/22 at 1/2 Second, Velvia.

Dava Moor, Highlands, ScotlandA gorgeous pristine snow scene featuring the many shades of white that sunrise on Dava moor generates. Direct light provides the brilliance of diamond white. The pink light from the remnants of a pink sunrise kiss the main birch tree pinkening its snowy cloak. The shadow sides of the slopes still pick up the blue of twilight. A wire post fence that stretches on past the end of the field contains the birch woodland.Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome VelviaUnfiltered, f/22 at 1/8 Second.

Quiraing, Skye, ScotlandA 20 minute flat walk along the Trotternish ridge near the Quiraing curves around the escarpment to give a very fine view of the sharks fin. Multiple prolonged summer showers and sudden squalls made photographing this scene both difficult but very exciting as light blasted the hills through gaps in the clouds. This was one of the few shots taken not unduly affected by rain.Pentax 67 II , 55-100 zoom, Fujichrome Velvia0.3ND grad, Polariser, f/22 at 1/2 Second.

Pentax 67II, 55-100 zoom, Polariser, 0.9ND filter, f/32 at 4 Seconds, Velvia 50.

Durness, Sutherland, ScotlandJust an outstanding summer sunrise over Durness beach which I was fortunate and pleased to share with a group of photographers I was assisting. The rocky pinnacles proved a compelling silhouette on this gorgeous red sand beach and a perfect foil to this wonderful fiery sky suffused with gold, scarlet, red, orange, magenta and blue. If only all mornings were like this.NEW!! Photographic workshops and masterclasses and fine art cards are now available at TRANSIENT LIGHT.Pentax 67 II ,55-100 zoom,Fujichrome Velvia0.45ND grad, f/16 at 1/8 Second.