Birding on Islay

My wife and I have just come back from 5 nights on the Island of Islay. This is well known for the quality of its winter birding and we enjoyed our time seeing 107 species during our days there. As well as posting this blog I made a YouTube video of the highlights which youContinueContinue reading “Birding on Islay”

Isle of Jura Wildlife

So, I am just back from a wonderful 4 days photographing wildlife on the remote Isle of Jura. It took a three hour drive and two ferries to get there but was so worth the effort. It was such a great trip I thought it was a good opportunity to (re)launch my YouTube channel withContinueContinue reading “Isle of Jura Wildlife”

Photographing Ospreys in the Trossachs

I am trying to build a portfolio of classic Scottish species so took a trip back to Trossachs Osprey Hide. This time I was keen to develop my photography skills further so booked to do this with Paul McDougall. Paul talked us through the best settings for the camera and shared about the Ospreys weContinueContinue reading “Photographing Ospreys in the Trossachs”

Photographing Dolphins from Chanonry Point

Did you know that the Bottlenose Dolphins in the Moray Firth are the largest in the world? One reason for this is that they are quite far north and therefore need more blubber as insulation (this works for me too by the way). But another reason is they have a rich supply of Salmon onContinueContinue reading “Photographing Dolphins from Chanonry Point”

Visit to Isle of May

This weekend there was a joint trip with my local SOC group and the Stirling and District Camera Club. Being a member of both it seemed a good opportunity to make my almost annual visit to this lovely Island but making some new friendships at the same time. I added a couple of year ticksContinueContinue reading “Visit to Isle of May”

Landing on Bass Rock

On Tuesday afternoon and evening I took a boat trip to Bass Rock from North Berwick and was privileged to be able to land this time. I was keen to spend some time photographing one subject – Gannets – and try a few different styles of more creative shots. Altogether I had 3 hours onContinueContinue reading “Landing on Bass Rock”

A weekend at Scottish Photography Hides

I have been aware of Alan McFadyen’s Scottish Photography Hides based around Kirkcudbright for sometime and long fancied a visit. Their website boasts they are the Number 1 wildlife photography hides in the UK and there are few who would dispute this claim. It was my birthday so some brisk negotiations with my wife andContinueContinue reading “A weekend at Scottish Photography Hides”

A day about Speyside

This week 3 of us got up for a 6am departure and headed up the road to see what we could see around and about Speyside. Our first stop of the day was at Kincraig where you get good views of an Osprey nest from the church graveyard. Osprey on nest Whilst we were thereContinueContinue reading “A day about Speyside”

Birding Lake Quarun, Egypt

We are in Egypt for a diving holiday but decided to have a day birdwatching from Cairo. A review of eBird hotspots suggested the best place would be Lake Quarun and we managed to track down a guide and transport from the city. We started the day early (3.40am) to get on site for dawn.ContinueContinue reading “Birding Lake Quarun, Egypt”

Photography at Hogganfield Loch

To date I have been a birder/photographer rather than a true wildlife photographer. What I mean by this is that I have had my camera over one shoulder and my binoculars over the other. I switch from seeking new birds with my bins to taking a photo with my camera fairly fluidly. But this comesContinueContinue reading “Photography at Hogganfield Loch”