Location, Location, Location
Should the familiar be out of bounds?
19 December 2009
Fading Light, Laig Bay, Isle of Eigg
Most weeks I have to travel from Mull to Edinburgh and my commute takes me along the A82. Joining at the Corran ferry a few miles south of Fort William, this trunk road takes me across Loch Leven at Ballachulish, through Glencoe and then across Rannoch Moor which is peppered with what seems like a myriad of lochans. One of the most famous of these is Lochain na h-Achlaise which must be one of the most photographed locations in the Scottish Highlands. This is perhaps no surprise with the backdrop of the mountains of the Black Mount. Most weeks, there are several photographers picking their way gingerly around the lochan, trying to identify the perfect foreground. Despite having photographed at this location many times before, when the light is good I want to be among them and it can be extremely frustrating to have to press on in order to meet a commitment in Edinburgh.
As I drive past the photographers at Lochain na h-Achlaise, it often strikes me whether it is possible for a location to be done to death. Is it possible to exhaust beauty? Should we be seeking out other locations?
Of course a location is never the same scene twice. There will always be different lighting, weather and tidal conditions. Moreover, the secret is to re-interpret a familiar vista, to capture it on your own terms and to impose your own vision and style on the scene. Above all, the imperative is to avoid cliche. And where is the satisfaction in recreating an exact copy of a Colin Prior or Joe Cornish image taken at the same location?
At the same time, it is exhilarating to get off the beaten track and to seek new locations. Some of these may be pre-planned - and for me there is nothing like poring over an Ordnance Survey map to identify new viewpoints to explore. Other new locations may quite literally simply be stumbled upon.
So with all this talk of the A82 and Lochain na h-Achlaise, why have I chosen to illustrate this journal entry with an image from the Isle of Eigg? Firstly, I don't feel the need to add yet another image of Lochain na h-Achlaise (you can see some of my photographs of this location in the West Highlands gallery). It's probably the photographic equivalent of the rhetorical question whether the world really needs yet another adaptation of 'Pride and Prejudice' - but perhaps I am just displaying an irrational prejudice against the literary works of a certain Jane Austen. Back to photography and Eigg. Secondly, despite its remoteness and size (Eigg has a very hospitable population of around 80 and is roughly five miles by three miles in size) the island is rapidly becoming something of a mecca for landscape photographers. Laig Bay on the north west coast with its white sand and spectacular outlook to the mountainous profile of the Isle of Rum is a particularly popular location. Whilst Eigg and Laig Bay may never be completely overrun by an army of tripod wielding tourists (or only if two workshop tours happen to visit at the same time as I have witnessed personally), they do illustrate the two arguments set out here. Laig Bay is such a dynamic location where the tidal flow is constantly changing beach and shoreline and weather fronts are frequently scurrying through from the Atlantic that there is always going to be potential for a new photographic interpretation. But Eigg is also so much more than Laig Bay. To the north is Camas Sgiotaig or the 'singing sands' and there are caves on the south west coast which are crying out for HDR treatment. The photographic attractions of the island could be the subject of an article all on its own - and it will be in due course.
To return to where this journal entry began, one final thought about the A82. It might be one of the most spectacular A roads in the UK, but it is also one of the most dangerous. A campaign is underway to secure a long overdue upgrade. Visit www.A82.org and lend your support.
