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Carlo Didier
Carlo is an amateur photographer from Luxembourg. His love for Scotland and the outdoors is reflected in the choice of his subjects. But he also often wanders around the woods and a former open-air iron mining area turned natural reserve, just a short walk from his home.
He says “I have been trying to learn landscape photography for the last 35 years” and he hopes to get there some day.
Only weeks before the world went on hold because of COVID-19, I was lucky enough to make a trip which had been on my to do list for years. Although I have been a frequent visitor to the Scottish Highlands since 1992, due to external restrictions I never had the occasion to go in winter.
This year, I managed to get away for two weeks in the second half of February. I chose the dates with the thought to have the best chance for snow. Although most of the snow came after my trip, there was enough for some interesting images and I actually prefer the contrast created by having only the mountain tops in snow.
The trip started in what I now consider my second home, Wester Ross. We usually stay in a cottage in Poolewe, but this time I stayed in one of the few open private B&Bs in nearby Aultbea.
I love Wester Ross for its wilderness, on the coast as well as in the hills. The area is also known as “The Great Wilderness”, a designation well deserved! As I know it very well, I knew where I wanted to go for my images, but I didn’t know how difficult it would be. Back home, I very rarely have real winter conditions for my photography, and so I had no experience of strong arctic winds, heavy snowstorms, freezing rain, etc. I soon realised that I had a lot to learn, not only about how to brave the elements, but also photographically (I always describe myself as an amateur who has desperately tried to learn photography for 35 years …).
My very first subject was, of course, majestic Slioch. You just have to love that mountain towering over Loch Maree. All along the loch, there are many places with great views of Slioch and interesting foregrounds like rocks, trees or simply the shoreline. With the light moving fast, I managed to get several compositions and here is one of my favourites.
My next target was a shed on the A832, between Dundonnell and Braemore Junction, which I knew from the many times I had driven past it before. The picture I imagined was one of the shed with the snow-capped hills of Sgurr Mor and the Fannichs in the background.