Travelling through Scotland 2018 (mostly images)

[MoonMind]

Sorry, guys, no image posting possible today - the hotel's WLAN just gave out, and the 2G connection I have on my phone is too slow (and flaky) for image upload. I'll make good on this tomorrow, or so I hope.

I include a couple of announcements in this post - so the image post will not need to contain them as well.

Firstly, I decided to restrict my gear choices even further - today, I pulled the last roll of film out of the M4-P and decided not to load it up again. The weather won't be favourable - so my only choice would be HP5+, one of my favourite films, but if I don't finish the roll while here in Scotland, it'll probably not be of much use at home (they're still pushing 30 degrees Celsius there). So, a second camera has been retired, but not only that: I decided to swap lenses and mounted the Voigtländer Nokton 35mm f/1.4 on the M10 - and that's the combo I'll use for the remainder of the trip if conditions allow for it. The GX1 III will only be used if the weather's too rainy for the Leica to come out.

There is a number of reasons for this - the main one being that I definitely do "see" in a 35mm-equivalent FoV, i.e. it's my most natural way of composing; but I also want to find out what the actual lens can do (and what it can't do) and if the rather massive restriction will indeed force me to be more creative. Actually, I have the nagging feeling that I could have documented the whole trip using just a 35mm lens ... maybe even the Nokton itself.

Secondly, it's perfectly possible that today's image post will be the last of the daily ones (which makes it doubly unfortunate that I can't handle it right now) - simply because I don't really know whether I'm going to shoot much in Glasgow and on my second stay in Edinburgh. If it's worthwhile, I'll post some stuff, if it isn't, I'll post collectively (maybe - even probably - on my last evening in Edinburgh).

Thank you all for coming along for the ride, anyway - more to come as soon as I can manage.

M.

 

[Bobby T]

I usually do my best work when putting limitations on myself. Looking forward to how the rest of trip goes.

 

[bartjeej]

As a long-time X100 devotee, who only brings a long zoom along for the odd compression or wildlife shot - i can fully appreciate your self-imposed restrictions. I also find the 35mm-e fov to be supremely versatile, capable of taking a whole bunch in but also capable of moderate isolation. Add to that the fact that the focal length doesnt draw attention to itself, and you have something that can be supremely boring or supremely versatile, depending on who's behind the camera.

 

[MoonMind]

Okay, trying to take advantage of the capricious WLAN as long as it lasts ... Here are yesterday's images and observations.

Yesterday was my last day in the Highlands - even though I might make some kind of detour tomorrow to prolong the experience; at the moment, I still plan for the contrary - post before a late breakfast (sleeping hasn't worked, really - but at least I slept soundly), then make a beeline for Glasgow - insofar as the roads allow for that. Weather's fine, though, so this might change on the way - I have enough time on my hands.

Yesterday started out "dricht" (a Scots word for the usual mix of cold mist and drizzle that is an almost daily occurence). The Highlands have suffered a lot during the recent weather hazards, like storms and draughts (yes, there's a disctinctive lack of water even here - in a place where rain occurs each day! - with empty or near empty reservoirs, as I have seen first hand).

There were a couple of nice sunny patches interspersed with rain - so, a fine Scottish summer day. I had planned for a leisurely detour along Loch Ness but ended up in tourist hell - everyone and their aunt was there to oggle the sights and fail to spot Nessy. So I made only a quick stop in Fort Augustus and saw the lock in action - it's an impressive work of engineering, and it still does its duty after all this time. The lock was full of tourists, too - which gave me this shot, a truely American exchange (the Pride of Scotland had even an American flag on the prow ...).

I then chose to bypass Fort William as every parking lot was brimming with cars and people and drove on, arriving at my hotel early, so I had time to take walk. When I went down to the shore (the hotel is situated right above the loch), I saw rain coming across the water towards me, so I fled into a nice little café on the roadside and waited it out.

The light on that walk was a bit harsh and drifting - I caught some on film, but none of the digital shots looks worthwhile. So I'll skip to the evening. The sunset promised a lot - and delivered. After dinner and some reading, I went down to the beach again and immediately saw this (what caught my eye was the glow on the right side of the image - but it was partially obscured by the moutain).

Then, I waited (and shot) for a couple of minutes until I had found my perfect angle.

Just in case you wonder: Yes, the horizon is straight (I double-checked). What you see is the coastline.

Now, as indicated in my previous post, I had switched lenses by then - so I couldn't resist playing with the bokeh of the Nokton a bit. You see the result below. I think the bokeh of the so-dubbed "Little Bokeh Monster" (YouTube ...) isn't that much worse than what you get from the Summicron - even though there is distinct outlining, which creates the now-famous busyness ...

It was enormous fun so far - and very insightful as well. Thank you for your time and patience. I'll continue to Glasgow now and may or may not be back tonight with more images - see the previous post.

M.

 

[MoonMind]

A little something in between - using ready-made tools can be fun.

Yesterday's only street shot.

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Today's only street shot.

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Taken with the Voigtländer 35mm f/1.4 at (probably) f/5.6 on the M10. The lens *can* shine when stopped down - shame it doesn't perform better wide open.

Both were put through Polarr as follows: correct angle, crop (5:4/4:5), apply filter, export - no fancy processing or corrections, nothing.

Done a lot(!) of walking today (I may even cross the 30'000 steps mark today), and yesterday I wasn't hanging around, either. Not a lot of photography, though. (I dared go out without a proper camera in the evening - twice! ). Now I'm knackered. Tomorrow's going to be the last tough day of this trip (not counting getting home): Drive to Edinburgh, get rid of rental car, go through all the shenanigans of accounting for the scratches (not to worry, I bought full coverage), lug luggage to last accommodation for this trip, collapse (probably), shower, get up and out again as soon as possible - I'll take the camera, too.

M.

 

[MoonMind]

This is most probably the second-to-last post in this thread - at least concerning the trip itself.

Yesterday, I was out most of the day, but didn't feel like shooting - Edinburgh was thronged with people, just a teeming mess (probably due to being Saturday as well as the Fringe festival going on), and I felt very uncomfortable, so I mostly tried to avoid the crowds, which was futile until I went back to Leith where my lodgings are located.

After dinner, I was in much better mood, so I let myself drift towards the sea and ended up in Newhaven harbour.

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I wasn't the only one who had come by to take a shot or two - though those two were much more professional about it (this one's pretty heavily cropped because she had just spotted me, and while she seemed okay with it, he'd shot me a indignant look earlier - so I had to work fast).

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The effects of low tide were remarkable - the most intense ones I'd seen so far while here in Scotland.

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However, the lighthouse seemed to get all the attention, so I decided to try my luck a bit further on and left the harbour behind. The clouds were too thick for the last of the light to really make them glow, but I got a few nice, atmospheric shots of the scenery.

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Just before I reached my lodgings, I spotted this.

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In a way, this is a very fitting final image to the trip - because today, I haven't shot at all; it was rainy, miserable, just uninspiring, and as far as I can make out, that's not about to change. So, thank you all for coming along - I'll reflect on the trip in a couple of days and maybe even add an image or two. Tomorrow, I'm flying back to Switzerland - and while I have had a really great time, I'm glad to go home now.

M.

 

[bartjeej]

That's a fantastic last image! Among your previous two posts, the dricht image and the bokeh experiment stand out (that seaweed texture is great).

 

[MoonMind]

@bartjeej Thanks for that - I see what you mean, and I like both those images because they're *not* cliché (some others are, I know).

I'll try to wrap up the whole trip in this post - so it'll be ab it of a lengthy one. Sorry for that.

First and foremost, please don't think that what will follow takes away to any major degree from the fabulous time I had on this trip - I must have mumbled the word "beautiful" hundreds of times, and whatever else was going on, it was all immensely gratifying. I would go on such a trip again without hesitation, but I have learned a couple of things and will hopefully remember them for future trips of this kind. So I have put together a little list of insights I want to share - some may seem obvious, but I needed this experience to appreciate their truth, so I decided to integrate them here as well.

First insight: Travel light - though this has been said time and again, it's still key, and I didn't respect it to my own peril (well, maybe that's too strong a word, but you get my meaning). Whatever is complicated, a hassle or a burden you will tend to leave behind in some kind of storage (room, car, whatever). Case in point: the whole setup turned out to be more or less redundant - not because anything is wrong with it (the GX80 is a fine camera, the 14-150mm II punches way above its weight for that type of lens, and the Laowa 7.5mm is a delightful little lens), but because I didn't *need* it most of the time, so I picked one of the other cameras that were smaller and/or provided more satisfying results (as they should - being scores more expensive). Thankfully, the rather small kit wasn't much of a burden - but carrying it around without needing or using it was embarrassing (or worse - I was really mad with myself the moment I had figured out what was going on). I *could* of course have travelled just with the as usual, though - absolutely nothing wrong with it. Just don't take it if it can't keep up and won't provide enough extra opportunities to warrant carrying it. It's perfectly possible that I choose to carry *only* the setup next time.

Second insight: Choose wisely - I left my best 35mm lens behind and could really flog myself for that. I love shooting with the slightly quirky Voigtländer Nokton - up to a degree. Some of the most satisfying images from this trip were taken with it. But alas, some of those aren't really print-worthy - not because of subject matter or composition, but because they're not as sharp as they'd need to be for printing on A4 (roughly 8"x10"). There's another snag here: My currently best 35mm lens (for M mount - but it actually even is the overall best lens of that kind that I own) is the Zeiss Biogon C 35mm f/2.8 - fantastic sharpness, contrast and drawing all in a tiny package - but it's f/2.8. So I wouldn't have been able to play with shallow DoF as I was with the Nokton. This needs resolving - as I stated before, in the end, I think I could have shot *all* worthwhile images (or sights) on this trip with a 35mm on the M10. I already know what do get - so I will add another lens to my kit in due time. But first and foremost, I'll never again travel without a first-rate 35mm lens, period. It's "my" focal length, I have to have it covered as well as I possibly can.

Third insight: Check your objectives - I wanted to explore Northern Scotland, and I sure have done that. But, and that was too implicit in my whole reasoning when making decisions on what to take, I also wanted to explore the M10. So that's what I should have done, more or less exclusively. The way things turned out, it was helpful to also have the G1X III as well - smaller, even lighter, and - in spite of its considerable price - a lot less conducive to kit-worry when out and about (plus it's weather-resistant, a boon in Scotland). I also don't regret my lens choices - I just should have added the Biogon C. I should have left the M4-P at home, though (see next point), as well as the setup - because neither on-the-side film photography nor snap-snap-snap travel photography were key objectives in this case.

Fourth insight: Don't mess about - I already knew what my best film travel kit is, and it doesn't contain any M mount cameras, not even my overall favourite camera, the M4-P. That's not to say my Leica and Zeiss cameras are bad in any way (of course they aren't - they're fantastic) - but they're no Mamiya 6 MF. Medium format allows for even more glorious results, the Mamiya lenses are all first rate, and - most crucially - even the most moronic film choice will only last 12 images, in other words, medium format, even without exchangeable backs, allows for much more flexibility. Yes, it's more expensive and heavier, but had I left the M4-P and the setup at home, everything would have fitted in the same small backpack - *without* the need for an additional compact camera bag (which came in handy a few times, admittedly). It would have meant that I could have the Mamiya with me all the time and use it alongside the M10 - bliss (in terms of results, anyway). I know what the M4-P can do and how good that Leica/Zeiss and even Voigtländer lenses are, but I crippled my own potential for fun *and* yield by having to make film choices that turned out to be wrong *the next day* at the latest - in conditions like the ones you find in Northern Scotland, a single film will maybe be appropriate for half a day. 12 images is just about what I could manage within such a limited time frame, 36 most of the time weren't. More to the point, I have travelled with the Mamiya before and loved it - and while shooting the M4-P was as nice as ever, it just didn't (and can't) compare. I took the Leica because it was "clever" (same mount, boosting my lens choices to five focal lenghts) - I should have taken what would have been obvious. Or I should have gone for the small, yet reliably impressive Minox GT-E, but that's a totally different approach (that would probably have worked, though - 35mm, remember ...).

Fifth (and final) insight: Take your time - I travelled far and wide and often didn't have the time to stick around. This is one of the reasons that there was one piece of kit I've not used once on this trip: the tripod I had brought specifically to get the most out of any scene I'd find. I have found many sights I will have to get back to. That's not bad in itself (another good excuse to travel up North again), but it's a bit of a pity. Less is more - relax, stay where you are, and give yourself the chance to come back to a spot you've discovered ... I did too little of that (enough on Orkney, not a lot later, even though I tried). Seeing the sights is all very well, but catching the moments needs opportunity.

In spite of all this, as I've already stated, I hugely enjoyed the trip as a whole and photography on this trip in particular. It was all in all the right thing to do, even if I haven't done everything right. Thanks for reading, and thanks for coming along.

M.

 

[MoonMind]

P.S. Sometimes I really shoot myself in the foot by using some English colloquialism the wrong way. I corrected the post above (yes, it's a post, not a thread), but mainly removed "tag along" - it's "come along" all the way, of course.

M.

P.P.S. And of course, this post needed correction as well - ACK!

 

[kyteflyer]

Matt, I have really enjoyed your trip! As someone who is no longer able to travel, I really appreciate posts like yours which can give such vicarious pleasure. Wonderful stuff.

 

[Bobby T]

I know your pain. Once, many years ago, I went on a trip with a Canon 1D3 and 1Ds2 plus several large lenses including a 300mm. One looks silly packing around a gigantic camera and lenses when one is supposed to be enjoying a vacation.

Fast forward to now, and I’ve learned all of the lessons you wrote about. Now my entire kit is small.

Following along your adventures and reading your insights have been supremely fantastic. Thank you for sharing.

 

[christilou]

A rather timely summing up! Loving the greens you saw in Scotland, it's all gone rather yellow down South lately. I was packing up some kit to take to Spain for a couple of weeks and wondering what to carry. I was thinking I would try my 35mm 1.2 II Voigtlander but once again, no sooner had I put it on the camera than I decided not to bother. This is a shame because I've got some great pics from the 35mm RX1 with this focal length. However, I noted that I got along perfectly well in Venice with the M10 and 50mm Summilux, occasionally using the ZM25 2.8 on the Sony A7RII and hardly using the heavy FE85 1.4 GM! Safe journey home and look forward to seeing some more pics .

 

[MoonMind]

A rather timely summing up! Loving the greens you saw in Scotland, it's all gone rather yellow down South lately. I was packing up some kit to take to Spain for a couple of weeks and wondering what to carry. I was thinking I would try my 35mm 1.2 II Voigtlander but once again, no sooner had I put it on the camera than I decided not to bother. This is a shame because I've got some great pics from the 35mm RX1 with this focal length. However, I noted that I got along perfectly well in Venice with the M10 and 50mm Summilux, occasionally using the ZM25 2.8 on the Sony A7RII and hardly using the heavy FE85 1.4 GM! Safe journey home and look forward to seeing some more pics .

I usually love shooting 50mm lenses on rangefinders (the Elmar-M 50mm is my usual pick on the M6) - but I am better with 35mm, so it's just a personal thing. Funnily enough, on this trip, I enjoyed the 90mm Elmarit-M the most; the 28mm Elmarit-M was fun as well and produced great images, but I have to say that the FoV rarely fitted what I saw. Of course, the 50mm Summicron-M proved a solid performer - it's a reliable tool, but it also leaves me a bit cold. I think it's probably too predictable (which would be a good thing for people shots!). The 35mm Nokton, on the other hand, is moody and IQ is brittle, but somehow very charming at the same time. Anyhow, the Biogon leaves the Voigtländer in the dust and produces spectacular, yet true images - so it marries the advantages of the Nokton and the Summicron, with the exception of speed. I could probably have replaced the Summicron-M, the Nokton and the 28mm Elmarit-M by the Biogon C - now *that* would have got me a truely minimalist kit and all the joy I could have wished for.

I say: Enjoy Spain, whatever you choose - and I still think "longer" lenses make better tools for landscape photography in general, so when in doubt, choose long, i.e. 50mm (I used the 90mm a lot more than I would have thought!). The 25mm sounds like a wonderful pick as well - I often used the G1X III at 24mm-e because it was most suitable (the 21mm hardly came out!). In short, you'll do fine. Just don't expect a lot more images - I think I'd rather produce more refined versions of the material I've already shown and print that ...

M.

 

[AndyMcD]

Thanks for posting this @MoonMind - I've found it really interesting to read your take on some of these areas and I have really enjoyed your descriptions of the thought processes you've gone through as you chose pictures to take.

 

[Briar]

I passed through Leith that Saturday - about 4 pm I think - in the car though so didn’t stop.

I’ve really enjoyed your photographs and commentary around Scotland Matt, almost felt like we were all travelling around with you!

Looking forward to your next trip!

 

[Petach]

Great travelogue, bringing Scotland to the living room here in Essex! My brother and his wife live in Carradale on the west of Scotland....not far from Campbeltown. Lovely part of Scotland too.... if you get a chance?

 

[MoonMind]

My brother and his wife live in Carradale on the west of Scotland....not far from Campbeltown. Lovely part of Scotland too.... if you get a chance?

That's a beautiful place to live! However, next time (and that'll be pretty soon, though probably not next year), I'll hike and shoot in the Glencoe region (and/or around and up Ben Nevis), Skye and possibly Harris (of Lewis and Harris, of course); I'm not sure I can cover the Inner Hebrides and more southerly regions as well - the fact that I tried to cram in too much being one of the very few aspects I'm not too happy about concerning this trip. Furthermore, I've been to Islay already (being a whisky afficionado, that was a must on my very first trip to Scotland). So I guess it'll have to wait a bit, but Arran is on my list, so it'd be almost natural; though having to go through Ardrossan for Arran would - sensibly - already mean three ferry transfers (the third to Campbeltown), which are expensive. But usually worth it ...

M.

 

[Petach]

That's a beautiful place to live! However, next time (and that'll be pretty soon, though probably not next year), I'll hike and shoot in the Glencoe region (and/or around and up Ben Nevis), Skye and possibly Harris (of Lewis and Harris, of course); I'm not sure I can cover the Inner Hebrides and more southerly regions as well - the fact that I tried to carm in too much being one of the very few aspects I'm not too happy about concerning this trip. Furthermore, I've been to Islay already (being a whisky afficionado, that was a must on my very first trip to Scotland). So I guess it'll have to wait a bit, but Arran is on my list, so it'd be almost natural; though having to go through Ardrossan for Arran would - sensibly - already mean three ferry transfers (the third to Campbeltown), which are expensive. But usually worth it ...

M.

I am sure you know about the biting midges that infect the west at certain times of year? My brother lives in a row of 5 houses with their own beach, the Isle of Skye is bang opposite and they wake up to it (weather permitting) every morning! How lovely....except there is nothing/nobody there for street shooting!

 

[donlaw]

Matt, very enjoyable log of your journey. And great photos too. I appreciate your lessons learned. I have always tended to carry too much gear on trips like that. Nice to read what you might do different next time.