Articles

Michael Pilkington

This article explores our philosophy of photographic development, from technical foundations and editing with intent to learning how to respond more personally and meaningfully to the landscape over time.

Paul Gallagher

When asked what I thought was the most common problem in today’s digital black and white photography I needed very little time to consider this question. I answered quite honestly that a lot of today’s black and white images are missing one of the great qualities of monochrome; Mid tones.

Michael Pilkington

I had an interesting conversation whilst in the Highlands of Iceland recently concerning the use of drones. The question was: can you make the same connection with the image you are with a conventional camera?

Michael Pilkington

The spectacular can consume you and become the subject itself. Taking your time to experience the individual elements can yield equally satisfying results.

Paul Gallagher

To many, being a camera club or photographic society member or being able to say that a particular club is ‘their’ club is harnessing a sense of belonging and community so surely this should be healthy for photography? Not necessarily so from my experiences.

Posted by Michael Pilkington

Can photography change the way you see the world? Terri Jones reflects on her journey from beginner to expressive landscape photographer, sharing the experiences, insights and learning that helped shape her creative vision.

Paul Gallagher

As photographers we often don't allow ourselves the opportunity to appreciate places we are familiar with, and when we do, how that transition changes the way we see, regardless of where we are.

Michael Pilkington

Infrared can offer you a different perspective on the world around you. However, the effects it produces can be garish exaggerating the highlights in the scene, but there are times when this can be used to good effect. One such occasion is in low light situations.

Michael Pilkington

A smartphone can encourage a different relationship with photography - one built around immediacy, experimentation and responsiveness.

Mark Lawrence

As photographers, we face many choices in pursuit of our art. Some are obvious - location, lens, shutter speed - while others are more subtle and perhaps sit quietly in the background. At the very heart of it, though, lies a more fundamental question: why do we take photographs at all? Are we col...

Paul Gallagher

Winter has a quality that beckons photographers outside. Along with the low sun and snow and ice, it feels like a brave act to pack your kit and head out into conditions that would find many resting a new log on the fire and preparing a hot drink.

Paul Gallagher

For me, black and white photography has never been an effect or stylistic option. It is a way of understanding light, structure, atmosphere, and interpretation. Over time, I have come to realise that monochrome photography is not about removing colour, but about seeing differently.

Michael Pilkington

If there is one attribute that has the power to transform your landscape photography, it is intent. Intent when making the photograph and intent when editing it.

Michael Pilkington

Having visited the Highlands of Iceland a few times before, and seeing some of the images that can be had from a higher perspective, I was motivated to acquire a drone. It really brings a new perspective to this wild and beautiful landscape.

Michael Pilkington

Many photographers reach a point where technically competent images no longer feel enough. The compositions may work, the light may be beautiful, yet the photographs still feel disconnected or interchangeable. Over time, I have come to believe that meaningful landscape photography emerges when th...

Paul Gallagher

Infrared photography invites us to work in another light, quite literally. It reveals a version of the landscape that the eye cannot see and, in doing so, challenges many of our assumptions about exposure, contrast and conditions. What began for me as a technical experiment gradually became a les...

Mark Lawrence

Discovering a fascinating beauty in the industrial wasteland alongside the Thames.

Paul Gallagher

Preconceptions often serve to misguide us as to what will come of reality.

Michael Pilkington

The life of an image extends beyond capture and editing. It begins in the field with intention, moves through careful refinement in post-processing, and finds its fullest expression when it is realised as a print.

Michael Pilkington

Many photographs fail not because of technique, but because the photographer cannot answer a simple question: why did I take this? This short reflection explores how intent shapes composition, editing, and ultimately expression, and why learning to question your own motives is one of the fastest ...

Paul Gallagher

If we pursue landscape photography we are naturally inspired by the changes of the seasons. As summer gives way to autumn the colours are something to behold, similarly, as spring arrives, with it comes new life, fresh growth and the warming of the air. Each season is a new beginning. However, wi...

Paul Gallagher

To make any assumption that the Highlands of Iceland are an extension of, or similar to other areas of Iceland would be an entirely understandable error of judgement. Even if we are afforded the opportunity to see images of the Highlands, there do appear to be differences, but common qualities, n...

Michael Pilkington

It is true to say that over the years your sense of aesthetic, skills and experience and the capability of post processing tools changes and improves over time giving you the opportunity to revisit old work with fresh eyes and ideas. This is quite pleasurable - not only in achieving what I would ...

Michael Pilkington

When you first visit Iceland, it is difficult not to photograph the iconic sights that have been presented to us on social media and in numerous photography magazines. However, taking your time and slowing down can present many different opportunities.

Paul Gallagher

For so many years now, and normally at this juncture during the summer season, my mind drifts off to other places. Mornings were you can see your breath as you close the front door behind you, the car heating is turned up and the sun has barely reached the horizon. A little while later the sun is...

Paul Gallagher

For some reason, winter makes me feel safe. I like the bite of the cold and wind whipping across my face, followed by the retreat to the warmth of the indoors as the day comes to a close with the failing light.

Michael Pilkington

On a recent visit to the Outer Hebrides I wanted to try something different. In fact this wasn't my initial intention but when viewing the peat stained sand patterns and the reflection of the deep azure sky in the wet sands beyond, I found myself relishing the creation of some rather abstract ima...

Paul Gallagher

When we consider photographing trees, the word ‘tree’ is in the title and often influences the way we see and make photographs of them. If we are subliminally instructing ourselves to photograph a 'tree', we will be inclined to adhere to the brief in mind and photograph the entire tree from base ...

Michael Pilkington

Much of landscape photography is built on the pursuit of simplicity, clarity and visual order. In this article, I reflect on my growing fascination with complexity and disorder in the natural world, particularly in woodland environments, and how learning to embrace chaos rather than exclude it ha...

Paul Gallagher

Each time I walked I became a little more familiar with my surroundings which I considered to be very familiar in the first place.

Michael Pilkington

It is not uncommon to shy away from what can be seen as the garish effects of IR in an image. However, treated sympathetically, it can still dominate an image and be pleasing to the eye.

Paul Gallagher

What the above describes is without doubt a rewarding process and the continuation of which will lead you to a finished image that is a country mile from where you began. But have you missed the point?

Paul Gallagher

Many times, I have questioned what it is that inspires me to be out with a camera. The most straightforward answer to this question is being out in the landscape. I love it and always have, and to make photographs of landscapes is my main inspiration. I really do want to share with others what I ...

Paul Gallagher

Having traveled over most of the Scottish Highlands over the years it may come as no surprise that there are certain places that offer me, as a landscape photographer, a little more than others. The Outer Hebrides draw me to the vast, open, sandy beaches; Sutherland with its bleak wilderness back...

Paul Gallagher

I am not often known for including man made structures in my photographs and I would could be considered guilty for determined exclusion of them most of the time. The reason for this is, to me, I find them distracting in what I am trying to say with a photograph, which is often my appreciation of...