Shieldaig

At the end of our week on the west coast of Scotland in October 2008 the owner of the cottage in which we were staying apologised for the dismal weather. It’s a measure of just how abominable the weather was that a Scot, well accustomed to less-than-favourable meteorological conditions, should have apologised for it! Horizontal rain; hail; sleet; snow. The winds reached storm force: at one point a gust of 100mph was recorded at Kyle of Lochalsh, and on the road to Sandaig we watched a waterfall being thrust up into the air by the force of the wind.

This image, of a view from the Applecross Peninsula across Loch Shieldaig towards Ben Shieldaig, was captured in one of those rare moments when the elements were taking time out from their sport. Despite the lack of light, the opportunity to fix a camera onto a tripod without the risk of it being either carried away over the mountains or soaked to the core was too good to miss.

Canon EOS 5D and EF 16-35mm lens.

Exposure of 1/6 second at f/18.