Tràigh Iar

Harris, day one
Don't bother looking at my posts for a few days if you get bored of sky, sea, sand and rocks... because basically that is all there is to the Isle of Harris. Sky, sea, sand and rocks of the highest order though, one has to say. It's not an environment that I'm familiar with, living so far from the coast, and initially I felt rather frustrated at my lack of ability to 'see' photographic compositions beyond the most obvious. It was, however, exhilarating simply to be there and experience it - the clear air, the amazing colours, the sound of the waves. Harris is famed for its turquoise sea and light sand. You could be forgiven for thinking you were in the tropics, if only it were a little warmer. To my surprise, the sea even looked turquoise when the sky was dull, so it can't simply be to do with the light.

Our first afternoon was spent on the beach at Tràigh Iar, a pretty little crescent with views over to the Isle of Taransay.

I spent a bit of time experimenting with my ND filter to blur the movement of the water and also played around with some camera movement, both quite satisfying. The soft blur seems, perhaps paradoxically, to suit the scenery.

I've spent as long again trying out different ways of processing of my photos and that is very much a work in progress. Subtle alterations can really make a difference so I can see I'm going to keep going back and tweaking them.