Recently I drove up to the Outer Hebrides, the Isles of Lewis and Harris. These places are truly a photographer's dream. I learned quickly that if the weather and lighting didn't suit the picture I wanted, I simply had to wait a few minutes - or in some cases, a few seconds - and I'd get the one I wanted. Here's a compilation of the difference that a few minutes made in my photography.
On my drive up through the Highlands, before I got to the islands, I stopped at the side of the road to take a picture. Before I could do so, it started raining so hard I couldn't even leave my car. I took this from inside the car...
...and within less than five minutes, the exact same scene looked like this:
In the meantime I looked quickly around, sure that this combination of pouring rain and streaming sunshine had to mean...yes! There it was!
There were rainbows everywhere in the highlands and islands. I think it will have to do for a separate blog post, but the speed at which the rain and sun traded places made for beauty everywhere.My next stop was near Loch Tulla. The rain was pouring down in sheets...
...but by this time I knew enough to just sit tight for a few minutes, and was quickly rewarded with the sun.
On the Isle of Harris, this one was my absolute favourite. I stopped because of the marvelous play of blues across the water...
...only to see them become reds and pinks within a matter of seconds.
Same thing at a nearby beach. Lovely sandy beaches lit up by the sun, with white clouds in a blue sky above...
...suddenly becoming dark and fearsome with the advent of some evil-looking clouds (which subsequently poured out such a quantity of rain that I had to flee to my car!).
Finally, on my way back from Harris to Lewis, with pounding rain and darkened skies, the sun suddenly burst out in a blaze of glory - for about a second.
In real time, I think I lowered my camera, changed a few settings, and looked up to find that the shaft of light had already moved from the middle of mountains to the far left:
..and in another moment was gone altogether.
Truly, "the heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows His handiwork." (Psalm 19.1) And what a beautiful, varied, changing handiwork it is!
To see more photos of the Outer Hebrides, visit our Facebook page here.
.JPG)
