2nd May 2026
The weather has taken a definate turn for the worse over the last day or two, but we managed to get out and clean the chicken coops and duck house - and even give the cars a quick wash to try out the prewash/snow foam system. I thought the pressure washer was broken so didn’t blast it off which would have been better… and indeed was once I actually fixed it and we used it to wash off Jen’s!
A photo of Pickles for today. We may get out tomorrow properly….
4th May 2026
Today has been, largely, spent wrangling with accounting software that has been generously imparted on us sole traders by HMRC. To say it’s a bit of a burden would be an understatement! I started invoicing through it this last week or so (I tend to save my invoices to the month end and then put them all out at once), but today it was catagorising expenses and working out how to add my mileage on to my tax deductions.
I think I am there now - more or less! It has pretty much taken all day though, with only a brief break to take rubbish down to the bins and stretch my legs along the road.
That is how Bank Holiday’s roll - looking after the boys and doing my paperwork that I have been putting off because it is too much like a complication! Fingers crossed that now it is up and running it is doing so properly and not causing me too many more headaches! It also tracks who has paid me and when - which will hopefully help chasing up the very occasional tardy or non-payer (usually only one or two a year to be fair!)
7th May 2026
I am just not feeling it today - the weather is challenging, my one job of the day is being massively slow to process through because Lightroom has thrown a strop. Again. So I am rebuilding the database for the second time this month. I am tired. I am grumpy. I have a headache.
It is election day in Scotland, and usually I would be feeling that tingle of hope for a brighter future at this moment… but this year I am not. It feels like the World is pausing and holding it’s breath for the future whilst a bunch of old men who should know better have an arguement, or several arguements, which impact us all. I have been down and fulfilled my social and democratic duties, but without any real anticipation about the results.
This doesn’t feel like a moment that turns a page in the history books, it isn’t that new chapter that we have been waiting for… there just seems to be no appetite for anything to move forwards right now. Maybe this is just my world though - I don’t really have much social interaction outside of the house and clients so I could be reading it wrong. But I don’t think so.
Tomorrow we will find out I guess.
1st May 2026
May got off to a rather dull start - after a week of glorious sunshine it was just a bit grey today! Still, work wise, it was a grand start to the month and with the first week already shaping up nicely, despite having an actual day off on Monday!
I am absolutely obsessed with both the big Fuji and the film recipies - so much so that I am now actively looking at replacing the Nikons with some GFX goodness! I will probably start with a used 50 SII and 20-35 f4 to cover my basic commercial work, then add a mix of lenses and, eventually, a 100 SII body. My only stalling point is working out what I will do about video - whether I keep the Nikon for that role, or add a more compact APS Fujfilm with wide lens to cover 99% of what I need video for!
Or just use an Osmo….
11th May 2026
Out to Big Sand near Gairloch today - and even managed time for a bit of “me” work!
Actually - a few! This is my favourite so far though!
13th May 2026
Loch nam Bà Ruaidhe in the rain.
15th May 2026
Spring has come back again, although it has still been on the cooler side! Nice to see a little sunshine again though!
Today I was out in Cannich, Glen Affric and Beauly
17th May 2026
Today there was an Inverness Darkroom day out to Loch of Blairs near Forres, somewhere I have passed a few times but never ventured in to have a look at. It is a community owned wood with a field centre (which the darkroom had hired), and an absolutely stunning place to explore!
A gaggle of us had set off to walk around the loch, and I decided to shoot some panoramics at this point. This takes a while, so everyone else had wandered off further along the path, and as the area quietened down the swan came over to have a look to see what I was doing! I don't think I caught him on film, but I did manage a quick frame on the GFX100RF which was set to "virtual FP4" to try out some ideas as I went along!
19th May 2026
A moody scene on the way back from Poolewe today - Tollie Farm was catching a little light so I exposed for the walls and let everything else sink into the murk. It was shot on an Ilford Ortho profile, I need to shoot more of the real stuff though!
I have managed to book a day off (I think) and the darkroom is booked out for me on Monday - so long as I can shuggle any jobs later in the week that come in! It’s looking pretty chill next week though so I hope to have a wee bit of “me time” in the dark! I have also ordered a box of Ilford MG Pearl in a slightly larger 9.5” x 12” size and a box of Ilford Cooltone in 8”x10” to see if I can finally crack the printing! It has been suggested that my troubles may stem from the Kentmere paper rather than my technique so this will put that to the test! I may grab a couple of sheets of mounting card in town too before then as we have the exhibition coming up and it would be nice to have a couple of mounted prints to display!
21st May 2026
It has been a little hectic today - not in a particularly productive way mind. Off to the vets this morning and the road issues that plagued the day just conspired to push me back through the next few hours.
I got there though - everything done… a fairly busy day tomorrow and then I am having me a long weekend!
I did order some back up commercial prints for the exhibition though… just incase my efforts on Monday fall flat!
23rd May 2026
Today we went for a mini adventure over to Ullapool and Loch Broom - a visit to the museum, a munching of fish suppers and a bit of boat watching as it was Liggerfest in the village. I don’t think I have ever seen Ullapool quite so busy!
I am really getting to grips with the “wee” GFX now, which is just as well as it is the only camera I am planning on taking on our big adventure in a couple of weeks time! This is living dangerously for me as I usually travel with a lot more kit than a “compact” (I do have a few filters and a wide angle adapter mind - but this is still super parred down!)
3rd May 2026
Today was a trip out to Findhorn - the weather was a bit dull, but we were out to go and see the opening of Matt Sillar’s fantastic exhibition shot on analogue gear and hand printed in the Inverness Darkroom. Absolutely stunning work and it really helps reaffirm my commitment to both mono and analogue work!
This isn’t analogue - but it is straight out of camera and was shot as is - in mono - using one of the recipies I have baked into the Fujifilm camera. This is a virtual recreation of Fomapan 100, which I am probably unusual in setting the camera too as it is a cheap film, but one I absolutely love using!
Infact… I think I may just order some more rolls up soon!
If you are in the Findhorn area, pop through to the Moray Arts Centre and take a look for yourselves. Intimate landscape photography at it’s finest.
A bonus photo for today - because Roki is 9 Years Old!!!!
My favourite photo of him is when he was a pup playing with Lachlan, Hamish and Dakota in Coniston Water… happy memories of those times!
5th May 2026
There are those photographs that you see “in the wild” but struggle to actually shoot - this is one of them! It’s not “right” yet, but I worry that I will loose the yellow before I get the light!
I have been wanting to photograph this stand of Scots Pines for years, but this is only my second attempt, the first was shot using a drone whilst this time I opted for a long lens - the crop has changed too from wheat or barley to rape.
It has been a productive start to the working week though, nicely busy but not too much. Tomorrow is looking quite full, then I was taking Thursday off as the schools are out but now I am cramming a quick local job in - otherwise it’s a day of editing I think!
This is my previous attempt at this scene. I can see it taking me a long time to get the photograph I actually envisage here!
6th May 2026
Well I have totally messed up my formatting this month!
Anyway - busy day today, mainly because of my own inability to organise the day in a logical fashion so I was back and forth all over the place! I managed to get everything done, but not in a sensible or logical fashion!
Nice easy day tomorrow though - it’s election day so the kids are off - just the one wee job to do over in a nearby village and then some floorplans to finish off for a couple of clients.
9th May 2026
It’s been a pretty decent day today, between the (heavy) showers!
I have been after photographing this tree just outside Kiltarlity for a couple of weeks as the rape has started to flower, this wasn’t the view that I was after exactly… I am still working on that one - it may need a drone to get the exact angle I am thinking of!
But it’s an interesting version in it’s own right!
8th May 2026
It’s been quite a day - new neighbours have moved in (and seem rather lovely, looking forward to getting to meet them properly once they settle in a wee bit more!), and a morning of back to back jobs which now all need editing over the night/weekend.
Next week was looking like a bit of a step back in the crazy but is now looking rather busy again too. Which is kinda cramping my style when it comes to getting into the darkroom to do some printing for the upcoming exhibition! I may conceed defeat and get the prints done digitally at this rate!
Anyway - Loch Ness this afternoon for today’s photo.
10th May 2026
Today, and this weekend in general, has been spent getting ready for Lachlan’s 15th Birthday on Tuesday - I really can’t believe he is that old! We moved here when he was in P4, just a little older than his wee brother is now, and tomorrow he sits his first exam well into his High School career.
It’s been a pretty wet and cold day today, which has probably not been giving our new neighbours the most comfortable introduction to Highland life - they seem hardy and resourceful enough though so I am sure will be fine!
Tomorrow I am off up to Big Sands just outside Gairloch, fingers crossed that the weather is a little nicer!
25th May 2026
Coiltie Bridge and Ivy Bridge are two names I have been told refer to this old structure... but we found another one in an old documnet recently, Leap Bridge. Apparently in days gone by a clansman was being chased and lept over the RIver Coiltie at this point, evading his persuers, and giving a name to the later bridge.
27th May 2026
It has been quite a day today - mainly due to the editing and my PC having a bit of a hissy fit about OneDrive.
It has been stunning out though - Findhorn Beach was lovely, although it was only the briefest of stops on the way back from Kinloss to Beauly!
29th May 2026
Well we finished off the working week with a semi-successful day. A couple of drone jobs done, and another shelved due to time and wind conspiring against the trio being wrapped up. That one, and it’s invoice, will become July jobs instead.
Flying solo for the weekend so it was cinema and pizza when we got home (whilst I was doing a load of edits, printing a couple of exhibition pieces and generally catching up with myself). Tomorrow we are hanging the prints then home to catch up with the months invoices and expenses… so much fun, no?
12th May 2026
The old mill on the River Nairn
14th May 2026
Lochindorb is a remote loch up on Dava Muir between Nairn and Grantown-on-Spey, the castle on the island was once home to the Wolf of Badenoch.
Today it was particularly dreich up there with wind driven rain and the temperature hanging around 4 degrees centigrade.
18th May 2026
This old tree was standing in a field overlooking Loch Broom at a spot I was shooting a job. It was such a characterful tree that I just had to go and photograph it, the sky was building a little ominous cloud at the same time but the fresh green leaves were still catching the sunshine ahead of the incoming rain.
20th May 2026
What a day - I am absolutely beat! I think my busiest day ever today (photographically speaking) with 8 jobs all shot, edited… video edits included… and out the door. Finishing at just after 1am!
The last job was at the old Inverness Asylum where this abandoned church caught my eye as the weather changed to something more ominous. I thought it, and it’s historic surroundings, presented a nice horror-film vibe so shot it accordingly as a bit of fun.
Tomorrow things are looking back on a level, with Roki in to the vets first and then a couple of jobs. Friday is busy (for a Friday) but not too bad and next week is currently quiet enough that I am still on for a darkroom day on Monday!
22nd May 2026
It’s been a bit flat in terms of light today - which has been a bit of a challenge. I managed to do more than expected though and also had a nice, productive, client meeting too.
So a good day… other than the traffic trying to get home which added an hour to my journey back from Nairn!
24th May 2026
Today has been spent doing domestic chores - cleaning the coops, washing the cars and then - once all done - the two older boys were off to the cinema and I had Angus and a whole mound of editing left over from Friday to get through.
Now caught up, dinner and then looking forward to a day in the dark tomorrow!
I may have a cheeky wee beer now!
26th May 2026
Today has been rather busy, unexpectedly so! I started off with a couple of jobs in Inverness and a bit of a chat about a project penned in for Monday - then off to Grantown-on-Spey for a drone job (with some extra ground photos). As I was heading home I was asked if I could bump a couple of jobs planned for later in the week to today as the weather was lovely.
These jobs happen to be in a corner above Loch Ness that I have wanted to go and have a look at for ages - and it didn’t dissapoint! There is a load more interesting stuff in that area so I really need to go and explore more thoroughly when I get a chance!
28th May 2026
Today has been hot… too hot for me, truth be told - I feel sorry for those further south who have been experiencing much higher temperatures, and particularly for the families of those young people who took to the water to cool down and never came home.
On more a more positive note, however, I think I have reached a point in my business trajectory that necessitates buying in a management system. My reliance on spreadsheets has bitten me in the behind a few times lately and with a near complete failure yesterday it is time to consider my options. I am looking at Studio Management packages at the moment, particularly those which tie in to my invoicing (MTD compliant) systems. I am not quite ready to make the leap yet, mainly because we are away for a bit shortly, but on our return I am thinking that it will be time.
I am really hoping that Asus bring out their uber photography-centric tablet/laptop thingy around then too as it would make sense to include that device as part of this new, streamlined, system.
30th May 2026
It has been a busy kind of a day - the photograph mounting and hanging extravaganza of the morning (the new exhibition display for the Eden Court theatre/cultural hub of the Highlands) finished and then an afternoon of invoicing for the month end, and it has been another great month too!
I am not counting any chickens yet though, despite the photograph! The year started painfully and whilst the recovery has been unpresidented… it is still early days, and truth be told I would rather that we weren’t going away so early in this rebuilding phase. But life doesn’t work on such time tables so I just hope that everything continues on track afterwards!
Life has bitten me in the behind before, more than once. I am used to things going sideways. It throws me more when they don’t!
16th May 2026
A quiet day today - but at least my Amazon order of bits and bobs for work turned up (eventually). I needed a new back up drive having filled the 6TB one that I put on a few months ago with RAW files! Plus more ink for the printer (I don’t print photos here at the moment so it was just basic document stuff) and a lens plus filter set because I seem to have lost one this week. Must have dropped out the bag… fortunately a cheap adapter lens rather than a few thousand pounds of actual proper optic… but annoying none the less, particularly as I had spent an age and quite a bit of cash on trying to adapt it to the filters I use - so those adaptions were also lost and needed replacing too.
Normally I would have probably left it for a while as it’s a bit of an obscure lens and solution to a problem that generally I don’t have - but it was set up for Iceland in a couple of weeks, so it all needed sorting out before we set off there!
Anyway - been a crazy week so a bit of downtime now is what I need!
31st May 2026
This year is going fast - already the end of May and we are heading rapidly towards both summer and the mid-point of 2026.
It’s been a very monochromatic kind of a month for my photography, outside of commercial shoots. I am loving black and white at the moment, both analogue and digital - the RF is a great camera for playing around with ideas as the live view gives me a tweaked image that reflects the film settings I have programmed in. This is encouraging me to shoot in black and white, even if the final image is going to be colour - as in today’s photograph - as it changes the composition process to looking at light without distractions.
It is going to be interesting to see what I come back from Iceland with, whether I stick to mono or move to colour… probably a bit of a mixture of the two! I had debated taking a film camera with me too but on reflection - and since this is a holiday not a photography trip - I want to keep things super simple.
Anyway, I am looking forward to seeing how the month ahead pans out after two successful months work wise. A week off will, obviously, have some impact on how June goes - but I have plans!
