A year in the Outer Hebrides
Merry Christmas, we hope it was filled with fun, family, friends, festive loveliness and hopefully some photography. We appreciate that for some people, Christmas can be a difficult time of year both financially and/or emotionally, missing loved ones at this time of year can be incredibly hard. This year Max and I enjoyed a quiet Christmas unwinding, enjoying a beautiful meal, speaking with family & friends via video call and listening to the wind howling down the chimney :)
Back in November we headed over to the mainland to celebrate Christmas early with the family, it was absolutely wonderful to see everyone together and enjoy good food and one another’s company. The last time we saw everyone together was just before our relocation, over a year ago so the time we spent was very precious. Laying flowers at the cemetery for Mum & Dad was incredibly hard. It felt familiar, warm, loving and sad all at the same time. They would have been so proud of where we are and would have loved the Island.
Our year on the Isle of Lewis has been one of the best years of our lives. As i have previously spoken about in an earlier blog post, the decision to relocate wasn’t an easy one to make, filled with lots of what if’s and uncertainty. It was only 18 months since our last big move from Rossendale to Aberdeenshire and i questioned if we were doing the right thing.
Max had taken early retirement and we had both fallen in love with the Isle of Lewis & Harris during our holidays and adventures here. It was a whirlwind to be honest, every time we visited on holiday we both felt calm, relaxed and experienced a feeling like no other we had before in Scotland. Every time we visited the island, we didn’t want to leave and in September 2023, Max made me ‘pinkie promise’ that we would put our house on the market as soon as we got home from our two & half week adventure touring the Outer Hebrides in our van and relocate…. and who can go back on a pinkie promise….
Image from our holiday to the Isle of Harris in May 2023
And so it began…
It has been a privilege getting to know the island & the community. We have never experienced such hospitality & warmth from some of the most loveliest of people we have ever met. The Island has a real sense of togetherness, respect for one another and meaningful values. Being incredibly fortunate to call the Island home still feels surreal even after 12 months.
The weather, always a topic of conversation anywhere in the UK has been challenging, brilliant, wild & fantastic. Dark, moody, foreboding skies, squally showers, gale force winds, fleeting light, warm sunny blue sky days, overnight clear skies revealing the milky way & northern lights is what makes the island stunning, exceptional & exciting providing many photographic opportunities. Outstanding coastline, white sandy beaches and wildlife are amongst some of the best in the world, so much so that the Outer Hebrides has recently been voted as one of the best places in the world 2025 by National Geographic, the only destination in the UK to receive this award this year.
Dark skies & stunning coastline of the Outer Hebrides
Relocating and choosing a very different way of life has provided us with the luxury of spending time together and that is the biggest positive we could have ever wished for, focusing on what makes us happy is priceless and moving forward as a result in just a bonus.
The end of a year is often a time when people take a moment to reflect on the year that has passed, it has been a mammoth year for us both, highlights of year would definitely include speaking to so many talented and lovely people via our podcast, one in particular stands out… Speaking with Nigel Thomas and hearing about how photography helped him through a very difficult time in his life, improving his mental health…. very inspirational. How he has taken his photography forward and now shares his story with others via presentations & exhibitions is remarkable. Such a lovely, humble guy. Recently creating our Women in Seascape Photography Community on Instagram is something we are also proud of, seeing so many talented female photographers work is a privilege on a daily basis. Other highlights include our Highly Commended images in the Scottish Landscape Photographer of the Year and towards the latter part of this year becoming a Brand Ambassador for PermaJet. I was immensely proud to have been selected during the application process and am really looking forward to working with them.
The year hasn’t been without it’s lows, for some reason this year i find myself with a couple of issues health wise but as always photography is something that gives us a focus and keeps us heading out with the cameras and that will never change.
Reflecting on my photographic year and looking back over the previous years images, I feel that during 2024 my photography has improved, my thoughts are… if you can visibly see improvement throughout your own work year on year then that is a huge achievement in itself, one to be proud of and celebrate. It’s about small steps, believing in your own capabilities and making time to enjoy photography. Photography means so much to so many people, the most important thing is to enjoy your experience, enjoy the landscape without any pressure of a resulting image. Experiment and be creative.
We have had the opportunity to visit locations repeatedly in different conditions, discovering new places to photograph and practice. Naturally, having the chance to go out more frequently is a significant aspect of improvement, but there are also many occasions when we venture out without capturing any images, and that is also ok. The Island has provided us with numerous benefits, not only the opportunities for photography but also the experience of nature, feelings, emotions, relaxing, and rejuvenating.
Image comparison
This year has also been dedicated to learning, learning more about the Island, learning more about ourselves & developing new skills. We also made the decision to display our work for sale at the local craft fairs, displaying our work for sale to the general public was both scary & exciting. Deciding which images to print, mount & frame was the first challenge, understanding & discovering which images would sell, how to display them and how to price them was the second hurdle. It has been immensely gratifying to chat about our images with others and personally fulfilling to witness someone appreciate the image so much that they wished to purchase it. Getting to know other local creatives via the craft fair has also been amazing, we’d like to give a huge mention to Deb Wilkinson, an immensely, inspirational talented artist and lovely lady you can find her on Facebook here
We now also have our work displayed for sale at Riley’s in Stornoway
LOOKING AHEAD TO 2025
More of the same would be amazing :)
But we do have some exciting news and plans to share with you..
In 2025 we will be launching our first exclusive range of fine art prints, I’m really excited about this and will be of course using the outstanding quality of PermaJet papers.
Super excited to share that we will be supporting Margaret Soraya with the creative light festival here on the Isle of Harris in 2025. There are only a few tickets remaining, if you are interested and would like more information on how to book click here
We will be hosting small group workshops on the Isle of Lewis & Harris in 2025 - Dates to be released soon.
We would love to hold an exhibition here on the island and are in the very early stages of planning this.
Project - We have a fantastic idea for an exciting monthly project in 2025 and have already planned part one for January.
I wanted to finish the blog post with a quote shared recently by my brother….
A dream written down becomes a goal, a goal broken down becomes a plan, a plan backed by actions becomes a reality.
Wishing you all a happy & healthy New Year filled with lots of opportunity
All the very best Adele & Max
Some of our favorite images from 2024 below
Adele
Max