Beautiful places in Scotland for landscape photography
An article on some of the most beautiful landscape photography places in Scotland as it’s such an amazing place to visit and a fantastic place for a photography trip with some spectacular scenery to photograph, especially in the North West Highlands. Having explored some wonderful places in the Scottish Highlands, on a couple of solo photography tours, I’ve put this article together to suggest places you might want to visit if you’re heading that way yourself so here’s my top 10 places to photograph in Scotland
Most beautiful places in Scotland for photography: The Isle of Skye
The Isle of Skye off the west coast of Scotland has some breathtaking scenery and is a "must see" photo location for anyone interested in landscape photography. My favourite photo locations include:
Beautiful sunrises on the Quiraing
The Quiraing, the northernmost summit of the Trotternish escarpement, is an amazing landscape, one of the best places to visit on the Isle of Skye with stunning views and rather bizarre and unique scenery and one the most breathtaking places in Scotland. The light can be simply incredible, especially around sunrise, so an early start at this beautiful place is always recommended. It’s a relatively short walk from the car park although climbing a little higher on the ridge is worthwhile for the better vantage point.
Location details for the Quiraing
The Quiraing is on the northern-tip of the Trotternish Peninsula on the Isle of Skye on the eastern face of Meall na Suiramach.
How to get there (by car) - At Staffin turn of the A855 onto the minor single-track road signposted “Quiraing” driving for approx 2.5 miles to reach the car park on the left.
Nearest Postcode: IV51 9LB
Reaching the viewpoints - From the car park turn right & follow the clear path on the left, there are stunning views immediately, allow lots ot time to walk the path and explore the numberous photos opportunities.
Elgol, the perfect location on a stormy day
Elgol is a small hamlet on the shores of Loch Scavaig on the south coast of of the Isle of Skye with dramatic views of the Black Cuillin mountains. The weather here can be pretty intense and this is often the best time for landscape photography with stormy sees and a foreboding feel to the distant mountains. Foreground interest for your photos is abundant with the shoreline scattered with weather worn rocks and boulder including the famous Elghol Boulder as seen in my photo.
Location details for Elgol
Turn off the A87 in Broadford onto the B8083, signposted Elgol, and follow this road for 14 miles
The most dramatic section of the coastline is along the beach to the right, make sure you check tide timetables so you don’t get caught by an incoming tide.
Nearest Postcode: IV49 9BJ
Sligachan Bridge, a stunning place for sunrise or sunset
Sligachan Bridge is one of the wonders of Thomas Telford, the famous Scottish covil engineer, and the bridge dates back to 1818. It's a beautiful location for landscape photography, one of the most picturesque places in Scotland, with the bridge being surrounded by the Red Cuillin mountains on one side and the Black Cuillin mountains opposite. Sunrise or sunset photos work here and there's also the Sligachan waterfall just a short walk away that adds some dramatic foreground interest to your photos.
Location details for Old Sligachan Bridge
Sligachan is located 24 miles west of the Skye Bridge on the A87.
There are 2 main viewpoints, although do explore further. The Old Sligachan Bridge viewpoint is straight across from the Sligachan Hotel alongside the main road with great views of the Cuillin mountains. The nearby Sligachan waterfall although has wonderful mountain views and is reached by walking south a few metres on the main road and then accessing the well worn track heading through the heather towards the Black Cuillin.
Nearest Postcode: IV47 8SW
The most iconic photography location on the Isle of Skye: The old man of Storr
The Old Man of Storr is the highest point on the Trotternish Ridge at 719m) and is undoubtedly the most iconic photography location on Skye. Landscape photographers from around the world are drawn to this amazing scenery and when you visit yourself you'll see exactly why that is. A sunrise photo shoot is a great idea here although allow plenty of time to reach the summit as it's a bit of an uphill climb from the car park. Whilst you might think photo composition is obvious, you've probably seen lots of images of the stone pinnacles online, a wander around with the camera presents several good viewpoints and carrying a selection of different focal length lenses gives plenty of photo opportunities.
Location details for the Old Man of Storr
The large car park is located 7 miles north of Portree on the A855.
Access to the higher viewpoints is via the path at the top of the car park and involves approx a 4 mile round trip and 1000ft (300metres) height gain. Allow at least 1.5hrs if you’re wanting to be at the top for sunrise photographs.
Nearest Postcode: IV51 9HX
Beautiful places for landscape photography in North West Scotland
The entire North West of Scotland is an amazing place to visit and packed full of breathtaking scenery and there are just simply far too many stunning photography locations to mention but here’s a list of some of my personal favourites.
The most photographed castle in Scotland: Eilean Donan
Eilean Donan castle sits in the Kyle of Lochalsh, the gateway to the Isle of Skye, and is certainly the most photographed castle in Scotland, who wouldn't want a photo of this impressive 13th century castle. Photographers are best timing their visit for sunrise or sunset to get the best of the light, the advantage of a sunset shoot is that the castle is usually illuminated which makes it a little more photogenic. It's worth checking tide timetables too as you'll need a highish tide for a chance of a reflection in Loch Duich.
Location details for Eileann Donan Castle
It’s difficult to miss the castle if driving to the Isle of Skye on the A87, it’s 7 miles east of the Skye Bridge and has a large parking area and a visitors centre.
A wander along the shoreline gives a chance of composing views of the castle with the main bridge access as strong foreground.
Drive just a mile further north & immediately after passing over Loch Long bridge turn into the parking area near Dornie Community Hall for good, distant views of the castle across the loch… a nice spot in evening when the castle is illuminated.
Nearest Postcode: IV40 8DX
A Glencoe icon: Buachaille Etive Mor
The view from the River Coupall waterfall of Buachaille Etive Mor is one of the most photographed locations in all of Scotland. It's the perfect place for an autumn sunrise photo with the colours on the Buachaille looking incredible and the rising sun providing beautiful warm light. The viewpoint is limited for for prime position make sure you arrive well before the sun rises, parking here is limited too especially if visiting in the summer months when you're likely to be competing with camper vans for spaces.
Location details for Buachaille Etive Mor
The iconic profile of Buachaille Etive Mor dominates the skyline as you arrive into Glencoe along the A82 from Loch Lomond. This is the most popular and consequently most photographed & busiest viewpoint but there are many more with some exploration. To reach the parking area turn off the A82 to the left 0.4miles after crossing over the River Etive bridge and follow the road as it descends into Glen Etive. After just 0.5miles you reach a wooded area with parking places on the left.
The classic viewpoint is easily accessed on the opposite side of the road by following the right hand bank of the river for just a few metres. It’s very muddy though so don’t forget the wellies!
Nearest Postcode: PH49 4HX
A unique photo opportunity near Fort William: The Corpach Shipwreck
The Corpach shipwreck sits on the shore of Loch Linnhe and is a great place to photograph Ben Nevis with the shipwreck and the loch providing lots of interest for your composition. It's easily reached from the car park near the Caledonian canal and ideally, to make your photo a little different from the many other photographers who have taken the same view, try and time your visit in moody, misty or dramatic light.
Location details for the Corpach Wreck near Fort William
From Fort William take the A830 towards Mallaig reaching the village of Corpach after 1.5miles. Turn left signposted for Corpach Railway Station/ Caledonian Canal, and park in the car park just over the railway crossing.
To reach the wreck just cross the Caledonian Canal and head up the waters edge alongside the loch.
Nearest Postcode: PH33 7DS
Photographing a film star location: Glenfinnan and the Harry Potter steam train
The Jacobite steam train, made famous by the Harry Potter film series, is a very popular photo location with photographers and tourist alike especially as it passes over the Glenfinnan viaduct. The view is enhanced by autumn colours but check the train timetables to make sure it's stil running. It also makes a big difference which direction the Jacobite steam train is running as the engine only pulls in the direction of Fort William to Mallaig; it's much more photogenic when the locomotive is pulling the carriages behind it. make sure you get those camera settings correct too as it's just a few seconds opportunity...too slow a shutter speed and the train will be blurred, not enough depth of field and part of the Glenfinnan viaduct will be out of focus.
Assynt’s iconic mountain: Suilven from Elphin Bothy
Suilven is one of the most iconic mountains in Scotland, located in a remote area of Assynt it's a fantastic subject for landscape photography. The difficulty can be finding something to add decent foreground interest to your photo so a trip to Elphin Bothy makes solving that problem a little easier. Photo composition is pretty obvious, the main difficulty may well be capturing the view on a day when the peak of Suilven is actually visible, this area is reknown for it's moody weather. A photography trip during autumn, particularly at sunrise, can be very rewarding with the warm tones of the sunrise and autumnal colours on the landscape producing a striking image.
The most beautiful beaches in Assynt
I was going to mention just one beach but I really couldn’t decide between these two stunningly beautiful beaches, both on the NC500 driving route and just a short distance from Lochinver. Firstly Clachtoll beach which apart from the crystal clear sea and golden sands has an amazing, unique geology feature in the name of Split Rock. For anyone interested in photography it’s a great subject and makes for some great compositions, for me more than ever in the mean and moody weather that I had when I visited. The second and stunningly beautiful location is Achmelvich beach with amazing turquoise sea, golden sands and if you wander a little along the coastal path, incredible views back to the mountains of Assynt.
One of the most stunning mountain views for a sunrise
The amazing profile of Stac Pollaidh can be seen for miles around as you drive around the Coigach and Assynt areas of the North West Highlands of Scotland but without doubt the best views are from its summit. I climbed during darkness, a good head torch a necessity! to reach this stunning panorama just in time for the rays of sunrise to appear and what an amazing sight it is. The photo below from Stac Pollaidh summit looks south towards Sgorr Tuath but turn around 180degress and the views towards Cul Mor are equally breathtaking. The car park is located on the A835 just 30 minutes drive North of Ullapool and the climb is a steady 600m or so, it’s worth every step for the views!
