It’s very obvious that I love an abandoned house…. they are what I enjoy photographing the most, and I’ll actively seek them out sometimes, but the best ones are the ones stumbled upon accidentally. This cottage and farmhouse were the latter, found in a glen that we’ve since been back to many times, following different paths hoping to find more.

I shared some photos of these houses online, with lots of comments coming in along the lines of how sad it is to see, how heartbreaking, once a home, the stories they could tell etc etc. Honestly, that’s not my thought process when I see these derelict homes. Maybe I’m not so romantically inclined, as it seems like more of a simple realistic statement that these houses were maybe just a little too run down, a little too remote, a little too difficult to live in. I’m sure there’s many more boring, everyday reasons (estate management, rural employment) why a lot of these houses are left.

I imagine the people who lived in them were just normal folk, living normal lives, and eventually circumstances made them move on. I agree it’s sad, but I’m also glad that there’s so many of these houses stood standing and we can still see how the building once looked. I find it interesting to see how nature is taking over when there’s no resident to maintain it.

I might not be one for romanticising the backstory of these places, but I do try and read up about some of them and learn a little bit of history here and there, to understand why there’s so many of these houses scattered around the highlands and the cairngorms, and it does seem that a lot of these houses could absolutely be saved, restored, and brought back to life as beautiful rural homes. As always though, it seems there are a lot of hoops that would have to be jumped through.

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We have a motorhome, we have a caravan, but no, we head to Skye in a tent.

Sometimes the simplest set up is the most enjoyable though, and I can confirm there is something very freeing about heading off for a few days with just a few spare clothes, a camping stove, sleeping bags and a tent. We live in a van and spend all day every day ‘camping’, so this was a good opportunity to be free of all the little luxuries we’ve accumulated in our living space.

We’re not wild campers…. we like toilets, shower blocks, and our car parked nearby, so we headed off to a couple of campsites we’d visited before, or heard good things about. Glenbrittle is perched right on the coast with beautiful views, a beach, and a coffee shop/bakery which was absolutely ideal for a morning of midges (its not fun making breakfast while the midges are out). Kinloch is another coastal spot, perfectly placed by Dunvegan village, and with (we found) a slightly quieter crowd.

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We only stayed on Skye for a few days, but decided to make absolutely no plans other than visiting a few coffee shops we know and love in-between walks. I’m not one for having a list of places I want to visit, or doing any research in advance. We know Skye quite well anyways, but even if we didn’t, my travel style is more ‘let’s just go and see where we end up’. It’s a good way to see things other than the tourist checklist, and to avoid being amongst too many other people.

One other thing to note about this trip…. it was absolutely roasting. I never thought I’d see the day I got sunburnt on Skye but wow, it was definitely summer. Thank god for the beach at Glenbrittle as plodging in that sea was the only thing that kept me sane.

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If there’s one thing that’ll persuade me to dust off my camera, it’s snow. Summer is my least favourite season to shoot in…. I don’t even particularly like golden hour light. I like mist, moodiness, grey skies, and most of all…. a thick blanket of snow.

Winter is a bit of a slog up in the highlands. It lasts forever (or at least feels like it), the cold is relentless, and with no tourists and a lot of businesses closed for the season it can feel a little hollow. I found this year though that the snow is what really helps me through the depths of it.

It’s already beautiful up here, but a layer of white adds a whole new level to it, and it just so happens to look incredible (in my opinion) on my film of choice, portra.

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Another thing that I’ve always found interesting to shoot is static caravans, in particular, the older ones. I mean really, they are just little tin houses by definition, so they’re bound to be on my radar.

Most campsites have a rule that static caravans must be removed and replaced once they reach 20 years old, and I find it a huge shame. I think the boxy shapes and the subtle pastel colours of the older ones to have a huge charm about them, and as long as they’re well maintained, they should be kept and loved until they’ve really come to the end of their life. But unfortunately, I don’t own a caravan site so it’s not up to me, but at least I can put them on film and keep a version of them for myself for as long as I like.