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Patrick Alexander
@with.patrick
Landscape photographer based in Scotland
I have always been interested in photography in a sense, well before I even got my first camera. It was usually just about taking photos on my iPhone on trips that I would get to go on with work, mainly sunrise or sunset. When I realized at some point that I needed to have a career as I was not very secure in my current job, and with my love for Scotland, I thought I’d like to show visitors what it has to offer. I managed to get a job as a Coach Driver; I am not much of a city lover, so it seemed a good chance to regularly visit the Scottish Highlands.
"Very soon I started running out of phone memory despite that I’d only scratched the surface of the beautiful landscapes that were available."
A few years later I met my fiancé and she noticed my passion for taking photos of these wonderful places, which is why she bought me my first DSLR as a birthday gift in 2017. The passion has continued to grow since then. The camera went everywhere with me, taking photos of all sorts, across all times of the day. I remember having discovered how to edit images and this sent me into a frenzy, knowing that I could change different aspects of an image. But after finding some sort of routine with planning trips and had shot what I had wanted to shoot, I feel like I lost the passion a little and the entire process began to depress me, mainly because I wasn’t getting the conditions I desired. I would always plan to go out for sunrise and sunset and there would be times when I would get the most incredible colours but, living in Scotland you do not always get these bright mornings and evenings.
I remember we had a family trip planned for a weekend north to Inverness. I had checked the forecast before we left and the weather was to be awful, making me question if I should bring my camera with me at all but I ended up taking it along. I was at a stage where I still had no idea if I wanted to continue with this hobby. After we had arrived we went for a walk and it started to rain quite heavily; I could not believe it! I decided that was it, I had had enough and that I had taken my last photo. Until I turned to see my son laughing and splashing in the puddles. This was the sign I needed; for me to plan trips just wasn’t going to work.
"This little boy had no idea what the weather was going to be like, but he was having the time of his life."
I decided that I had to embrace the elements and take what was given to me – I came back with some of the best family photos I have ever got. Deciding on which location I was going to head to with a rough idea of the weather in mind was the start of the journey for me. I wanted to get to a location and show the raw beauty that these places hold and what nature can throw at me. If I decide on what shot I want and see that the conditions don’t suit, then that will go against my progression as a photographer. These moments showed me the basics to dealing with what conditions are in play here and now.
"Photography has profoundly changed the way in which I look at life. Taking every day as it comes, usually setting myself personal targets."
A little research on a specific location, a YouTube tutorial or even practicing a new edit with an old image. I feel so much more relaxed and at peace when I’m out in the hills or by the coast not knowing what will happen. I used to be at my happiest with being the only person within a 10-mile radius but lately I have come to enjoy others’ company while travelling. Comparing ideas and locations, understanding how they think and see things differently and if I can apply anything to my process. My grandfather used to tell me that every day was a school day and that no two days are the same in life.
There are many people that inspire me in that sense and I look up to. Jack Harding, Marvin Kuhr and Peter McKinnon have all individually had a profound effect on how I try to move forward with my skills. All highly successful in their own right, and all have a unique characteristic that influences what I try to produce. But there are also many local photographers that inspire me as well and help influence where photography will take me, some of whom I have made connections with, so for that I am grateful.
I am still very much a novice in the photography world and have just this year officially become a freelance photographer. I am happy with the progression I have made up to this point, though I know I haven’t even scratched the surface yet, there is still so much for me to learn. From the behind the scenes in the office to getting out and putting all the planning into practice, it all excites me very much but at the same time it makes me nervous. The biggest thing I’d like to continue improving on is confidence. I have already ameliorated – I believe that without confidence I wouldn’t have been able to work with certain people. Though still, I notice that it’s easy for me to adjust when I am out alone but when other people are around on a project and when a variable changes that has an impact that you cannot control, it frightens me. But with growth comes confidence, and with confidence comes more growth.
Instagram has also been a massive influence on me and my style to a degree, finding certain styles that I like – not necessarily copying but trying to add my own stamp on my images. After a bit my edits calmed down a lot, using the saturation and clarity sliders less. I decided that I wanted to show Scotland’s landscapes as natural as possible, but with a little bit more mood. I feel that music is a huge part of editing for me as well.
"My playlist is very much a mixtape so to speak with hip-hop, techno, classical and heavy metal and I feel what music is on at the time has an impact on how my images turn out."
"Connecting music to a photo or adding a caption, makes a memory even more profound for me."
So not only do I have specific memories of places I have visited, but I try to remember them with an emotion. Before posting on Instagram, I try to write a meaningful caption relevant to that location or that moment. It could be the name of the image at the time, the way I’m feeling or how I think something should be portrayed. I am deeply passionate about Scotland and feel extremely lucky to live in such a diverse place, you can go to the same place twice and it’s different.
"To be able to sit, watch and listen to the world go by in a landscape that has been untouched for centuries makes me feel very humble."
We had family trips when I was younger, not many of them but nothing like the trips I have now, I wanted my kids to know what they have on their doorstep. Kids will always go with technology, they will follow the trends at the time, which is understandable, but I want them to be free in the wild at times. I try to take them on as many adventures as I can within reason of course. As a parent there is no better feeling watching your child appreciate nature. So much in fact that my daughter who is 12-years old, has taken an interest in photography.
"We print her photos and put them into an album once a month from places that she has been so that one day she will have these memories to look back on."
I have had many trips around the country with many more to go and there are a lot of memories that I have – but I have one that always pop into mind when I travel to certain parts. Not long after I got started in photography, I was doing a route called the North Coast 500. It is a route that takes you all around Scotland covering the west, north and east coasts, roughly 500 miles. I had stopped at a campsite on the west coast right on the sea, in the middle of nowhere and no phone signal. I parked up, pitched the tent and decided to go for a walk on some rocks nearby. It was a little windy, but I had views across to the Outer Hebrides and if it were not for a streak of cloud the sunset would have been great.
"Later after I had dinner, laying in my tent I wondered if I could see any stars. I stuck my head out, still extremely windy and I was in shock."
I had never seen so many stars like this in my life. I grabbed my camera and trusty tripod, decided to point and shoot and I got a faint outline of the Milky Way. I decided I would go to the beach where it was a little darker and applied the same point and shoot method, only this time I got my first ever glimpse of the Aurora. It wasn’t the best image as it was so windy and my lens at the time would only go to f3.5 but I did not care. It still pops into my mind after all this time when I’m around the west coast.
"There are so many memories to make and locations that I have yet to visit, and also so many places that have brought me back for more."
I have two favourite photos that stand out for the same reason. My favourite castle to photograph is Kilchurn Castle. It sits at the north-eastern end of Loch Awe. With mountains in the background and the loch on the other side. I remember passing this place while working one day and had no time to stop unfortunately and I was determined to make it back. I decided to take a break for a sunrise one day. Leaving home at 4am and making the 2-hour 30-minute drive to make it just in time. I managed to capture it with the light hitting just perfectly. After this I sent the drone up to get it from above and although my first image was my favourite only for a few minutes, the drone shot sealed it for me as my favourite photo.
"Everything about this image was perfect for me. The conditions and light were just incredible."
The second photo was recent, completing a goal I set a couple years back and managing to fulfil it only in July this year. The idea was to photograph Duncansby Stacks, which sits just outside of a village called John O’Groats in the far northeast of the country with my camera firstly, but the real goal was to capture them from the sky. When I got there after a six-hour drive, the conditions were ideal.
"Photography gives me a license to explore and create, it has taken me to some incredible places that not many people are aware of and I only wish I had started sooner."
I don’t think I would be where I am without the constant support from my fiancé, her confidence in me is second to none and she never questions any of my crazy decisions which shows her trust in me and supports whatever plan I have for the future. She is my biggest critic too, and I am grateful for that. I have a good support group around me, a close group of friends who I can call on whenever I need advice or help. To have anyone give you feedback is important even if it isn’t what you want to hear but that’s what keeps my feet on the ground and helps me improve along the way. At the end, if we don’t want to hear or accept honest feedback, even from ourselves, we are just blocking the road toward growth and development.
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