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Numb Fingers and Thumbs - part 2 of 1 2

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Photographing in snow and harsh winter conditions sets new challenges for the outdoor photographer. The landscape itself is totally transformed by one simple fall of snow. One of the greatest challenges in outdoor and landscape photography is simplifying the chaos of nature. Snow does a great job of this in one main way. It almost makes everything monochrome just revealing shape and form, which is something I seek out as a predominately black and white photographer.

Besides it being cold and difficult under foot, operating your equipment can be a major challenge. When I went out close to home I worked with a DSLR and quickly noticed that I was far from acclimatised to the conditions. I just grabbed my kit, jumped into my warm car and headed down the country lanes where I was faced with a vast array of opportunities. When I left the car I soon discovered that, after about an hour, the cold had rendered my hands pretty much useless and the camera controls were close to impossible to use. This was immensely frustrating as my mind was telling me, 'You wont get this opportunity again for years!' but the excitement pushed me on and I made a series of images that were worth every moment of numb fingers and thumbs.

Glen Coe and Rannoch Moor were totally different challenges all together! Firstly the usual six-hour drive took about eight because of slow motorways and closures. (This was my commute nightmare!) Secondly it is colder up there. Sounds like a simple statement but believe me it really is! I made it over a snowy Rannoch Moor and checked into the Kings House Hotel. It began to snow and blizzard did not stop for two days! I was in awe of the place. Well what I could see of it! It was a total white out. During the two days I had very small pockets of time in which to get out with a camera.

I must admit that without my Land Rover this would have been impossible which could only just navigate its way along the roads, which where only identifiable by 'pole-markers' on the roadside.

On the last full day the weather did break and the road was once again passable. I managed to get out onto Rannoch Moor and onto the edge of Loch Ba and Lochan nah Achlaise. The snow was up to my waist and the going was very tough. With a 40 kilogram pack on my back and tripod in hand I simply sank down the entire depth of the drifted snow. By the time I had picked my way to the edge of the frozen water I was exhausted and my main concerns was that I could not actually be sure if I was suspended on the frozen ice of the Lochan or standing on solid ground.

I tentatively exposed a number of sheets of film during those few hours - and the wind and light changed at all times. In some places I could see cracks in the ice that I was standing on and the bubbles moving beneath constantly reminded of the fact that if I was to fall through the ice I would almost certainly not get out again.

Those experiences in Scotland and near to home last winter have certainly whetted my appetite for more winter photography. There is something unique about the cold, the wind and the self-control needed to persevere in such conditions, certainly with a large format camera and regardless of the long drive and the long wait for the blizzard to clear, each time I look at the images they remind me of one of my most memorable trips with my camera.

• Numb Fingers and Thumbs page 1
  
• Numb Fingers and Thumbs page 2
  

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