The Black Mount of Glencoe

Black Mount copyright Tracy Howl

This is another of my favourites from the journey home through Glencoe. The Black Mount is famous for it's triangular shape. I wanted to concentrate on the surface immersed in cloud and show where the relationship between the two become one. 

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixelvixenuk/12444279995/

Callanish Stones

My latest image from Scotland is the Callanish Stone Circle on Lewis where we went to watch the sunset. There are 3 circles all within walking distance from each other but this is the one near the visitor's centre. The sky was so delicate which added to the sublime experience at this sacred site.

Callanish Stone Circle copyright Tracy Howl 2014

http://www.flickr.com/photos/pixelvixenuk/12477632774/

And since posting on Flickr, this image made EXPLORE on 13 Feb 2014! Very happy that 2 images in 3 days have had so much attention! At 10am 14.2.14 there were 3491  views and 71 favorites.


For more information on my photographic work see my website www.tracyhowl.com

Some Thoughts on Explore

Today I achieved my goal to get one of my photos on Flickr Explore.

That's no big deal some may say, some who reach the top 500 a few times a week or month! Well it is a big deal to me. Because this is my first. And I'm sure when the regular achievers had their first, they were pretty excited too!

It reminds me of my first front page working for newspapers. It is special. Everyone wants front page. Flickr Explore is the front page! Yes I admit that once you continue to be published, it becomes an everyday thing. It is still nice though! Seeing your work in print!

I remember when Paul Clarke, my work colleague, made it on to Explore with his photo of Rain over London. We had photographed an event at Level 39 Canary Wharf during the day. While packing up, we were amazed at the view of the storm over London. We both photographed it. In different ways. Paul uploaded his pix to Flickr on the train. It went viral, reaching Reddit and Explore. The next day we were photographing a wedding together. At quiet times we would check the Flickr views. They crept up through the hundreds, then thousands, by the end of the wedding reception, views were over 100k! The power of the internet and people's curiosity! All in the 24 hours after capture and upload!

So back to me... I doubt very much my image will be as popular as Paul's. I don't particularly want it to be. By this image reaching Explore, it has done everything I wanted an image of mine to do. I didn't plan for this particular image to be so popular. In fact I am surprised although I like the image a lot, which is why when I saw the view from the window, I asked Terry to stop the campervan so I could capture it.

This is the image, taken at the side of Loch Lomond on the way home. Taking advantage of the last light of the day. The cloud was very low, hovering just above the surface of the water. The Loch barely visible through the veil of trees. This image is very personal to me. Each time I look at it, I feel the emotion, the energy and our connection to the landscape. The passing of Loch Lomond denotes the last dusk we would experience in Scotland and the close of our wonderful trip. A transition back to reality.

Loch Lomond through the trees - copyright Tracy Howl 2014

I am glad that other people like this image too. It makes me so very happy that my art can bring a smile, a sense of wonder and joy. This is why I take photographs. For a living and for pleasure. 

At the time of publishing this, at 1am, there were 5279 views and 75 people had favorited it. I'm looking forward to seeing results in the morning. :)

This is the link to the Flickr page here..

Love is the Ocean

Love is the ocean. 

Small waves, ripples teasing, coming closer, running away. 

Faster, coming closer, maybe a little nearer each time. 

Running away faster.

One day a tidal wave consumes you, covers you, drowns you. 

You can't breathe, you can't survive it. 

Takes you away to an unknown place. 

That's love. 

Words & image copyright Tracy Howl

An excerpt from 5 Women About Love, a film I co-wrote in 2012

Image - Sunrise at Traigh Mor beach in Lewis, Scotland taken 9th Jan 2014

Immersed in the Light

In January I was so very lucky to be able to travel around Scotland and some of its Islands.

I went with my boyfriend Terry who was no stranger to these parts. My previous Scottish adventures consisted of a weekend crammed of a night in Edinburgh, a night at Stirling University, an STUC conference during the day and a brief walk around Glasgow on the way home! Not enough time to see the reality! Unlike this time!

I flew Luton to Inverness on the 4th Jan and was met by Terry who had driven his campervan from London through the night on New Year's Eve. We drove to Ullapool where our adventure really started. The rest of the trip consisted of sleeping in the van next to amazing beaches, next to Lochs, mountains, a hotel here and there, catching ferries to Isle of Lewis/Harris and Skye, climbing mountains, walking lots and generally seeing amazing landscapes before driving home on the 15th. 11 days of pure bliss!

I will write about the trip in more detail. What we did, where we stayed, what we saw. Most importantly I will write about how 2 people can survive in such a small confined space. Especially 2 people who like their own space!

We saw amazing sights. Amazing light. As a photographer of everything, I notice and use light, but when you are surrounded by such awesome landscapes, the light becomes everything. You become immersed in it. You become part of the landscape.

This photograph was taken on Luskentyre beach. We had stayed a couple miles up the road ready for an early start. We were rained on, hailed on, blown around on this beach. It was also very cold. Just watching the weather was like watching a performance on stage. Our own private performance. No one but us were on that beach. I have never seen a stage show like it! I probably never will!  The clouds, like main characters, sashaying across the sky. The rain, like dancers pirouetting all around us. After the rain, came the light - a spotlight on the dunes allowing them to become centre stage!

All rights reserved - Tracy Howl 2014

And then came another rainbow. Another reminder that Scotland would continue to wow us without notice.