One of the biggest things the affects wildlife photography in Scotland is the weather. The weather in Scotland can be erratic and if it doesn’t seem to be near perfect conditions for the type of wildlife you are trying to capture on the day then this could make the big day out seem pointless to you. This is not always the case however and improvisation is always key to this type of photography and you could still capture other wildlife interacting with the amazing surrounding environment.
To prepare for these type of events keep an eye on the weather forecast, starting from about a week before your big day. This will give you an idea on what it could be like and if you need to get in any items you do not already have available. The day before it’s best to prepare your equipment if you can. Clean the camera sensor and lenses, fully charge all the batteries you are taking (always take one more than what you think you’ll need) and format the SD cards and have spare ones ready in your camera bag too. Check the camera stand is clean and operational too as there is nothing more frustrating than missing your perfect shot because the legs are now jammed by the sand from the seascape location you were shooting at last week! These are just examples of some of the things you should get ready. What you are taking can vary from climate and the conditions but I always take a small first aid kit with me too as you never know when you could need it.
For this event the weather was near perfect and I was lucky enough to be able to travel out to the Isle of May with just my standard equipment.
For this trip I took my trusted Fuji X-H2S and the Fuji XF 100-400mm and 40-150mm lenses to ensure I could capture the birds at the locations I had pre-planned for this shoot. The camera for this type of photography tends to need to be set to either shutter priority (1/250 – 1/4000) or full manual to ensure you can quickly switch to the necessary shutter speed to capture the birds movement.
Here are some of the shots taken during one of the times I was on the Isle of May.
