6 Best Places for Photography on the Isle of Skye
The world is filled with so-called iconic locations, and the Isle of Skye certainly offers its fair share.
This little island off the western coast of Scotland not only attracts photographers in their flocks but is also flooded with photography tour and workshop groups year upon year. So what makes it so popular?
I first set foot on the Isle of Skye back in 2008 and was mesmerized from that very moment. The visit wasn’t planned. I was in Glencoe and, in a moment of impetuousness, decided to drive the three-hour journey to Skye.
Little did I know that I was about to discover one of my favourite landscape locations in the UK and, in fact, the world; one to which I would also be returning and running photography workshops on a yearly basis.
In this article, we’ll be looking at some of the best photography locations on this island and how to make the most out of your visit.
Planning your trip
There are two ways of getting onto the island. The most common and by far the easiest and quickest is to take the free Skye Bridge over the waters of Loch Alsh. The alternative route is to take the 35-minute car ferry from Mallaig to Armadale, which runs eight times a day.
Skye measures just 50 miles in length and up to 25 miles across its width, yet the island takes some time to navigate by vehicle. There are many narrow roads to deal with, and changes in elevation ensure that you will experience some amazing views from the higher road sections of the island.
Regarding accommodation, the island consists mainly of guesthouses with a reasonable amount of hotels available, plus numerous campsites and modern pods.
The most popular time of year is summer, but I tend to go either in the spring months of March and April or the autumn months of October and November. Not only is it much quieter during these times, but parking is also much easier.
Additionally, spring and autumn offer the landscape photographer more convivial sunrise and sunset times as well as much more manageable light.
Skye is definitely one of the most physically demanding locations that I travel to. There are several locations that require a minimum of thirty minutes of hiking.
The Old Man of Storr takes around an hour to reach the summit, the Fairy Pools nearly forty minutes to reach the main waterfall, Talisker Bay around thirty minutes, and Neist Point Lighthouse around thirty minutes to reach the lighthouse.
Most locations require some form of hiking uphill, as Skye is a mountainous place, but the views warrant the effort of getting there.
Weather-wise, it is fair to say that Skye seems to have its own micro-climate and can often produce dramatic weather, a fair amount of rain, and on occasion, storms with high winds. Mind you, for the photographer, dramatic weather leads to dramatic images.
1. The Old Man of Storr
While the term “iconic” is batted around probably more often than it should be these days, one place on Skye can certainly hold the title with pride. On that first visit back in 2008, the majestic view of the Old Man of Storr on Trotternish Ridge stopped me in my tracks.
Even from the roadside, five miles away, this unique rock formation commands a distinctive presence amid the splendor of the surrounding landscape.
The Old Man of Storr is accessed by a large pay-and-display car park that is located 7 miles north of Portree, which is the capital of Skye. It is a gruelling climb up and often best done two hours before sunrise to give you the best opportunity to see the sunrise light up the rocks below you.
This scene here (below) of the sun rising behind the hole within The Cathedral Rock can be captured around an hour post-sunrise, and it was taken during the month of March. The way the light streams through really creates a stunning scene.
The Trotternish Ridge, crowned by The Storr Mountain at 719 meters, was formed approximately 60 million years ago through a massive landslip.
This geological event occurred when hot volcanic lava flowed over weaker sedimentary Jurassic rock, causing it to collapse and create the rugged cliff faces that now define the eastern coastline of Trotternish.
The striking pinnacles and weathered basalt formations of The Storr dominate the island’s northeastern landscape. The Old Man is the most prominent of these pinnacles.
Legend says that a great giant was slain here. He fell, mortally wounded, on the edge of the ridge, and the land eventually swallowed him up, leaving just his thumb protruding from the ground.
The trick to photographing these popular scenes is to find a unique view or create a composition that stands out from the thousands of others captured every year.
I’m constantly amazed at how often, when teaching landscape photography, people have never thought to use a telephoto lens or shoot in portrait orientation.
One of my favorite ways of shooting iconic scenes like this is to use a long focal length. It allows you to isolate and frame up a more unique perspective. Once, at the head of Loch Fada, a popular viewpoint for the Old Man of Storr, I captured one of my best images doing just that.
Eying the scene carefully, I picked out the most interesting elements. A small island with a lone tree sits on the loch with the Old Man in the background. I used a 100mm focal length on a cropped sensor along with a vertical composition.
Given the vast difference in distance and size between the two, the 100mm focal length helped to shorten the apparent distance between them and make both subjects large enough in the frame. This helps to isolate the two and makes them stand out as an integral part of the overall image.
Additionally, both were mirrored in the calm water, so the vertical composition was ideal for highlighting the symmetry within the scene. A landscape orientation would not have created such a dynamic image.
It soon became apparent on my first visit that the Old Man was just the beginning, and Skye is packed with an incredible diversity that offers so much potential where landscape and seascape photography are concerned.
Read more: 8 Ways to Improve Your Landscape Photography Workflow
2. The Cuillin
The towering and dominant Munros of the Cuillins are simply breathtaking. Two Cuillin ranges dominate the landscape on Skye: the Black Cuillin and the Red Cuillin, separated by Glen Sligachan.
The beauty here is the contrast between the two. The Black Cuillin has high dramatic peaks, whereas the Red Cuillin, on the opposite side, has smaller, rounded hills covered in vegetation.
The Black Cuillin Ridge, formed 60 million years ago, is the remnant of an eroded magma chamber from a massive volcano.
Composed primarily of hard, rough gabbro rock and smoother basalt, the ridge was shaped by glacial activity and subsequent weathering over millennia, resulting in its distinctive jagged character.
In contrast, the Red Cuillin, made mostly of granite, proved less resistant to glacial forces, giving these hills their rounded appearance.
One of the joys that you will experience when shooting the Black Cuillin in particular is just how visible they are from a huge variety of locations, with the most iconic views being seen from both Elgol and the Fairy Pools, which you may find happen to be one of the finest stretches of river and waterfalls anywhere in the UK.
Read more: How to Use Water in Your Landscape Photos
3. The Fairy Pools
Located on the northern slopes of the Black Cuillin range, the Fairy Pools on the River Brittle, complete with their underwater arches, emerald-green plunge pools, and numerous waterfalls, hold a mystical charm that is unrivaled across the rest of the UK.
They make for an excellent photography destination.
The Fairy Pools waterfall is located at the foot of Waterpipe Gully, and it takes around 40 minutes to reach by foot from the recently expanded pay-and-display car park.
More often than not, low cloud and rain lie in wait for your arrival, but this can only add to the drama and mystique of this stunning valley.
There is a drive of around 45 minutes to reach the Fairy Pools from Broadford, but the journey is filled with gorgeous views all around. During your 40-minute hike up to the main waterfall, you will discover many scenes that will stop you in your tracks, especially with a camera in hand.
There are numerous sections of waterfalls that look absolutely spellbinding, and you may well add an additional hour to reach the main Fairy Pools waterfall due to the numerous stops you will find yourself making.
Read more: 6 Top Tips for Hiking Photography
4. Elgol
The isolated beauty of Elgol in the southwest corner of the island has some of Europe’s oldest rock formations. Elgol stands out as one of the most mysterious and ethereal scenes on Skye.
The descent into this desolate harbor, where you’re confronted by the formidable Black Cuillins in the distance, is simply mind-blowing. This feared mountain range seems to draw the most dramatic weather on Skye, with conditions that shift faster than the blink of an eye.
Regardless, if you happen to catch extraordinary light and color while standing there, overlooking some of the finest views in the UK, consider yourself extremely fortunate and get that camera shutter clicking.
Reaching Elgol by vehicle will take you around 40 minutes, and the harborside village is located at the end of the B8083 road, which is mainly narrow and requires care. You drop down into the harbor itself (which is free), where the vast majority of images are taken.
Phone signal is non-existent down by the harbor. Most people walk carefully across the boulders to reach the water’s edge, but the huge range of rock formations that you will experience more than makes up for the effort involved in reaching them.
Elgol, for me, is the most mysterious and atmospheric place on Skye, and when the dramatic skies appear and the cloud forms around the summit of the Black Cuillin ahead of you, you really do feel like you are on another planet.
Read more: How to Find and Use Light in Landscape Photography
5. The Quiraing
The Quiraing is a striking landslip located towards the northern end of Skye, on the eastern face of the Trotternish Ridge, and is an incredible sight to behold.
This unique landscape is renowned for its dramatic cliffs, hidden plateaus, and rock formations, making it one of the most iconic and photographed places on Skye.
The Quiraing is one of the most easily accessible locations to reach by vehicle, although because of its high elevation, winter can often render the road inaccessible due to ice.
There is no doubt at all that dinosaurs roamed the land on Skye, as evidenced by the 180-million-year-old footprints that can be seen on the beach at Staffin, just 4 miles away. It would not take much imagination to envisage a T-Rex or two wandering around such a magnificent landscape.
One of the joys in photographing The Quiraing is the very wide panoramic view ahead of you. You often see a variety of weather fronts drifting across the landscape, and more often than not, bringing with them a rainbow or two.
This stunning lone rowan tree clinging to the cliff edge is situated high up in a wonderful location overlooking the Trotternish Ridge in the distance. To get this shot, I had to lie down on my stomach with the camera about four inches off the ground. I was certainly rewarded for my effort, though.
I photographed this from a low angle because I wanted the tree to sit above the horizon and not underneath, which would have obscured the lochs behind it. This was of key importance to the composition and the very thing that helped make it unique.
Thanks to the tilt screen on my camera, I was able to perfectly compose this shot, which would otherwise not have been possible. Sometimes you have to go to extraordinary lengths, but this is what helps make your images stand out from the rest.
Read more: How to Shoot Landscape Panoramas Handheld
6. Neist Point Lighthouse
The Isle of Skye is a seascape photographer’s paradise, boasting an incredibly diverse coastline.
From pristine sandy beaches, such as the coral beach at Claigan, to the dramatic rocky shores adorned with towering sea stacks and vertical cliffs, Skye offers a stunning array of coastal landscapes to capture.
However, the cream of the crop has to be Neist Point Lighthouse on the west coast. When you see all this firsthand, it’s easy to understand why the Isle of Skye has become such an iconic location for photography.
Neist Point Lighthouse is situated at the most westerly point of Skye, and it involves a lengthy 60-minute drive from Portree to reach. Nevertheless, the awe-inspiring views from the top of the cliffs looking down over the lighthouse make all the effort worthwhile.
Sunset is the most popular time to visit, and be warned, it is nearly always one of the windiest places on the island.
Here’s an image I captured on the evening I witnessed a stunning sunset at the lighthouse. I had seen many photos of this from fellow photographers and was eager to capture it myself.
After descending the seemingly endless number of steps down, I spent a delightful hour photographing the lighthouse from this charming little bay. I am thrilled with the result, especially with the classic clouds and lovely muted colors in the sky. A wide-angle lens is essential here.
Read more: 10 Tips for Stunning Sunrise and Sunset Photography
In conclusion
Photographing the iconic locations of the Isle of Skye can be challenging due to its unpredictable weather, but its incredible diversity and gorgeous scenery consistently offer countless opportunities to capture stunning and unique images.
While many of these places may have been photographed many, many times, if you take a bit more time and effort, you can be sure to capture something a little different from the rest.
