The Importance Of Planning

An adventure from late last year…. Written for my newspaper column.

So, at the weekend, I had no plans and decided I wanted to go out to shoot some landscapes. The forecast looked reasonable, and I had the day off. Now one thing that makes a huge difference to any day out with the camera, is good planning. Today’s blog is yet another case of how not to do this. Do as I say, but not as I do.
Firstly, I had no plans where to go, so just set off driving. In my mind, I was thinking head to Glen Affric to capture some autumnal scenes, but as I was heading towards Inverness I could see lovely light out beyond Dingwall, and decided to just drive in that general direction.

BTW This is my backpack, and I LOVE it for landscape photography.

I somehow ended up at Aultgowrie and saw a sign for Orrin Falls. A 5.5km circular walk apparently. I have to confess I have never heard of the place but thought it might be a good shout for a look around, even if it was just a recce for a future shoot. Now, this is the point where my planning started to go a bit wrong. I had decided to skip coffee and breakfast, and go for something at some stage later in the morning. I also never brought anything with me. No water, no food, nothing. Oh, and I was also sporting a brand new pair of walking shoes I had received as a birthday present. Seemed a great idea, but they hadn’t been broken in. What could possibly go wrong?

I walked along this route for what seemed like miles and then came to another sign, this time saying Orrin Loch. It did actually mention “5.5km” but I was definitely not going that far. I had a big rucksack on my back, no food, and new shoes, so there’s no way I was walking that far.

Eventually I saw the massive construction of Orrin Dam in the distance. It looked impressive, and clearly this was where the loch began, although I couldn’t see it beyond the concrete walls. It didn’t seem far, but it was still a long walk to get there. I was now thinking about my lack of planning, but I thought there’s no point going this far and turning back. A solitary cyclist went past me, struggling with the steep ascent and a head wind, and I laughed to myself at his lack of planning for the cold weather, as he had his shorts on. I eventually arrived at the loch. My new shoes were comfortable, no aches or pains, and I wasn’t feeling hungry.

I decided that this scene, although it looked good, needed some extra height to capture it properly. I decided to scramble up the hill on the right and get a better vantage point. As I went off the road, I felt the first twinge of pain from my heel. A blister. Great. I made it up the hill, and despite the wind being wild up there, got some images and scrambled back down. It was hard to capture the entire scene as there was such a vast expanse of hills and water, and I decided to zoom in slightly rather than trying to go really wide, as the distant hills would be lost at the 16mm end of my lens.

Then I felt my first hunger pangs. Now I was kicking myself, because I had left a big compartment in my rucksack clear for adding such items as food. My feet were beginning to feel on fire, and I had a few aches and pains setting in, mainly in my lower back. This was the point where I realised I was only half way, and had to go the same distance back. A few buzzards were circling above me, which in my tired state of mind, had become vultures awaiting my demise.

It’s been a long time since I was so glad to see my car, but as I approached the car park, I was practically taking my shoes off as I walked, preparing to swap for my trainers. In all I walked almost 12 miles, with around 1000 feet of ascent. My bones ached and my feet were on fire, but more importantly I was hungry and thirsty.

Was it worth it? Yes definitely. I got a few photos I was happy with, and the walk was really nice. It also strikes me a sa great cycle route as the road is a very good tarmac surface. If only I had known earlier. I’ll definitely go back with my bike. The lesson here though, is how important it is to plan. Joking apart, I really should have been more prepared, and a lesson has been learnt. The image was shot using the 16-35mm lens, at 32mm. ISO 100, 1/5th second at f16.

Footnote. This was the best night’s sleep I have had in years.