Iolair-Bhara
Loch Cuaich (Quoich)
A foreground suddenly ablaze by the early rising sun presented me with both an opportunity & a conundrum. Incorporating it whilst avoiding my own shadow required a fair bit of moving around. This, & the necessity of revealing as much of the loch as possible, required a number of attempts from different spots, with this one achieving an acceptable compromise.
I must admit to having a problem with dammed lochs/lakes, that had previously existed in a natural state only to be exploited with no regard for visual & ecological consequences. There are many in the Highlands: Glascarnoch, Monar, Mullardoch, Cluanie, to name but a few. The celebrated views at the southern end of Haweswater, in Lakeland, highlight how most are willing to embrace a certain idea of what represents exceptional scenery. I, personally, find the man-made effects for the best part repulsive. Conversely, & maybe a little surprisingly, incomparable writer & tireless environmentalist, W.H. Murray, proclaimed Quoich, ". . . one of the most splendid water-scapes in the Highlands". My own position is to find it very difficult accepting permanent alterations. Exacting damaging interference to a land we should be preserving - not exploiting for all it's worth - & therefore leaving behind an unforgivable mess for future generations, represents yet another backward step in the "ascent of man" (sic).
Loch Cuaich (Quoich)
A foreground suddenly ablaze by the early rising sun presented me with both an opportunity & a conundrum. Incorporating it whilst avoiding my own shadow required a fair bit of moving around. This, & the necessity of revealing as much of the loch as possible, required a number of attempts from different spots, with this one achieving an acceptable compromise.
I must admit to having a problem with dammed lochs/lakes, that had previously existed in a natural state only to be exploited with no regard for visual & ecological consequences. There are many in the Highlands: Glascarnoch, Monar, Mullardoch, Cluanie, to name but a few. The celebrated views at the southern end of Haweswater, in Lakeland, highlight how most are willing to embrace a certain idea of what represents exceptional scenery. I, personally, find the man-made effects for the best part repulsive. Conversely, & maybe a little surprisingly, incomparable writer & tireless environmentalist, W.H. Murray, proclaimed Quoich, ". . . one of the most splendid water-scapes in the Highlands". My own position is to find it very difficult accepting permanent alterations. Exacting damaging interference to a land we should be preserving - not exploiting for all it's worth - & therefore leaving behind an unforgivable mess for future generations, represents yet another backward step in the "ascent of man" (sic).