It’s time to talk up the rest of Scotland

Looking beyond Skye, Glencoe and the NC500

As a landscape photographer, I’m naturally drawn to some of the most iconic landscapes Scotland has to offer. In fact, just the other night, I was busy planning a multi-day photography trip to the Isle of Skye, perhaps Scotland’s most iconic wild destination. So by no means is this an article suggesting we should simply cast aside much-loved locations like this. It is, however, a polite reminder to myself, and anyone reading, that Scotland’s diverse offering stretches far beyond them.

If you’ve visited Scotland in recent years, you’ll probably have noticed an increase in visitors. This is, of course, to be welcomed. One of Scotland’s biggest assets is its beautiful scenery, and we should be proud to share it with others. There has, however, been an imbalance in the recent tourist surge in Scotland, with some areas receiving much more attention than others — driven mainly, I think, by social media.

One of Scotland’s less visited regions, Dumfries & Galloway

Rather than finding places naturally, or by word-of-mouth, we appear to have become dependent on internet top-10s and viral social media reels. For the places mentioned, this brings many upsides (though not always), but for the places overlooked, not so much.

It is therefore on us, those who know and love Scotland, to play our part in talking up the lesser-visited parts of the country. In one of my most-listened podcasts, This is Scotland, Skye hardly featured at all in the first season. Not because it isn’t beautiful, but because the hosts wanted to divert attention elsewhere, likely conscious of the pressures already on the island, and keen to highlight their own areas of Angus and Lewis.

Some of my own favourite but somewhat cast-aside locations include the Isle of Bute, Dumfries & Galloway and the Cowal Peninsula. These places are full of charm, with beaches, quaint villages and wild landscapes on offer. However, they also come with challenges, and towns like Rothesay and Dunoon deserve more attention. Without our help, both online and offline, they’re not going to get it.

Dunoon Pier, which has fallen into disrepair, though it still makes for a good subject.

I recently visited the third annual TradFest in Dunoon, which brought in visitors from all over Scotland, and probably further afield, too. Just ten minutes up the road is the beautiful Loch Eck, which I’ll be returning to photograph soon. And on Bute, Ettrick Bay offers up views to Arran and an expansive, sandy beach, worthy of a visit alone. Dumfries & Galloway was my first ever multi-day photography trip after I passed my driving test last year, and the Mull of Galloway exceeded expectations.

So once my visit to Skye is over in the coming weeks, and I’ve ticked off some of the bucket-list locations there, my next trip will be to somewhere a little less visited. I’ll get to know the landscape, pop into a local business, and share some photos from the trip. The comments are open for suggestions…