One of the first decisions we make as photographers when taking a picture is to shot in portrait or landscape format. Portrait versus landscape depends much on the scene and photographic motif. The right choice of format should add to an image, rather than detract from the picture. Most photographs are taken in landscape format.

A horizontal picture usually appears calmer and allows the viewer to explore the motif and photograph, as the eye naturally wanders from left to right in accordance with people’s reading ability in the western hemisphere. The horizontal photo appears more natural to the human eye, which comprehends wider easier than higher.

The human eye is very much in-sync with landscape format since we are surrounded by day to day items that are rectangular shaped, e.g. movie, computer, touch pads or TV screens, cell phones, a microwave, even a simple car windshield we look through while commuting back and forth between home and work.



Portrait format creates pictures that are often more interesting with a deeper spatial perspective. It is especially interesting in landscape photography where it often adds drama and provides a viewer with an unusual, different view.

At first glimpse, the above motif of a blue New England Cape Cod dinghy seemed to be a perfect image for landscape format. So, I first went along in one of my early attempts where I laid the focus solely on the boat by a conscious decision of a 200mm lens and a high horizon placement. Not a bad picture but was it the best landscape photography image I could get away with that day?

Luckily I did not think so and instead of packing up and moving on, I decided to follow my photographic instincts and explored different perspectives. I switched from the telephoto lens to a 28mm wide-angle lens. The broader view with more spatial depth in the next image was accomplished by a low horizon placement. A small aperture (high f-stop setting) provided the required Depth of Field. The image itself I felt had a lot of distracting and unnecessary elements to the left and the right which is why I changed from landscape to portrait format in the final image.

The format twist combined with another lens change (longer lens) eliminated any distracting aspects from the composition. The low horizon still provided the feel of spatial depth of the open, wide marsh landscape but a longer lens setting produced a more intimate, pleasing view of the landscape and boat.

The last 2 images demonstrate what a format change from landscape to portrait is capable of doing for our landscape photography; it shows how photo details are added or eliminated by the switch. Next time you are out in the field do not forget the portrait format and consider once in a while a compositional format adjustment to hopefully enhance a picture.

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

The dramatic Eas Fors waterfall is located about a mile north of Lagganulva on the B8073 where there is a small car park. It is a spectacular sight, especially in spate. Eas Fors comprises of a series of waterfalls, the upper falls above the road and the lower falls below.

Access to all parts of the falls can be difficult, particularly after rain when the ground will be soft and slippery.

The lower falls in particular can be a dangerous place to reach, there is no access down to the beach directly from the car park.

To reach the beach it is important to walk down the road from the car park back in the direction of Ulva Ferry, after about half a mile there is a good wide track on the right hand side that leads gently down through open fields to a gate in the corner and then onto the rocky shore. From the gate, walk along the shore to the waterfall, again walking will be slow and difficult over the boulder strewn shoreline, some of the rocks are covered in moss and seaweed, so once again it is vital to exercise caution. The walk along the shore is best done at low tide as at high tide the water can come very close to the foot of the cliff face.

Here are a series of images of the lower part of Eas Fors waterfall that were taken during a recent trip there in late April.

Eas Fors waterfall viewed from the rocky shore, Isle of Mull

Eas Fors waterfall and rainbow, Isle of Mull

Eas Fors waterfall, close up

View from Eas Fors waterfall across the rocky shore of Loch Tuath to Ben More

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

My recent trip to photograph some of the birds of Iona, in particular I was keen to see and hopefully photograph the Corncrake, one of the most sought after birds on the island. The Corncrake is a summer visitor to the UK and several had arrived on Iona from mid April onward.

It took a while to locate one, first by the incessant, loud rasping ‘crex crex’ call and finally a few brief glimpses as it moved, almost hidden, amongst reeds and grasses. However, patience eventually paid off when it moved into a more open area, this allowed the opportunity to get several shots, including the one below of a calling male.

Corncrake (Crex crex) calling

Whilst on Iona I took the opportunity to take a few more bird images. It was really nice to see and photograph a pair of Linnets as they chased and interacted with each other amongst the walls of the Nunnery.

Male (left) and female (right) Linnet (Carduelis cannabina)

Whilst at the Nunnery a male House Sparrow popped out of a hole in the wall. As I watched he made several more visits to the hole, each time carrying food and I managed get the shot below just as he re-emerged.

House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) nesting in wall of the Nunnery

Finally, on the walk back to the pier I took this photo of a Starling carrying nesting material.

Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) carrying nesting material

It was a treat to see both House Sparrow and Starlings in such good numbers on Iona as these are species that are declining within much of the UK.

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

Silver Efex Pro is really good software for creating beautiful black and white conversations. I use it as a plugin for Adobe Lightroom 3 and have been very happy with this set up, it works seamlessly without any problems at all.

After processing to black and white I save the finished image as a TIFF file and it is then automatically re-imported back into the Lightroom catalogue to sit alongside the original.

It matters little how much equipment we use; it matters much that we be masters of all we do use. Sam Abell

I particularly like the array of tools available, giving the opportunity to be as creative as you wish. There are a number of preset conversions that can act as a starting point, though I prefer to do each conversion singly and take each on its own merit.

Whilst I have not used them on these images the choice of borders is also a big benefit, they can be added directly in Silver Efex Pro therefore saving the need to go into Photoshop to add a border.

Here are a number of recent images that I have used Silver Efex on.

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

This trip to the Treshnish Isles via Staffa started at Ulva Ferry on the west coast of Isle of Mull. It was a clear sunny day with a keen northerly wind as we left Ulva Ferry at about 1145 to head round the south side of Ulva and out toward Staffa.

On the trip to Staffa we had really good views of a group of 4 Bottle-nosed dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) as they accompanied us for a while, occasionally leaping out of the water in spectacular fashion.

After a hour or so we approached Staffa from the south and as the conditions were suitable we were fortunate to be able to draw right into the entrance of Fingal’s Cave, the inspiration for Felix Mendelssohn’s : The Hebrides – Fingal’s Cave. There was also an unmissable opportunity to go ashore, take a walk down to the entrance of Fingal’s Cave and to climb the steps to the top of the island where there are 360º views south to Iona, east to Mull, north to Eigg, Rhum and Skye and west to the Outer Hebrides.

Staffa with Fingal's Cave

View north from Staffa with Lunga in the distance (top left)

Following a one hour stay on Staffa we set off toward Lunga, famed for it’s seabird colonies and in particular the large numbers of Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica). Heading north into the wind made the crossing a little choppy, though far from uncomfortable and during the crossing to Lunga there were sightings of Gannet (Sula bassana), Black Guillemot (Cepphus grylle) and a fly past of a group of about twenty Manx Shearwater (Puffinus puffinus), which is one of my favourite birds, though unfortunately too far away to photograph.

Approaching Lunga we saw small numbers of Eider (Somateria mollissima) mostly in pairs, both Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus) and Common Seal (Phoca vitulina) which where mainly swimming off shore.

Eider (Somateria mollissima) just off Lunga

After landing on Lunga via the temporary jetty and following the advice of the skipper regarding the best route to the seabird colonies, a fairly easy twenty minute walk takes you right amongst the birds.

Treading carefully to avoid the Puffin burrows there a plenty of opportunities for some exciting bird photography and most of the species are fairly approachable with care. I was particularly interested in capturing some of the birds in flight and spent time watching and photographing Fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) as they wheeled in and out of their nesting ledges, success can be a rather hit and miss affair but patience will bring its rewards. Whilst nearby the were good opportunities to photograph the interaction between pairs of Shags (Phalacrocorax aristotelis) as they sat enjoying the sunshine.

Fulmar (Fulmarus glacialis)

Shag (Phalacrocorax aristotelis)

Opportunities to photograph Puffins are many and relatively straightforward, the biggest challenge is to capture an image that is more than just a straight record shot. Whilst it is necessary to have this type of shot I wanted to capture images that offer a little more, for example, in flight, interaction and behavioural images.

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) taking off into the wind carrying nest material

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) carrying nest material

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica)

Further on from the main area of Puffins there are opportunities to photograph ledges full of Common Guillemot (Uria aalge) and the less numerous Razorbill (Alca torda).

Ledges full of Guillemot (Uria aalge) on Lunga

Razorbill (Alca torda)

Razorbill (Alca torda)

To return to the boat it is necessary to retrace your route so there is one more chance to photograph some more Puffins … it is worth allowing a little extra time to return as it is hard to walk past the Puffins without stopping to take more photos.

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) 'strutting his stuff'

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) taking off into the wind

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) carrying nest material

Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) in 'head up' posture

On returning to the boat it was clear that everyone on the Treshnish Isles trip had a great time, telling tales of the Puffin antics in particular and just being in their company along with the excitement and privilege of spending time in such a beautiful place.

The return crossing to Ulva Ferry was via the north side of Ulva, there were further sightings of Bottle-nosed dolphin and though a little further way than earlier they put on a really energetic display. As we neared the end of our trip we saw many Common Seal (Phoca vitulina) on the rocks toward the south east end of Loch Tuath.

Common Seal (Phoca vitulina) on rocks approaching Ulva Ferry

Common Seal (Phoca vitulina) on rocks approaching Ulva Ferry

We finally landed at Ulva Ferry at about 1800, thanked the crew, said goodbye and left with wonderful memories along with some great images.

Special thanks to Turus Mara for a great day. For further details on joining one of their cruises to Staffa and Treshnish Isles visit www.turusmara.com or call 01688 400242 or 01688 400297. You can also follow Turus Mara on Twitter at @turus_mara and @colin_mull

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

What do Paris Metro, fairgrounds and street dancers have in common? Well, they all offer great photo opportunities for capturing and conveying movement in our images.

In this small selection of monochrome images I have set out to capture this movement; from dancers to trains, people to merry go rounds. With the use of a slow shutter speed, zooming the lens or twisting the camera during exposure I have intentionally allowed creative ‘blur’ to become a major component within each of these monochrome images.

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

The Isle of Mull has much to offer birdwatchers and I have selected a variety of images of just some of the Isle of Mull birds that I have photographed over the last year.

I always enjoy any opportunity I get to photograph Isle of Mull birds as it is a challenging yet rewarding area of nature photography. Whilst Mull is probably best known for its healthy population of White tailed eagle that breed on the island there is also much more to see, and the commoner birds are no less attractive.

Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)

Yellowhammer (Emberiza citrinella)

Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe)

Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)

Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)

Eider (Somateria mollissima)

Grey Lag Goose (Anser anser)

Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea)

White throated Dipper (juvenile) (Cinculus cinculus)

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

Yesterdays photo workshop finished with a spectacular evening trip to the south shore of Loch na Keal on the Isle of Mull.

The day had been cold and windy with the odd heavy shower but despite this we had earlier had success photographing otters on the shores of Loch Spelve.

After a drive through Glen More and Gribun we arrived at Loch na Keal and as the evening went by the colours of sunset started to build. Although the sunset did not last too long we had opportunity to capture some of the gorgeous warm light as it streamed through broken cloud.

Here are several images taken during the evening from the south shore of Loch na Keal with views east toward Bheinn Fhada, Bheinn a’ Ghraig and west toward the island of Eorsa and beyond.

All in all a very memorable and enjoyable day.

Along the shore to sunlit Bheinn Fhada and Beinn a' Ghraig

Hillside abstract, skyline ridge to Ben More with rainbow

Beinn a' Ghraig with rainbow

Loch na Keal sunset toward Eorsa and beyond

Sunset, slow shutter speed and reflection

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

The Isle of Mull offers a variety of walking from gentle strolls to harder hill walking. Dun Da Ghaoithe, the second highest mountain on the Isle of Mull is 766 meters an it offers a challenging and rewarding day out. I recently made an afternoon return trip, starting from the bottom of the ‘mast road’ near to Auchnachroish.

Throughout the walk there are extensive views all round including Loch Lihnne, Sound of Mull and the Firth of Lorne. Once nearing the summit the views to the west are spectacular as they look out across Ben More.

The day was showery, though the broken cloud provided some good opportunities for photography. Here are a selection of images taken on the walk up to the summit of Dun Da Ghaoithe.

View west from above Auchnachroish toward Duart Castle and Lismore

Heavy showers and rainbow, view across to Morvern

View up Loch Lhinne taken from above the first mast

View from Mainnir nam Fiadh up Loch Linnhe

View west, rain showers approaching

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland

The 22 April 2012 will celebrate Earth Day throughout the world.

To celebrate Earth Day I have selected here a number of images that, I hope, shows the beauty of our planet with emphasis on the natural environment and wildlife.

Go to the EARTH DAY 2012 PHOTO GALLERY – I hope you enjoy them, if you care to share this page that would be appreciated.

Phil McDermott Photo - Isle of Mull Photographer Commercial and Wedding Photography Scotland