Those lovely long days meant we got plenty of daylight for exploring, but it did make getting up early for sunrise a challenge. I opted to struggle and crawled most of my way around Staffa and Lunga, and crawled up the cliff. I’d never want to advise anyone who has mobility issues, and health conditions that are triggered by strenuous activity, to go on one of these tours. Chances are you’d be really disappointed – or end up like me, worn out, injured, probably feeling really unwell and suffering for days after. The only reason I made it, was because 2 kind people stopped off to help me up to the cliff. Had they just walked past like everyone else, I may still be sat there wondering what I’ve got myself into. While I can say it was worth the struggle to see these awesome birds, even an off-road wheelchair wouldn’t be able to make along the basalt columns on Staffa or up to the cliffs on Lunga. What to wear when visiting Lunga?

Their hearing is also very sensitive; even the sound of a shutter going off can disturb them, or the rustling of waterproof trousers. The time to visit the Fairy Pools will depend on the time you will spend photographing. Anyway you can reach the top in less than an hour, where is located of the most famous spots. Neist Point LighthouseTo make things easiest, you can set your camera to the shutter priority mode, on Nikon and Sony (and some other brands), this is “S” and for Canon, it is “Tv”. I recommend setting it to 1/2000, and increasing or decreasing based on how well that works out for you. The path is easy to find, and well maintained. (Only the start of the path is very steep, but not long) Just be careful to not slide off crossing the river.

An otter’s sense of smell is extremely good and it could smell you from hundreds of metres away if the wind is in the wrong position. If you don’t happen to come across them on your trip around the NC500 though, don’t worry, there are a few locations where you are almost guaranteed a photo of these guys. These are Robertsons Larder and Farm Shop, just north of Inverness, and the Torridon Hotel near Torridon. There are 3 great places in the Shetland islands where you can photograph puffins. These are, Sumburgh Head RSPB, Hermaness Nature Reserve and the Isle of Noss.In this area, you can find some other different spots to photograph as the nearest lighthouse. Also, this area is one of Britain’s best sea bird colonies. So, if you are planning a tour to the northeast part of Scotland, don’t miss this spot! Castle Sinclair Girnigoe This street was said to have inspired Diagon Alley in Harry Potter (read all about finding Harry Potter in Edinburgh here), and it is certainly a magical place for photography. The colourful shop fronts curve away down the street with cobbled stones underfoot and Edinburgh’s high old stone-built buildings towering above.