Hi Tom. Great vid. As a Search & Rescue Winch-Paramedic who works for the company that operates the aircraft in your video, Bristows. I know you captured a shot with the aircraft, but did you manage to capture any more? I ask as we are always on the lookout for good quality images. R199 is the Prestwick based SAR aircraft. It would be amazing to have one of your images on our wall 👍🏼 Not sure if you recognise my name, I was the guy who sent the spare GFX battery on to you a couple of years back.
That was my thoughts immediately, and I just can't understand why Tom didn't fire off some winning shots of your chopper during the rescue, using not just the wide angle but his longer lens.
@@Peter_Reed_Photography Unfortunately yes, a couple of appearances in the latest Coastguard program and the program with Nick Knowles (forgot what it’s called) - if you Google ‘Rescue of fisherman Reagan Green’ then you see me. That was a sporty rescue 👊🏻
Do you also operate the Llanberis MRT aircraft? Not reviewed all the images yet but have some from an apparent rescue on Yr Wyddfa last week (with apologies to Tom for hijacking his comments - but I'm not as good as he is, so it's hopefully ok ;) )
I hope she recovers quickly. It’s good to know there are people to help in that situation that are so fast, efficient, and effective! Much praise to the crews that saved her!
I am not sure how this rescue would be handled in the UK, but a mountain rescue by helicopter somewhere in the US will have you get a bill in the mail for somewhere around USD100,000 for the helicopter ride. When out and about hiking, make sure you understand the financial implications of a rescue BEFORE you go - and cover yourself with insurance for the outdoor activities you pursue so you won't be stuck with an existence crippling bill.
@@thedarkslide The service is free in the UK. The hiker would have called the emergency services. The dispatched helicopter here is operated by HM Coastguard, quite probably with a Scottish Mountain Rescue team aboard conducting the search and rescue. The latter are a charitable body, funded by public donations and government grants, and largely run by volunteers. As you say, it's always important to understand the local search and rescue procedures if you're out on a serious hike, and make sure you're as prepared as you need to be! And even if search and rescue is free at point of use, it's not a free pass to be careless.
@@thedarkslide Thankfully, it’s free in the UK and without it I might not be here. I was diving off of the south coast of the UK about 20 years ago when our dive boat encountered engine trouble whilst we were underwater and wasn’t able to follow us or pick us up, realising the danger the skipper called the Coastguard. That day 6 divers were rescued by rescue helicopter and the skipper was rescued by the local lifeboat crew. We were taken to the helicopter base at Portland, checked over by a doctor and then sent on our way. It’s so important that we support our Mountain Rescue, Lowland Rescue, Coastguard service, Lifeboats and many others as they are all serviced by an amazing team of volunteers and rely on public donations to keep going. I for one know that not all superheroes wear capes.
The chopper came for me when I crashed my hanglider many moons ago, took a year to be able to walk again. Keep your attention on the surroundings, we don't want to be reading posts from your hospital bed Thomas.
Thomas, it is refreshing to hear professionals (really in any field) able to acknowledge their own weaknesses and in constant pursuit to improve their craft. Well done and great video and images per usual.
A couple things I see a lot of with RU-vidrs, get your photo first then worry about recording later, unless you the video is more important than your photograph. Also they don't take the photo cause the light isn't right, or some other reason. Take the photo, that subject may never be there again, and it is better to get something than nothing. You could die, become disabled, the forest could burn down, building could collapse, etc. All my .02 of course
The last time I walked up Goat Fell I was on the steep bit nearing the top and a group of kids were on their way down when I heard one of them say, “that old bloke is blowing out of his arse”, I looked around expecting to see someone catching me up and then I realised they were talking about me!! 😂 Great vlog Thomas but I do wish you would have shown more of the heli-rescue as I wasn’t really concentrating on what you were saying.
I hope the person is ok. It’s good to discover an empathetic photographer. You’re giving me some great new ideas. I used some of your techniques yesterday and found them very useful. Must get myself some ND filters tho!
Thanks Thomas for taking the time to check up on that rescue, hoping for a good recovery for that person. Another week and a nother great dose of TH photography. Cheers!
An object lesson in accidents happening on the sort of day that you’d probably not expect, dry rock, perfect visibility, minimal wind. Take care out there everyone, especially on Scotlands hills where as Tom noted the hike was longer and more tiring than he’d expected. Re light,yep, also learning that the hard way. Best light is often two hours before sunset, because an hour before sunset the clouds on the horizon spoil it all!
I am totally with you on being choosey about light. Good light can happen any time depending on conditions. Just getting out and doing the work is the difference. Great shots and I hope the fallen hiker recovers well.
I wonder if the other people you shot with do some “heavy” editing (compare to you). So they can make the better of a light that you think is “ok”… Just a thought, personally I love your photography because it shows how you can have an amazing picture with a minimum of editing.
I resonate with that waiting for light all too often. My wife didn’t understand it. I bought a Peak Design capture clip so it’s always out with me. I’ll see compositions and I’d tell myself “ noted, I’ll come back to it later” Only for the light to be completely gone or it just different and then it doesn’t work. Now I just act. I see something I just try to compose it the best I can for a bit and I keep going. It takes getting used to but I’m happier with more images now
Thomas good to hear that you have problems too when shooting LOL! Just yesterday I decided to go for a walk and take the camera, I was not expecting anything but was taken by surprise with most beautiful light I have ever seen, and it was on a day when I decided not to video! But rather than come away with my best ever images, I panicked, instead of picking my moment I rushed around firing off about 20-30 images and If I am lucky I might get one OK shot, lesson learned. Enjoyed the video and as a fellow youtuber I have to admire your presentation skills during that rescue, glad to hear that she was rescued, hats off to the crews! Thanks as always for sharing. Always an inspiration.
Lovely to see you visit Arran! So many beautiful ever-changing landscapes to photograph and quick travel around the island. Sometimes it can be raining on one side and sunny on the other! 😀
I don't have any great interest in photography, it was the van conversion that brought me here, but here I am, all this time latee, and I really like this channel. Well done Tom, I really enjoy your channel. 👍🏻
Thomas, I share your thoughts on the light. I often find myself in a holding pattern as I wait for the perfect moment to fire the shutter when the light is at its peak. However, light can play tricks on the perception of one's surroundings, and subtle changes can go unnoticed. Sometimes, conditions widely vary; I'm sure many of us have experienced the difference a few seconds can make in a photograph. I try to remember this and occasionally capture several frames at varying intervals. Once back in post-processing, it's easier to evaluate the image and make better judgments on the light, cloud formations, motion in the water, etc. Indeed, it's easy to get lost in the moment, waiting for the perfect light. Clearly, and I'm sure ALL of your viewers will agree, your keen eye for composition and extraordinary storytelling abilities are phenomenal! I've enjoyed this channel for years; thanks for sharing! On a side note, It was very kind of you to report on the accident.
I really liked the wide crop with the stones, and the long island shot was great! One thing I always knew but never fully appreciated until I moved from Hampshire to Aberdeenshire two years ago is what a difference latitude makes to the length of Golden Hour. It was definitely noticeable just moving a few hundred miles to the north, so I'm sure Iceland is amazing. Bit of drama in this video too... I hope the rescued woman is OK and recovers well.
You brought back good memories for me ~ must be about 30 or so years ago that a group of us spent a couple of days on the island (B&B in Brodick) to ramble up Goat Fell. Very hot day but strong winds on top. We loved the cold Arran brewery beers on way back down. Your u made some good points and interesting images too…..
My favourite island. Been over a hundred times and climbed Goatfell more times than I remember. Lots of lovely park ups on Arran. Great photos. Lovely video. Thanks.
Last week it was Arran, where I've been wanting to go to and semi planning for a while, this week it's goat bloody fell, one of my main targets when I go there! It always looks like such a fantastic hill and thankfully you haven't put me off!
after 44 trips to iceland i have a "ton" of photos i could have done something with if i wanted to go "bananas" in lr or ps ,but i prefer going back for better light , really love that you are not going "bananas" with the editing 😎
Aside from it being based off of an emergency event. I like the photo with the helicopter so much that I will purchase whatever calendar it will be featured in.
You should use the same philosophy regarding places to park (there's always a better place just around the next corner) that you are trying to rid yourself of in your search for perfect light. Sometimes you will find perfect light, just as you will find the perfect parking place, but sometimes you won't, and you have to accept that as well. Great pictures by the way, and the light WAS perfect after all, Lol.
I hope the injured walker makes a speedy recovery & am thankful to the brave people of the MRTs for their constant service. One question Tom - how do you know if a parkup is legal & have the confidence to drive off road? Even if it's on ParkUp, I'd still be worried that I'm driving/parking on someone's private land.
Hello Thomas, nice compilation and of course you want the best, but your best is that you want too much and that it is already beautiful. love your style and your beautiful photos. Keep up the good work that makes you your own and gives your signature to your photos I hope the person is doing better, great photo, nice to see and see the stones are cool, thank you for the video. Greetings Martin
Huh. I’ve always wondered about how little you seem to shoot when you could. I shoot and shoot whenever it may be good. Plenty of options when at my computer.
Nope - too many people, moving on . . . Introvert! (I’d be exactly the same!!) More importantly though, I hope the hiker recovers well. So thankful for those who can help.
Really great panoramic on the first photo, i like the perspective, the square fits nicely. My panoramics are 4:3 ratio mostly, i need to try the square, it's so deep and balanced at the same time.
It’s so wild to think that you in the Scottish highlands and me photographing southern Appalachia (mainly Virginia and Tennessee) and we are shooting the same mountain range. Pretty wild to think about
I'm thinking this way about missing the right light when taking landscape photos. What do you gain from only taking a single picture, as you often tend to do? Prestige? Isn't it better to let go of the prestige and always take around 10 pictures at different times so that later, at home, you can calmly choose the one you like the best?
I am always impressed with your stamina and quite envious at my advanced age. Then there is your large and colorful pack which you seem to heft with no trouble. For purposes of comparison I’d be curious to know who much your kit weighs. Lovely images as usual.
You did get a couple of nice shots, Thomas, but that was a long steep walk. Still, the walk in and out of the site is always part of the adventure. The thing that gets me is you standing with your back to the camera and talking to us when I'm sitting here shouting SHOOT! SHOOT! while the light fades. Of course I realize that you have already canned the shot but that doesn't calm my anxiety. 🤣
I have the same problem and it's a bit of a challenge, especially if you've got in the back of your mind that landscape photography is about the great light (meaning golden/pnk/blue sunrise and sunset with puffy cloud and nice light). And I've watched videos from some of the other people you were with and I think that they have this figured out (and you will too) that it doesn't always have to bee the sunset light we are after. As the othes have shown in their videos over time, you can get some epic shots in the worst of lighting conditions, if you can sort of break yourself of needing that golden light for every shot. I think for iceland, while nice golden light is nice, I think that you can make equally compelling images in overcast conditions, partially because Iceland has a lot of waterfalls, and overcast light IMO is a good time to shoot that type of stuff Now that I think of it ,I have probably walked past hundreds, if not thousands of compositions simply because I was looking for the perfect light, when in fact, short of flat overcast skies perhaps, there is always something to shoot in most lighting conditions, you just have to find the right subject for the conditions. This reminds me of a video that Matt Kloskowski did for KelbyOne once where he was going to shoot a sunrise in Mt Ranier national park and it was foggy, but he knew that foggy / overcast weather means he could shoot macro instead, so he didn't waste the morning but rather just changed to shooting something still landscape related (or nature rather since it was more flowers and plants) for the lighting conditions instead of giving up and going back to the hotel for the morning. It just goes to show that while it can be disappointing sometimes, it can be fulfilling if you know how to fill in those times when the light is not exactly perfect.
Thank you for finding out what happened. Hoping it turns out alright for her. What are you going to change while out there? Are you going to force yourself to shoot every so often?
Watching the rescue unfold certainly is a timely reminder of the perils of being in the great outdoors at times and hope the injured person is now recovering. In terms of your personal analysis, think we can relate to that trait at times and can get into the habit of holding out for the epic light.
Hey Thomas, love your videos as always. Just want to say that it seems like there are some audio issues with shots from inside the car. It might just be me but it seems like the audio keeps switching channels.
Hi Thomas, Enjoyed the video as usual. If it wasn't for the helicopter crew we would all be in trouble. Thanks for taking the time to find out how it happened and i wish her a speedy recovery. Great image's as usual.
I have a great tip I've heard form other youtuber - Mads Peter Iversen, mainly if you struggle to make the landscape the main subject of the photo, you can always place a person (or yourselves) in the frame, that will draw attention from the landscape to that person. I can see him using that a lot, so must work.
Video about not waiting for the perfect light. But what about the opportunity that does not happen often to catch a helicopter in the mountains doing a rescue. 😮 an opportunity to step out of comfort zone !
What a place! What a job the rescue do! Hope the lady makes a full recovery. Love the long shot of the island. Oh and give me a shout and come out with me, you won't even need the light to be buzzing! :) Currently in Scotland for only my second time ever. Driving back Monday from Loch Insh, come and join me for a shoot :)
Just to let you know the record for the Annual Goatfell Race from Ormidale Park beside the Golf Club House in Brodick to the top and back plus 400 metres around the Park is 1 hour 12 mins 😂 my female cousin did it in her bare feet in 1953, started off with shoes, got half way up , feet were sore took the shoes off and continued to top and back to Brodick in her bsre feet. She was not an official entry as was told as a weak female they did not have the resources to rescue her when she was unable to continue 🤣
You mentioned when to shoot, referring to available light? You are using Digital! All the time! There are no constraints of film supply, number of rolls, enjoyable expenses in "Pursuit of the Romance of film". I do prefer Digital! Your images great!
I'm curious. First of all why is it necessary, other than for comfort, to have the van parked evenly? Second, do you pile the stones, then drive over them? How many times does it usually take?
I wonder if that feeling could also be your desire to capture a scene that requires less processing. Because I have definitely been photographing with friends who return with images I didn’t have but it required either time or knowledge in processing that I didn’t care to give.
Loved the video as usual. Had the same helicopter anxiety, looked like a potential James Popsys moment. Your overnight spot looked like a place vehicles weren’t supposed to be though, was it a proper car park of sorts?
Long-time follower and always amazed at how you manage to find the shot amongst the chaos. Now for a silly question: I get soaked wearing dungarees when out shooting. What are those trousers you’re wearing, and are they resistant to water at all? I’ll take any replies and suggestions. Thx!
I prefer to shoot by myself...most annoying thing is while St a location photographing, someone always comes up and says ....your taking photos I see....aaaagggghhhhh
Great video, as usual. I have a quick question for you. Your photo of the "dappled light on the water" (8:14) is taken with a telephoto lens presumably at infinity focus (looks like the subject is miles away). So my question is, why use f11? I see that the ISO was 64, so you can't go further down than that, but diffraction is probably a non-trivial issue at f/11. Why not use f5.6, which is a sweet spot for many lenses and avoids diffraction. I realize that I am an outlier, as I typically shoot wide-open or nearly so for the depth of field effects. DOF is obviously a non-issue when the entirety of the image field of view is miles away, so I would have also stopped down to something like f5.6 for optimal sharpness. I do notice that most of the landscape photographers on RU-vid favor small apertures to maximum DOF in their images, but in this case it did not seem necessary. I am trying to learn and would appreciate your thoughts on the matter. Thank you again for being such a great teacher to all of us.
I think it comes from a lot of beginner articles and books that state it's best to use f8 or f11 for the greatest DoF in landscape photography. It is repeated so often that many don't experiement with anything wider.
Same here. I think it comes from people wanting to demonstrate depth in the image, but for me it often feels like someone shoving my face towards the rocks or other foreground interest.
Great first image. But couldn't you have used Photoshop's new Remove Tool to simply remove the helicopter? Or did you record this before that feature became available?
has SD card that can shoot thousands of images....doesnt take any shots and waits for good light... something seen from the fototripper that he just keeps taking shots for what it may look good now, it may look good later. but if things goes down hill, at least there's a shot when things look fine. then again choosing later in edit is certainly difficult hassle to get through so many images as well. if its film then its certainly a different challenge since there's really a limited amount of frames, especially when it comes to panorama film photography
If you already have your camera and tripod setup, why not just shoot it at different light conditions and then decide later which one is the best, rather than just waiting?