Letter From Scotland – Tools of the Trade

March 10, 2011 • Richard Childs

Faraid Head

I have recently been hunting for a Golf trolley. Not that I have any intention of dragging a set of clubs around eighteen holes on a quiet afternoon but because I want to carry enough food, fuel, cooking utensils, bedding and clothing to stay in remote bothies for two or three nights at a time.

Having looked at many options over the past year including bikes with trailers, quad bikes, Rokon two wheel drive motorbikes (with trailer) and all terrain baby buggies (favoured by photographers in the US apparently) I settled on a golf trolley as my best option. It has to be able to take some serious punishment and therefore needs pneumatic tyres and a decent suspension system to survive the average 10km walk in along rocky Landrover tracks here in The Highlands. I got the idea from an American I met a few years ago while walking Alfred Wainwright’s ‘Coast to coast’ walk which covers 189 miles from St Bee’s Head in Cumbria to Robin Hood’s Bay on the North Yorkshire coast. While climbing out of Kirkby Stephen towards the great stone cairns on Nine Standards Rigg I saw a solitary figure strolling down the track towards me pulling a trolley. He suddenly stopped, pulled a camera out of the top of bag, grabbed a quick shot and was on his way in seconds with none of the usual faffing with getting a rucksac on and off his back first. We talked for a while and I discovered that he had walked a number of long distance trails both in Britain and America and always pulled his gear rather than carried it. In doing so he saved his shoulders, neck and back any strain but also was able to access camera, sandwiches and jacket etc in an instant.

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In Letters, Letters, Needs Free Subscription, Richard Childs

8 Responses

1. Richard Childs

   I should have added that the Faraid Head image suffers from windshake. In order to capture the moving water I used nd to extend the exposure to 8 seconds. The fresh breeze was a nightmare. This image is actually made of 8×1 second exposures made during calmer moments in an effort to overcome the problem but sadly does not stand up to scrutiny with a loupe.

   On March 11, 2011 at 4:12 pm • Reply
2. kevin-allan

   Extending the household items theme to developing film:
   a) Instead of commercial collapsible bottles for storing chemicals (about £7-10 each), use milk bottles (washed of course) and just squeeze the sides to expel the air before putting the top on.
   b) Don’t spend £10 a time on “graduates” to measure chemicals, get a plastic kithchen jug from Morrisons for 79p. You just need one proper graduate in a smaller size to measure the “neat” chemicals more accurately.

   I also have a clothes peg in my camera bag to hold light vegetation out the way.

   On March 11, 2011 at 11:31 pm • Reply
3. Joe Rainbow

   An interesting article Richard.
   I am sure collectively there are hundreds of solutions to everyday photographic problems.
   I have been thinking about the problem of tripods sinking in soft sand on beaches, and although I haven’t tried this yet, I thought that a piece of triangular plastic attached to the tripod legs on each point of the triangle would prevent the whole thing sinking? Certainly worth an experiment or two.
   I have often thought of a hotshoe attachment of a miniature umbrella, just enough to deflect light rain and spray. Strong winds would mean shake though.
   Would be interested to see other useful devices.
   `I am never without a small umbrella for unforseen rain

   On March 12, 2011 at 12:22 pm • Reply
   • spodzone

     A visitor to our photo-club suggested a Vileda/chamois to keep rain/spray off – especially as slightly-damp is optimal to make it droop clingingly over a camera.

     That actually had me in Halford’s over the weekend to acquire one!

     On March 13, 2011 at 11:53 pm • Reply
4. David Barrett

   Three cheap, small, plastic camping plates—one under each tripod foot—will prevent sinking. Very light and they stack well. Handy if you have guests round for canapes at your tent, too!

   On March 13, 2011 at 9:58 am • Reply
5. JohnParminter

   Richard,
   I have been driven to dispair on several occasions by midges and no doubt will be again this summer but at least I use a repellent that is effective in preventing them biting me.
   I use Avon Skin-so-Soft dry oil moisturising spray. You used to be able to get a Woodland Fresh fragrance that was even better but they only seem to do the natural fragrance these days but it is still the only stuff that deters them from biting me.
   I need to keep reapplying it especially if I am walking and sweating and it won’t deter a swarm actually landing on you but it dramatically cuts down the biting which is at least something.

   On March 14, 2011 at 5:30 pm • Reply
6. Robinj

   Very useful info, but if anybody has found the perfect reading glasses and means of securing them, i would be grateful.

   On March 15, 2011 at 1:03 pm • Reply
7. David Mould

   I concur with John about the midge problem… another great source of advice and pre shoot information (after May) about midges is Scottish Midge forecast website… Cold comfort, I know, but at least you know how badly you are going to get hit by the little bug…s…

   On March 16, 2011 at 8:49 am • Reply