The Scottish Western Isles of the Outer Hebrides are a chain of inter-connected islands, each possessing their own unique character and way of life. The landscapes of these islands vary wildly; from boulder-strewn mountains, shell-sand beaches, flower-covered machair, countless lochs and lochans, vast watery peat bogs, to monuments built by long-forgotten civilizations. The local communities are warm and welcoming - a defining trait of Gaelic island culture.

Filmed over five weeks in the Summer of 2019, this film showcases some of the most dramatic environments and landmarks of the islands. Fourteen Hebridean islands are featured here; Vatersay, Barra, Eriskay, South Uist, North Uist, Benbecula, Baleshare, Grimsay, Berneray, Vallay, Lewis, Harris, Scalpay and Great Bernera.

Music: Flares - Breathing Fire. Used under license.
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Technical Stuff

The climate of the Outer Hebrides can be very changeable which makes filming with a drone quite challenging. More so than normal photography. I was also mostly wild camping, which meant I had no way of regularly recharging batteries. I had to pick and choose my shots with care and make the best of the conditions available to me.

The most challenging shots were those of the Callanish standing stones. The site is usually busy with tourists during the day, and I wanted to get shots of the stones, not people! After a week of less than perfect conditions, the rain and cloudy conditions gave way to blue skies and I finally got the early morning shot I wanted. Strangely, the shots which required me to climb a mountain were much simpler.

Some shots are less than perfect as weather and lighting conditions are always in flux. Thankfully, I quite enjoy the post-production process.

The hyperlapse footage was the most time consuming to correct. Ideally you want very still conditions in order to get the most "fluid" motion. This is impossible when filming on islands where there is almost always a constant breeze. I used Adobe After Effects to stabilise all the hyperlapse segments (mostly frame-by-frame), as well as some of the other footage. It is far from perfect, but I am happy enough with the results.

Colour correction and grading is an area I have been trying to perfect. I like to try and keep my colours looking as natural as possible but given the limitations (lighting conditions, the hardware, poorly configured settings...) I have had to do some extensive colour correction. For the most part the colours are real, with a slight boost to contrast and saturation.

DJI Mavic 2 Zoom
Skyreat ND Lenses
Adobe Premiere Pro
Adobe After Effects

00:00 - Vatersay
00:10 - Lewis
00:12 - Barra
00:16 - Lewis
00:19 - Barra
00:23 - Baleshare
00:26 - North Uist
00:33 - Lewis
00:40 - Benbecula
00:43 - Harris
00:46 - Lewis
00:50 - South Uist
00:53 - Lewis
00:56 - Vallay
01:00 - Lewis
01:03 - Eriskay
01:07 - South Uist
01:10 - Barra
01:24 - Vatersay
01:27 - Lewis
01:31 - Harris
01:40 - Berneray
01:44 - Baleshare
01:47 - Eriskay
01:50 - Berneray
01:54 - Harris
02:01 - Harris
02:04 - Great Bernera
02:11 - Lewis
02:14 - Barra
02:19 - Lewis
02:33 - Barra
02:45 - Harris
02:48 - South Uist
02:51 - Lewis
02:55 - Scalpay
03:01 - Barra
03:05 - North Uist
03:08 - Harris
03:15 - Grimsay
03:19 - Harris
03:22 - South Uist
03:25 - Lewis

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