Every now and then, a workshop comes along that reminds me why I love doing what I do. My recent five-day, four-night one-on-one photography workshop in Glencoe with Mike was exactly that — a journey through one of Scotland’s most dramatic landscapes, filled with adventure, learning, and some truly unforgettable moments.

It was a cold autumn night, sometime in the early 1990s. I stood alone in a quiet field miles from the nearest town, my camera in hand, my breath hanging in the air like smoke. Above me, the sky stretched endlessly, a dark velvet cloth scattered with glittering stars. I knew how to take photographs — I'd spent years mastering light, shadow, timing. But looking up that night, something shifted. The stars weren't just beautiful; they were calling to me. I didn’t just want to see them. I wanted to capture them.

Chasing Light: A Northumberland Workshop Adventure

Holding Space in North Wales: A Four-Day Photography Journey with Alena

I remember it like it was yesterday. January 12, 1999—my first-ever photography workshop. I was 27, excited and terrified at the same time, and it was about to be the start of something huge. I had spent weeks planning this five-day road trip through Iceland’s South Coast, mapping out every stop from Reykjavík to Höfn. Waterfalls, black sand beaches, glaciers… and hopefully the aurora if we got lucky.