• It's so hard to find the right words at the moment. I'm scared of saying the wrong thing and I'm scared of saying nothing. Between Covid-19 and the George Floyd protests, it's tempting to fall into silence at this time. I don't want to add my uneducated voice to the mix - but I'm taking time to listen and learn. Trying to keep my heart open to the pain in the world so I can act, speak and be better. I'm far from perfect and I know there is so much more I could and should be doing but I'm trying - I'm not hiding.⁣ ♥️ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ I was sorting through my archives yesterday (a good low-key task for a hard day) and I came across this trip up north with Dave. I want to take a second to talk about bothies. These buildings are dotted about the Scottish countryside and to me, represent a lovely aspect of Scottish culture. They are small buildings used by hillwalkers as a place to shelter - overnight or during the day. Mostly free, this is a safe place where strangers come together to weather storms and share warmth of a fire. There is a bothy code of conduct which is centred around respect and inclusion - this is fiercely guarded by a strong bothy community. In particular there is a 'make space' unspoken rule - where everyone shuffles up to make space for newcomers. There is no hierarchy, there is no preferential treatment. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ It's wonderful to wake up in the morning and find yourself surrounded by friendly people who are all too happy to lend you a working lighter or give you insider tips for the best trails. It makes me wish, now more than ever, we had more of a bothy culture in our wider society.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ The bothy pictured here is a private bothy I believe and has a rather hair-raising rope bridge to get over to it 😂 I'd love to book in there sometime in the future! For more about public bothies check out the Mountain Bothy Association website or read the Bothy Bible book by Geoff Allan.
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    It's so hard to find the right words at the moment. I'm scared of saying the wrong thing and I'm scared of saying nothing. Between Covid-19 and the George Floyd protests, it's tempting to fall into silence at this time. I don't want to add my uneducated voice to the mix - but I'm taking time to listen and learn. Trying to keep my heart open to the pain in the world so I can act, speak and be better. I'm far from perfect and I know there is so much more I could and should be doing but I'm trying - I'm not hiding.⁣ ♥️ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ I was sorting through my archives yesterday (a good low-key task for a hard day) and I came across this trip up north with Dave. I want to take a second to talk about bothies. These buildings are dotted about the Scottish countryside and to me, represent a lovely aspect of Scottish culture. They are small buildings used by hillwalkers as a place to shelter - overnight or during the day. Mostly free, this is a safe place where strangers come together to weather storms and share warmth of a fire. There is a bothy code of conduct which is centred around respect and inclusion - this is fiercely guarded by a strong bothy community. In particular there is a 'make space' unspoken rule - where everyone shuffles up to make space for newcomers. There is no hierarchy, there is no preferential treatment. ⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ It's wonderful to wake up in the morning and find yourself surrounded by friendly people who are all too happy to lend you a working lighter or give you insider tips for the best trails. It makes me wish, now more than ever, we had more of a bothy culture in our wider society.⁣ ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⁣ The bothy pictured here is a private bothy I believe and has a rather hair-raising rope bridge to get over to it 😂 I'd love to book in there sometime in the future! For more about public bothies check out the Mountain Bothy Association website or read the Bothy Bible book by Geoff Allan.
  • Time to listen + learn. Black lives matter. . . . #blackouttuesday
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    Time to listen + learn. Black lives matter. . . . #blackouttuesday
  • If you've been planning a wedding lately you might have seen the word 'elopement' starting to pop up here, there and everywhere. But what does eloping really mean?⁣ ⁣ The definition of eloping has begun to change drastically over the last few years. Gone are the days where elopements were only for runaway secret lovers or the registry-office quickie.⁣ ⁣ In an evolving movement towards a different kind of 'elopement' there's no conrete new definition but here are my thoughts on what an elopement is...⁣ ⁣ An elopement is choosing connection over expectation by marrying in an intimate, meaningful and highly-personal way. Focusing only on your commitment - an elopement creates a space for you to be truly vulnerable and present with each other on your wedding day.⁣ ⁣ And here are some key attributes of an elopement...⁣ ⁣ 🍁Intentionally small - with only a select chosen few (whether that's just both of you or 10 of your closest family and friends!)⁣ 🍁 The focus is wholly and completely on you as a couple and the commitment you are making together⁣ 🍁 It can take any shape you want it to - you get to craft a day which is unique and reflective of your relationship⁣ 🍁You get to make the rules (personal vows? sure! purple dress? hell yeah! in a treehouse? see you there! at night? I'll bring the headtorch) - but seriously, you can choose the traditions you wish honour, if any, and you can start new traditions of your own⁣ ⁣ It's a pretty special way to get married ♥️ if you're not sure what you're wedding plans look like then why not save this post to come back to? Or head over to my latest blog to read a little more 😘
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    If you've been planning a wedding lately you might have seen the word 'elopement' starting to pop up here, there and everywhere. But what does eloping really mean?⁣ ⁣ The definition of eloping has begun to change drastically over the last few years. Gone are the days where elopements were only for runaway secret lovers or the registry-office quickie.⁣ ⁣ In an evolving movement towards a different kind of 'elopement' there's no conrete new definition but here are my thoughts on what an elopement is...⁣ ⁣ An elopement is choosing connection over expectation by marrying in an intimate, meaningful and highly-personal way. Focusing only on your commitment - an elopement creates a space for you to be truly vulnerable and present with each other on your wedding day.⁣ ⁣ And here are some key attributes of an elopement...⁣ ⁣ 🍁Intentionally small - with only a select chosen few (whether that's just both of you or 10 of your closest family and friends!)⁣ 🍁 The focus is wholly and completely on you as a couple and the commitment you are making together⁣ 🍁 It can take any shape you want it to - you get to craft a day which is unique and reflective of your relationship⁣ 🍁You get to make the rules (personal vows? sure! purple dress? hell yeah! in a treehouse? see you there! at night? I'll bring the headtorch) - but seriously, you can choose the traditions you wish honour, if any, and you can start new traditions of your own⁣ ⁣ It's a pretty special way to get married ♥️ if you're not sure what you're wedding plans look like then why not save this post to come back to? Or head over to my latest blog to read a little more 😘
  • Got up really early today to experience the deserted city centre. It was eerie and beautiful. So much of modern Edinburgh is it's hustle and happy bustle but standing in the quiet streets you can still feel it's old stories. There is something deeply palpable about its history - embedded in every cobblestone.⁣ ⁣ Walking through the Royal Mile, it was nice to see the City Chambers. Normally it's hard to get into the lovely courtyard and you have this feeling of intruding but it was nice to wander round it freely.⁣ ⁣ It made me think of the last intimate wedding I had here. Eloping with their most loved friends, Peter + Shen had a lovely ceremony inside the chambers before enjoying the post-ceremony glow whilst wandering the beautiful streets of this fair city!⁣ ⁣ For anyone who has been thinking of having a small intimate wedding in light of the current situation... Please remember there are lots of ways to do this. But most of all - do it your way. A way that brings you joy and makes you feel most connected to each other and the values you share. I'll be sharing a bit more on this over the next couple of weeks ♥️♥️
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    Got up really early today to experience the deserted city centre. It was eerie and beautiful. So much of modern Edinburgh is it's hustle and happy bustle but standing in the quiet streets you can still feel it's old stories. There is something deeply palpable about its history - embedded in every cobblestone.⁣ ⁣ Walking through the Royal Mile, it was nice to see the City Chambers. Normally it's hard to get into the lovely courtyard and you have this feeling of intruding but it was nice to wander round it freely.⁣ ⁣ It made me think of the last intimate wedding I had here. Eloping with their most loved friends, Peter + Shen had a lovely ceremony inside the chambers before enjoying the post-ceremony glow whilst wandering the beautiful streets of this fair city!⁣ ⁣ For anyone who has been thinking of having a small intimate wedding in light of the current situation... Please remember there are lots of ways to do this. But most of all - do it your way. A way that brings you joy and makes you feel most connected to each other and the values you share. I'll be sharing a bit more on this over the next couple of weeks ♥️♥️
  • Slàinte mhòr! (cheers for good health) As it's #worldwhiskeyday, it's a good reason to raise a wee dram to good health. It's hard not to think about whisky in the list of the Very Scottish Things (alongside the holy deep-fried mars bar of course!). I'll let you in on a secret (and one I'm always a little embarrassed to mention in front of my whisky-enthuastic couples) - I don't like whisky. I've tried quite a few whisky tastings and I just don't have the refined palette to appreciate it (it's all various levels 'this one burns' and 'this one burns less than the last one'). It's daft but sometimes I feel a little less Scottish for it - I make up for it with a love of Scottish gin (which has been sky-rocketing in popularity the last few years). ⁣ ⁣ But neither of these things will end up my quaich if I have the choice. (The #quaich is a two-handled cup which symbolises friendship and love - it's shared between people to bind them together). I love seeing the quaich tradition in a wedding ceremony or adventure elopement shared between lovers. My favourite quaich tipple is mead (a sweet honey wine) because I have a terrible sweet tooth and mead makes me feel like a #norseviking 😂⁣ ⁣ So are you a whisky fan? If so, what your favourite one? You might persuade me to give whiskey another shot 😆⁣ ⁣ #scotspirit #visitscotland #friendshipcup #edinburghscotland #edinburghphotographer #visitscotland #lovescotland #lovescotch #celtictradition #hiddenscotland #unlimitedscotland #twosecretvows #belovedstories #wanderingweddings #adventurewedding #weddingtraditions #scottishwedding #scottishweddingphotographer
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    Slàinte mhòr! (cheers for good health) As it's #worldwhiskeyday, it's a good reason to raise a wee dram to good health. It's hard not to think about whisky in the list of the Very Scottish Things (alongside the holy deep-fried mars bar of course!). I'll let you in on a secret (and one I'm always a little embarrassed to mention in front of my whisky-enthuastic couples) - I don't like whisky. I've tried quite a few whisky tastings and I just don't have the refined palette to appreciate it (it's all various levels 'this one burns' and 'this one burns less than the last one'). It's daft but sometimes I feel a little less Scottish for it - I make up for it with a love of Scottish gin (which has been sky-rocketing in popularity the last few years). ⁣ ⁣ But neither of these things will end up my quaich if I have the choice. (The #quaich is a two-handled cup which symbolises friendship and love - it's shared between people to bind them together). I love seeing the quaich tradition in a wedding ceremony or adventure elopement shared between lovers. My favourite quaich tipple is mead (a sweet honey wine) because I have a terrible sweet tooth and mead makes me feel like a #norseviking 😂⁣ ⁣ So are you a whisky fan? If so, what your favourite one? You might persuade me to give whiskey another shot 😆⁣ ⁣ #scotspirit #visitscotland #friendshipcup #edinburghscotland #edinburghphotographer #visitscotland #lovescotland #lovescotch #celtictradition #hiddenscotland #unlimitedscotland #twosecretvows #belovedstories #wanderingweddings #adventurewedding #weddingtraditions #scottishwedding #scottishweddingphotographer