Introduction

As we move firmly into the new year, a few reflections on the last 12 months have been brewing in the back of my mind. I don’t typically partake in resolutions, rather look to lessons learned from successes and failures as an opportunity to learn and grow as an artist and human. It was an incredible 2024 for a number of reasons: delving deep into a new photographic project in Scotland and the level of personal commitment it took to take that big step; leading multiple successful workshops across the world; completing my Isle of Harris project Machair, including a first serious foray into publishing a book; the list goes on.

Most of all it has felt like one of my most photographically productive years in a long time. I have made work that I am immensely proud of, have come into my own way of working with colour imagery (a huge creative hurdle and moment of personal creative growth), and feel as though I am actively contributing towards building more community in the landscape space. It’s been awesome to spend time with a number of other photographers who have since become good friends as well as foster relationships with people across the globe online. In the spirit of continual learning, I wanted to take a moment to draw lessons from some of these successes and bring them forward with me as my photographic journey continues into 2025, as well as share some of my favourite images of the year.

1. Leading Workshops, Creative Confidence, & Collaboration

2024 represented a subtle shift in my mindset: I recognised the importance, but also the widespread desire, for community. In a world where an increasing portion of our lives are online, in-person connections seem to be playing second fiddle and I wanted to be part of the solution encouraging real life experiences. A parallel could be drawn here to the rise of compositing/AI images and now the resurgence of naturalistic image making, but perhaps that’s for another blog post. All of this is the driving force behind why I have worked really hard to develop relationships with other photographers - arguably starting well before 2024 - and have placed a focus on organising a number of collaborative workshops. The crossover between audiences, cultures, locations, and creative energy these collaborations achieve harmonises into something special that can’t be accessed otherwise.

Collaboration rather than competition, especially in the arts, has been proven to actually boost productivity, idea generation, and overall creativity*. Acting in a relational manner, whether with people or the environment around us, is also deeply related to how we find meaning in life. I absolutely love working with other professionals to offer these experiences; sharing my passion for nature and photography with clients and seeing that spark light up when an idea or a skill clicks is one of the most fulfilling aspects of this job. My goal is always to inspire confidence - creative confidence to explore, practice, play, experiment, make mistakes, and express one’s own vision. With workshops throughout 2025 filling up (September in Scotland with Ben Maze is now sold out!), I look forward to maintaining this momentum and expanding this network of likeminded creatives.

Brie Stockwell photographing on my Drakensberg Northern Traverse trip, March 2024. I’m returning to lead a workshop in the Lesotho mountains in 2026 with Carl Smorenburg.

* Liv Boeree Podcast with Jamie Wheal

2. Publishing a Book & Storytelling

I am deeply proud of my project Machair. The process of discovery and development of my creative voice on the Isle of Harris over the last few years has been immensely rewarding. It was the landscape here that taught me to work with colour: the colour of light itself, the importance of reflections and diffusions, tonal relationships, and using colour as way of injecting emotion into images. Additionally, I feel as though the book successfully culminated all that I had learned about the place, myself, and storytelling. It was a huge creative step towards an understanding that when you feel a deep connection with a special location, discovering and then revealing its untold story through photographs is also telling your own story - these things are one and the same.

Harris has become a place of solitude for me, an island where the wide open spaces gift me the time to think, but also simply to be. There’s nothing like losing oneself and being totally engrossed in one’s surrounding - whether that’s the sound of lapping waves or the hues of Harris changing with the weather - to such a degree that hours go by without even noticing. Machair was also a technical achievement for me, as I worked deeply to understand the printed medium of zines and books in order to produce both a high quality product and one that felt considered and designed with intention. Those who have undertaken such projects will understand the time and effort that goes into projects like this (it’s more than you might think!).

*Machair*, Isle of Harris Photography Book

3. New Working Modalities

This newfound understanding of storytelling has deeply informed how I am working on photographic projects moving forward. I am seeking out the untold stories from the landscapes I visit. Slowly, through time spent and immersive experiences, I build personal connection and narrative. In this way, 2024 has been hugely successful in terms of photographic productivity. While I have slowly released work from locations all over the world, the bulk of the images (80+) that I’m most proud of are sitting unreleased - a conscious decision to follow my own curiosity and understand what this project is before sharing publicly. Giving the project a sort of incubation period has allowed me to explore creative directions that I may not have done if I was working under what felt like public scrutiny - even if it was only something that was felt and not true in reality.

Now that it has scope and shape, I am shifting towards a “build in public” model. The keen eyed follower will have noticed references in my captions and articles, as well as the “Scotland’s Lost Caledonian Forest” project tab on my website (working title). While it has been immensely productive to focus on making the work for this project (almost a selfish obsession of sorts, without the distractions of video production or social media), the time has come to start sharing more about it. Project work and photography always comes in stages for me with different flows. There’s an oscillation between thought, productivity, searching, experience, creative blocks… Allowing my intuition to guide the process is key and so I will be taking that forward with me into the next year as I start to share what I feel is truly meaningful and important work about a place I care for immensely.

Conclusion

Before I share some of my favourite images from the year, I thought I would conclude with one final “new year’s reflection” regarding the over-critiquing of my own work and ideas: things don’t have to be fully resolved. In fact, when they aren’t, they often feel more alive. Allow connections to appear naturally by their own accord. Allow creative expression to flow. Be a beginner again. Try something new. It all starts with play and experimentation. Above all else: make cool shit.