🏰 There Can Be Only One… Eilean Donan
A photo years in the making, inspired by a film I saw as a kid, and a moment that changed everything.
I must’ve first seen Eilean Donan Castle in Highlander sometime in the late 80s, wide-eyed, popcorn in hand, either at the Plaza cinema in Port Talbot or maybe at home. I don’t remember exactly when, but I’ve watched it countless times over the years. One scene burned itself into memory: Connor MacLeod, returning to Glenfinnan after being mortally wounded in battle, heals without a scar and is exiled by his village. He crosses a stone bridge with Eilean Donan in the distance, that image never left me.
Of course, Eilean Donan has shown up in plenty of films since, Rob Roy, Entrapment, Made of Honour, but none of them replaced that first moment. That childhood memory, cinematic and mysterious, was the spark.
Fast forward to December 2023. Scotland. Winter. About -4°C. I left Fort William early that morning, chasing a frost-covered shot I’d been dreaming of for years. I arrived around 9:30am, cold breath, frozen ground, and just the right light.
This was an opportunistic photo. No tripods allowed. I rested my Fujifilm X-T3 on the stone wall and framed it at 18mm, f/8, ISO 160 using the kit 18-55mm lens. I don’t remember the shutter speed, just the stillness, the silence, and that feeling of everything lining up.
When I pressed the shutter, I knew it was something I’d carry with me.
Back in the studio, I pulled it up and paused. The tones. The frost. The sense of calm and story. It wasn’t just a photo, it was the payoff of years of wanting to see that castle in person. It felt like proof that I was doing the right thing. That this was more than a hobby.
If Ruff Draft Studio had a single frame at its centre, it might be this one. It’s not perfect. But it’s honest. Atmospheric. Real.
Just like that film from all those years ago, it reminds me that there’s power in a single story well told.
Eilean Donan Castle sits on a small tidal island situated at the confluence of three sea lochs in the western Highlands of Scotland, near the village of Dornie. Available soon in the shop as a print and digital download.
Thanks for reading.
Keep exploring. Keep creating. And if you see a guy in the hills with a camera and a puppet monkey called Sid, come say hello.
– Gav