As you may know we are building a second business, or my wife is, which will to some extent overlap with the Photography business as time goes on. Things are slowly… very slowly… progressing on this front and we have submitted the latest proposals to the council to try and free the log jam that will allow us to proceed with building the site in the lower field which will, in turn, allow us to get the shepherd huts moving.
There is still a LOT to do before we get there, but if we can get this piece of the puzzle sorted out then I am on more “comfortable” ground as the next phase to sort out is water and waste water - both of which I worked in for 15 years.
How does this tie in? Well, our plan is to offer photography workshops, tours and holidays particularly in the “off” and “shoulder” seasons when the light is better and the scenery is more dramatic! I may work these in to the quiet periods on the commercial photography calendar so far as possible too as I am building a reputation for my work in the wider area of the Highlands and Islands and want to continue pushing that forward. I am also looking at perhaps running some culture and heritage tours over the main holiday period for our guests - using Drumnadrochit as a base gives us ample coverage of the whole of the Highland region for day trips, and potentially into Moray for Whisky tours. Jen has plans for other events of her own and with some friends in the area too, so it should be a pretty varied and interesting crowd coming up to see us as the annual cycle moves on.
The other advantage of this plan is that it will allow me to focus a wee bit more on the more “artistic” side of photography and really get into the local landscapes again rather than just rushing between properties and commercial shoots!
Anyway, we have a busy week ahead - I am working with a school tomorrow, commercial shooting on Tuesday then hopefully get a couple of days mid-week to finish my application to go back to University in August (for a 4th degree!) and start getting my head down to studying for a drone licence upgrade to the latest spec. There hasn’t been a great deal coming in on the property front lately and I know I have a glut of holiday lets coming imminently (locally) and perhaps later in the year (Cairngorms) so should probably try and get this all wrapped up whilst I have the time!
