A Day By the Loch

Growing up my dad constantly had us in front of his camera. He took pictures of us on every special occasion, holiday, birthday, anything a little different from everyday.

Obviously most of the time my dad would pull his camera out we would groan "why?" and then begrudgingly pose for a photo.

But as I got older I realised why taking photos was so important to him.

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I have always carried around a camera, but in more recent years cameras on phones makes capturing memories that bit easier, and less bulky to carry. I am by no means a photographer, nor am I interested in taking artistic and complex photos - as beautiful and interesting as others make it seem.

I am a simple memory catcher - I take photos of friends, families, the odd bit of scenery, and the photo I have chosen represents me as this.

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The image comes from an album of photos from a holiday to Scotland in August/September 2019, where we stayed in a place called Balloch with family. I am originally from there and grew up surrounded by the natural beauty of Scotland, and specifically the nearby Loch Lomond.

Having lived in England for years and moving in with my boyfriend in Manchester, going to Scotland was a welcome holiday away from the city and our jobs.

I had finally managed to convince my boyfriend to let me get a dog after begging for months. And then came Mikka, my model for the photo.

I was so excited to get a dog and I was excited to create a bond with an animal, but I didn't expect the bond I made with Mikka to be so unconditional and mutually beneficial.

We adopted her from a family who reached out as they were struggling to take care of her. She was 6 years old when we got her and very relaxed for a husky. Like a husky, she can be a little loud and she also has separation anxiety, so she tends to latch on to her human companions.

In my head I always thought "I really hope she loves me as much as I love her," and "I really hope I am taking enough care of her and making sure she has the best life any dog can have."

I could see her happiness in her cuddles and wagging tail, but this photo - taken about 3 months after we adopted her - is the first captured proof she is happy. You can see her smile and she runs toward me across the beach of the Loch. This photo is a constant reminder for me that she is living peak dog life, and that I am just there helping her live that. And in doing that, I am living in her joy.

In moments like these I think of my dad and how we liked to take photos of us, and I understand it most now.

Mikka may not be my real child, and to some she may just be a dog. But she is the greatest source of happiness in my life, and whenever I get the opportunity, I like to capture the moments she makes me happiest.

(Maybe don't tell my boyfriend I said that.)

Look at this little smile up close!

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As mentioned, this photo was taken on the beaches of a place called Loch Lomond in Scotland. This part of the beach was surrounded by woodland walks and parks, where you can walk for miles and it just gets more beautiful as you get up to where the Loch opens and you can see around to the other side and all the boats across it. This is another reason I chose this photo to represent my mobile moments, because every time I look at it I am reminded of how beautiful nature is and how close it is to my family - and hopefully me one day.

We had just hidden from a passing cloud of rain, and when we came back out the sun was shining ready for this photo.

You can still see the cloud in this photo - typical Scotland.

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Often with my photos I edit using Adobe Lightroom and some apps which help with cropping and layout for Instagram. On occasion, my boyfriend will help me to edit through Photoshop if we want to change the background or intensify colours even more. However for this photo, I did not edit it.

I like the rawness of the photo and I like to think this photo is an exact representation of how I saw the scene on the day. I also like the fact the photo is seemingly in three parts. The first is the distant hills and trees, the clouds on the horizon, and the distant shores of the Loch. The second being the beautiful green trees closer to the camera, the pier and the ripples in the water. And the third is the beach and Mikka. This photo to me feels like a story, and from top to bottom every part is equally beautiful and featured. I feel as though if I edited the colours on this and made certain parts stand out that the story as I see it, would no longer exist.

Another reason why I like this photo is that so often when trying to take photos of a moving object, especially hyperactive dogs, the photo can end up blurry; which thankfully this did not. I often use ProCam X Lite which has different camera and editing settings. I try to remember to use the slow shutter, record (which I slow down to pause and screenshot the best parts,) or live photo to try to minimise blurriness. This also helps because it means we don't need to repose for photos, which can make everything seem faked.

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Through all of this. Seasons come and go, circumstances change and sometimes life is difficult. But this photo will always be the same and will be a constant reminder of a beautiful place, with a wonderful, happy dog and the feelings I had then are the same feelings I have now looking at the photo: complete peace and happiness.