About

Lightstalker Adventures

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover” Mark Twain

Glen Campbell M.photog

Thanks for visiting and welcome to the Lightstalker Adventures website.

Glen Campbell has been guiding and teaching  photographers and leading workshops since 2004.

A multi-award winning Master Photographer with a passion for adventure and the outdoors,  Glen established Lightstalkers in Scotland back  in 2009. Since then he’s been guiding and sharing his passion with other photographers around his native Scotland, Australia, Namibia  and some of the best locations in Europe and Scandinavia.

Glen graduated from studying Visual Arts – Applied Photography in NMIT  Melbourne in 2003 and quickly established a photography career in Australia.

He developed a career starting with a 3 year stint as one of the photography team  with the extremely talented Andrew Esposito and Rocco Ancora at Astir Images.

Moving onto freelancing for newspapers covering everything from sport, editorial and also covered the devastating Victorian Bushfires in 2009. He then went onto receive commercial commissions from state government in Major Infrastructure projects, construction, transport and corporate  work.

Always in the background was his passion for  travel, wild places and the landscape, which led to multiple photography awards from 2003 to 2009 through the Australian Institute for Professional Photography winning Victorian Landscape Photographer of the Year in 2004 and again in 2005.

After a period of guiding and co leading workshops all over Australia, Glen returned to Scotland in 2009 and established Lightstalkers Scotland and Lightstalker Adventures and devoted his time to Landscape and Travel photography full time.

A Highlander at heart Glen is now based in the East Neuk of Fife with his 3 children and partner Lynne.

Glen Campbell

Lightstalkers

Lightstalkers Scotland  was one of the first providers of comprehensive photographic workshops in the Scottish Highlands.

Lightstalker Adventures provides you with the same dedicated attention to detail at locations in Europe and beyond.

These photography trips have always been client focused and Glen works hard to get you to the best locations at just the right time in the best conditions. Once there he share insights and technical help so you can create great images at inspiring locations.

Unlike some workshop providers Lightstalkers does not contract out its services to other guides or overload them with too many participants.

That means every trip, group or solo is guided by Glen –  he has vested interest in making sure you get the best experience possible and benefit of his professional knowledge and experience.

You can follow our adventures here on Instagram@lightstalker_adventures or search for some of my work on 500px as Glen Campbell – @glenphoto1.

I offer varied and well organised photography trips for small, intimate groups of around 3 – 6  like minded individuals. Clients usually all share common goals, to create great images, improve skills, explore stunning locations and share a great social experience making new friends along the way.

All our featured locations are thoroughly researched by myself prior to arriving.

I’ve already made the mistakes so this this  enables you to get the benefit of hindsight that ensures we to the right place at the right time without wasting time.

I hope you can join me.

Top 5 reason to choose Lightstalkers 

Experience and knowledge – I’ve been guiding and operating workshops and photo tours for 20 years.

Pro Photographer guide with years of photography experience in the industry.

Local Knowledge – extensive knowledge of Scotland and all the locations are throughly researched by myself.

I don’t dilute the experience by using other contracted guides – I personally guide every Lightstalkers workshop – single or group.

Over 75 % client repeat rate – I invite you to check out our testimonials page for some client comments..

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… a few more reasons

Keeping it simple. I like to keep my photo tour groups small, sociable, informative and fun. Many other operators run trips with 8 – 20 participants, that’s great for them but not for you.

This dilutes the experience on location and can get frustrating with too many competing photographers overcrowding  a location. This is something you won’t have to contend with as I believe it defeats the purpose of experiencing wild places. Our small groups consist of 3-6 photographers. This creates a good social environment as well as a more practical one, so you can get the images you want without feeling rushed.

I keep our fees as low as possible to offer you the valued client the best deal while maintaining a high level of quality. The locations are the same but our level of service and commitment to our clients is second to none

There’s no ego here, these trips are all about you, getting “you” to the right locations at the right time and working hard to ensure you get the very best photographic experience possible.

Friendly technical advice and assistance is always on hand as well as pointing out where and how to capture key shots and suggestions on how to improve every aspect of you photography.

If you wish to view our Ts & C’s just click any “Book Now” button on any of the featured photo tours and you’ll see a terms and conditions link, don’t worry you won’t be committing to anything.

The Planet

As travel has become more accessible, more people are getting out there and exploring the natural world, which is great. However, this can as we know create a negative impact. So I try and tread lightly and visit more out of the way places when I can.

Some locations are getting crazy busy with tourists , Instagramers,  large groups and photogaphers descending on popular places.

Again, I’m trying to avoid diluting the experience by having small groups and visiting more out of the way places when I can. I’m also looking into offsetting the emmisons of the vehicles I drive on tour, stopping the use of plastic bottles and other unnecessary packaging. We also  eat out in places that use local produce as much as possible. Every little helps.

Our Objectives

My key aim is to create a friendly, supportive, informative, memorable and fun experience for all my valued clients, regardless of their of level of experience. I am very proud of my 70% client repeat rate and I invite you to book a trip online and create your own Lightstalkers experience.  So join me to explore and photograph  some of the most  inspiring  locations out there and create a personal portfolio of stunning photography.

“By reducing the art of photography to its essence, and explaining in simple English how my digital camera could best be taken advantage of, I found myself looking through the lens with a new found inspiration and the confidence to nail the images I dream of capturing. Glen powerfully demonstrated that even the most advanced equipment is just a tool that will only work with sound knowledge of the basic principles of photography.” Tim Cope – National Geographic Adventure Honoree 2007 – Australian Adventurer of the year 2006

 

My Philosophy

Camera skills and principles of exposure and light are key.

Image editing software  plays its  part in contemporary photography and its important to have a good grasp of which ever platform you use. However the key to becoming a great photographer is an in-depth understanding of camera craft and a skill in developing your vision. From understanding exposure to creating clever compositions, using your own personal perspective to defining your own style is a journey that can have its ups and downs. Failure is part of the road to success and I’ve enjoyed seeing many participants evolve into great photographers through their own journeys with me over the years. Practice, experiment and learn.

Remember – “The type of camera you have isn’t that important, it’s  what you do with it that counts”. It’s a well used comment, and it’s totally true. Sure a great camera with great lenses will produce a better quality final image and we all the want the best. However it’s knowledge, practice and creativity that contribute to bring success.

You don’t need the best kit to join me on a trip. It’s attitude that matters along with the desire to learn, experience and  try different things. Being able to suffer failure and frustration, then learn from it is key.

“Landscape photography is the supreme test of the photographer – and often the supreme disappointment” Ansel Adams

My Camera bag

 I like to keep it simple and light with minimal fuss and gadgets. I usually work between focal lengths of 16mm to 200mm.

I use two pro kits including two full frame Nikon SLRs and Fujifilm camera systems.

Mavik Pro 2 Drone  for aerial work and I hold a CAA A2 Cofc qualification.

Filters systems:  Lee filters and Grads and Hoya Pro1 polarisers.

Tripods:  Gitzo  Signature, Benro Tortoise and Manfrottos

Camera bags: Big and small – Low Pro, Manfrotto and Mindshift

Post production: Adobe Photoshop CC for 80% of editing and some Lightroom Classic

Hardware:  Macbook Pro 13 inch and a Samsung T3 back up in the field. An iMac with western digital  back ups back home. Canon Pro 100s printer for creating prints.

My photographic background

Back in the mid 90’s I had a dream of becoming a professional photographer. I emigrated to Australia to realise that dream in 1997 and lived there until to 2009.  During that time I studied Visual Art – Applied Photography in Melbourne at NMIT. Upon Graduating  I received the Folio of the Year award from the institute. I joined the AIPP (Australia’s professional photography institute) and went on to win the landscape, industrial and architecture categories in the state of Victoria student awards run by the professional body  in 2003.

I then embarked on a freelance photography career. This included working for Astir Images, being mentored by both Andrew Esposito and Rocco Ancora, two of Australia’s most innovative and creative wedding photographers.  Working with Astir sharpened my camera skill’s, my understanding of light and developed my creative eye which would push my photography across all disciplines to a new level.

However weddings weren’t  where  my true passion lay and I eventually moved onto creating commercial image portfolios  for the State Government of Victoria. This included creating image portfolios for  infrastructure, transport, information technology and major construction projects. I also  worked for newspaper groups photographing everything from devastating bush fire disasters, sport, human interest and even the Australian Prime Minister.

During this time  I was still following my true passion – Landscape photography. I explored the numerous National Parks of Victoria and Australia at very opportunity on both 4 and 2 wheels. I  honed my skills on transparency film with my Xpan and Nikon film cameras while building a body of images and knowledge of the landscape and light. In 2004 I was awarded the  AIPP Epson Victorian Landscape Photographer of the Year for a portfolio of work and went onto win the same  award once again in 2005.

 I also became an Associate of the AIPP and in 2007 received the honour of  AIPP – Master of Photography a distinguished award in the  Australian professional photography industry.

I’m now based in Scotland again where I live with my partner Lynne and three children Kira, Tomas and Lewis.

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Photography workshops and tuition

In 2004 I met and teamed up with fellow landscape photographer Tom Putt. Together we co led a series of landscape photography workshops in Australia.  These included Tasmania’s Cradle Mountain, Victoria’s Great Ocean Road and the vibrant Red Centre of the Northern Territory. In 2009 I made the move back to my native Scotland, the die being cast and  Lighstalkers Scotland was born.

Lighstalker Adventures is the latest chapter in my story, photographing locations outwith Scotland and as far as Australia.  I’m really looking forward to continuing the adventure,  creating great images with you, sharing my knowledge and passion for photography with my current clients and meeting new ones from around the globe. I hope you take the opportunity to book one of our trips and join me on location soon.

Photography awards and achievements

Gold and Silver awards SWPP/BPPA – United Kingdom 2009* Silver award AIPP Canon Australian Professional Photographer Awards 2008 Honour – Master of Photography – AIPP 2007 Silver, silver distncn and gold awards Canon Australian Professional Photographer Awards 2007 Multiple silver and silver distinctions Epson Victorian Professional Photography Awards 2007 Multiple silver / silver distinction awards Epson Victorian Professional Photography Awards 2006 Gold and multiple silver awards – Canon Australian Professional Photographer Awards 2006 AIPP Victorian Epson Landscape Photographer of the Year 2005 Multiple silver / silver distinction awards Epson Victorian Professional Photography Awards 2005 Gold and silver awards – Canon Australian Professional Photographer Awards 2005 AIPP Victorian Epson Landscape Photographer of the Year 2004 Multiple silver and one gold award – Epson Victorian Professional Photography Awards 2004 Honour – Associate member – Australian Institute of Professional Photography (AIPP) 2004 Gold and multiple silver awards – Canon Australian Professional Photographer Awards 2004 Landscape / Architecture / Industrial category winner – Victorian Student of the Year Awards 2003 2 silver awards, Canon Australian Institute of Professional Photographer Awards 2003 Member – Australian Institute of Professional Photography 2003 NMIT – folio of the year 2003 Diploma – Visual Arts / Applied Photography 2003 Fuji scholarship recipient  2003