Shooting in Scotland

Justyn

Justyn

Veteran
Cheers all,

I just arrived in Dundee Scotland today and getting my schedule set for the next two weeks. It also will be a lot more open than I had though so I'm going to have about 4 days to wonder off and shoot some stock footage of the Scotish sights and countryside. I'm planning on going to Inverness and St. Andrews.. the fringe festival, etc.

I'm looking to get any advice on things and places to go and videotape with the HVX and to also see if anyone needs any stock footage of Scotland and also the UK. I'm going to Nottingham as well. If anyone is also in the Dundee or Edinbugh area hit me up as I'm shooting a bunch and hanging out for sure.


cheers and send me a pm through DVXuser. I'm already sick of fish and chips..



Justyn
 
Firstly have a great time!

Good news... make sure you have plently of P2 cards and ways to offload them coz your going to be wanting to film morning noon and night!

Bad news.... The UK is NOT a free society when in comes to camera's or video camera's in public places. You only have to look in 'Ameteur Photographer' to see articles week after week of people being harrased by private security guards and worse the police for being in posession of camera's in public places. Its got so bad that MP's (Members of Parliment) are trying to introduce protection for 'street' photography. The UK has the most survelience cameras of any country on the planet that includes the recognised police state of China the brutal millitary dictatorship of Burma and the totallian regime of North Korea. The UK Police make no apologies whatsoever for their systematic campaign of harresment of Photographers... a few years down the line possesion of a camera in public will be illegal and I say that only slightly tougue in cheek.

You might think I'm a tourist and innocent but that won't stop you getting arrested, interviewed by 'anti-terrorist' police..... then released without charge as many many people already have.

Think I'm joking or being over the top.....

http://www.amateurphotographer.co.u...photographer_files_complaint_news_169825.html

http://www.amateurphotographer.co.u..._pictures_at_tourist_hotspot_news_180714.html
 
Indigo.. thanks for the advixe. I have had a very different experience over here. We've had no trouble anywhere and shot all over Scotland and England. The only run in we've had is a shop owner who told us to move on, but that was it. Unlike the states, you don't have to get permits and can shoot until you are told otherwise. Now aside from the filmming we've done, there are lots of other taxes, restrictions and BS over here. Plus it's really really expensive. Not sure how people can afford things over here... but maybe it's also just because the value of the dollar stinks.

I have also learned to get what y ou can when the weather is good as it's not good very often, but I love the scenery and the people are nice.. well, most of the time. cheers am looking forward to warm weather and friendly faces in the US.
 
I'm jealous... ;-)

I've had the good fortune to shoot in the UK a couple of times, but never in Scotland. Man I'd really like to see the highlands.

As for the dollar- ouch. What can you say?.... Thanks to helicopter Ben and our leadership. ;-(

As good as they are, fish and chips get old. Time to switch to Indian cuisine.

Take care man, and enjoy!
 
The little that I did get to see of them.. was awesome. I think that it needs to be a seperate week up there as the drive along makes it a minimum of a two day trip. I'm hoping to go back next year and I'd love to use it as a backdrop for something.


You are right about the fish and chips.. They did get old but I love the indian food, and really like a good latenight kabab. The English chocolates are also the best... and man so is the TV. So much better than American TV, especially for the news. It's acutally real news and not just sensationism and subjective banter. It's real news.. first news I'd say that I watched in 10 years. The Olympic coverage was much better too. Sad to say that our media sucks by comparison but it's true. Now our movie stuff, that's a different matter
 
Hi Justyn:

I shot all over Scotland last year for a project for Paramount. 46 locations in ten days so I got to shoot landmarks and people in basically every significant area as well as many insignificant area. Man, did I fall in love with Scotland, it is probably one of the most beautiful places on earth, I really miss it.

How much longer are you there? If you have a chance, here are the most interesting and picturesque places I shot in:

1. Near the home of Robert Burns in Ayr/Ayrshire - the whole town is like a beautiful storybook. A stream running through the town with huge salmon migrating up it. Burns' home from the 1700s with it's thatched roof and whitewash.

2. Paisley Abbey - Really cool looking little town, very old and historical

3. The Wallace Monument in Stirling as well as Stirling Bridge are worth a trip.

4. The battlefields in Bannockburn.

5. The castle ruins and Abbey at Roslyn was filmed for The DaVinci Code and was quite breathtaking.

6. Prince Street in Edinburgh and Edinburgh castle.

7. Scone Palace - Best graveyard I saw in Scotland. Very cool stuff if you like 17th century graves covered in skulls and other symbols.

8. Glasgow is a great town, especially down near the river. Check out the Science Centre, it's world class.

Hope you have a good time there. If you want to check out the video I shot there, you can look at "On The Trail of William Wallace" that was included on the most recent special edition of "Braveheart".

Enjoy!

Dan
 
Hey there im a Scottish HVX200 user hehe - I stay in Edinburgh so id be delighted to meet you for coffee etc if your free ;)

Edinburghs got many incredible sights - especially if you love gothic and macabre looking architecture!
 
Unfortunately I think Justyn came back from his Scotland trip already. If I make it over there again, I'll give you a heads up, would love to have a guide of the best things to shoot in Edinburgh.

Dan
 
indigo said:
Bad news.... The UK is NOT a free society when in comes to camera's or video camera's in public places. You only have to look in 'Ameteur Photographer' to see articles week after week of people being harrased by private security guards and worse the police for being in posession of camera's in public places. Its got so bad that MP's (Members of Parliment) are trying to introduce protection for 'street' photography. The UK has the most survelience cameras of any country on the planet that includes the recognised police state of China the brutal millitary dictatorship of Burma and the totallian regime of North Korea. The UK Police make no apologies whatsoever for their systematic campaign of harresment of Photographers... a few years down the line possesion of a camera in public will be illegal and I say that only slightly tougue in cheek.

You might think I'm a tourist and innocent but that won't stop you getting arrested, interviewed by 'anti-terrorist' police..... then released without charge as many many people already have.
Click to expand...

Yes indeed.

I was shooting in and around London a few months ago. I noticed the surveillance EVERYWHERE. And I was constantly harassed by security guards, etc. Any public places I went to - the streets, court yards, train stations. If they spotted the HVX200 in my hands, they rushed over to shut me down immediately.

Even on the private property encompassing The Eye (http://www.londoneye.com/) . . . a woman ran over to me and literally shoved her hand into the camera's lens and told me I was not allowed to photograph anything there.

Fortunately, though, I was not taken into custody or bothered by the police. I somehow escaped that.

I never would've imagined this before going there. This is sort of what I thought guerilla shooting in Los Angeles would be like. Granted, you're supposed to have permits here, but I've never once been hasseled by the police or private individuals.
 
Ahhh... I did come back. I have a couple of great guys for you to meet who are in Dundee. They go to Edinburg quite a bit. We were there for the fringe. Had the best time.


I'm hoping to get over there next year. Maybe we could have a get together. Anyone else going over to the UK. Great people.. horrible weather... good bland food.


Sorry to hear about the hassel. I didn't get any of it in Scotland but I tend to go downscale on the streets as it can be quite rough over there.. if you have any type of accent and expensive cam. I did think that the Scots were far friendlier than the English. I'ts also EXPENSIVE over there. Happy to be paying 3 bucks for my starbucks and not twice as much.
 
I shot in 46 cities all over Scotland and was never asked once about anything. Nobody cared, people would see me walking around with the HVX and would just keep walking. No problems in Edinburgh or Glasgow either. We even pulled up into people's front yards in the country, got out of the taxi, walked into their front pasture and started photographing a landmark. We did this several times and never saw or spoke with anybody. It was quite an amazing experience. Here in the states, doing the same thing would probably result in getting threatened, shot at and exposed to several lawsuits.

I did remove the lens hood and tried to make the camera look as "touristy" as possible. Nobody cared. I am firmly convinced that if you shoot in foreign countries and just act like a clueless tourist shooting home movies, nobody hassles you usually. Pros ask permission. Tourists just whip out their cameras and shoot whatever they want.

We did ask permission to shoot some interiors at churches in Paisley, we even made a donation to the church because they were so nice to us.

I would imagine London is a whole other story.

Dan
 
Justyn said:
Ahhh... I did come back . . . Had the best time . . . Great people.. horrible weather... good bland food. . . . Sorry to hear about the hassel. I didn't get any of it in Scotland but I tend to go downscale on the streets as it can be quite rough over there.. if you have any type of accent and expensive cam. I did think that the Scots were far friendlier than the English. I'ts also EXPENSIVE over there. Happy to be paying 3 bucks for my starbucks and not twice as much.
Click to expand...

Hey Justyn, glad you had a great time! I'd love to get over to Scotland. And yeah, it is disgustingly expensive in the UK!
 
puredrifting said:
I shot in 46 cities all over Scotland and was never asked once about anything. Nobody cared . . . I am firmly convinced that if you shoot in foreign countries and just act like a clueless tourist shooting home movies, nobody hassles you usually. Pros ask permission. Tourists just whip out their cameras and shoot whatever they want . . .
Click to expand...

Glad to hear! :thumbsup:

puredrifting said:
. . . I would imagine London is a whole other story.
Click to expand...

Um, yeah. :-BlackEye(DBG
 
Dan and ALL..


Thanks so much for the nice kind words. I did remember your post Dan when I chatted with you before and I made sure I got to do a couple of things on your list. I went to Glasgow, and Edinburg and both were really awesome. I was there in time to take in a bit of the fringe and that's great. I also got to see Glasgow Celtic take on Dundee United in a not so friendly football match. I BEG YOU ALL>. go see a soccer match in the UK. The atmosphere and proximity to the field is something to behold. Absolutely killer.


I did get to go to St. Andrews.. Really cool and make sure to play the 1.50 putting green.. it's right next to the famous 18th green. It's also got a great local ice cream parlor. Unfortunately when we went to see Rosyln Castle it was under construction so not as great to see in person. It'll be done renovations in 2 years.. but man it's a cool place.


I'm hoping to get back there next year. Hopefully meet some Scottish DVXusers over there. I do also love this website as it's just such a good way to meet cool people and share common experiences. My next trip though might either be Hong Kong or Peru...



Cheers all and I'll keep ya'll posted about my next trip over there...
 
Justyn said:
Dan and ALL..


Thanks so much for the nice kind words. I did remember your post Dan when I chatted with you before and I made sure I got to do a couple of things on your list. I went to Glasgow, and Edinburg and both were really awesome. I was there in time to take in a bit of the fringe and that's great. I also got to see Glasgow Celtic take on Dundee United in a not so friendly football match. I BEG YOU ALL>. go see a soccer match in the UK. The atmosphere and proximity to the field is something to behold. Absolutely killer.


I did get to go to St. Andrews.. Really cool and make sure to play the 1.50 putting green.. it's right next to the famous 18th green. It's also got a great local ice cream parlor. Unfortunately when we went to see Rosyln Castle it was under construction so not as great to see in person. It'll be done renovations in 2 years.. but man it's a cool place.


I'm hoping to get back there next year. Hopefully meet some Scottish DVXusers over there. I do also love this website as it's just such a good way to meet cool people and share common experiences. My next trip though might either be Hong Kong or Peru...



Cheers all and I'll keep ya'll posted about my next trip over there...
Click to expand...

Cool Justyn:

Glad you got to see what a beautiful place Scotland is. I really miss it, it was a year ago I was there. We are going to be doing the house trade deal on the web so I am hoping I can take my wife and kids over next year for a few weeks while some lucky blokes get to experience the "unique" lifestyle at our house here in SoCal. Heck, I am 15 minutes from the beach and 45 minutes from Hollywood, I hope some European will want to hang here.

Dan
 
Hey Justyn,

It sounds you had a great trip in Scotland. If you are interested in selling your footage, I would like to recommend that you check out Pixelflow.

We have tons of content hungry customers and NO footage of Scotland. We also offer premium royalties (80%) and painless uploads.

Feel free to message me directly if you would like more info.
 
Sounds cool. I got a good deal of stuff and my buddies over there have been going out shooting a bunch of stock footie. I'll send you a note tomorrow. One cool thing I got was a sheep stampede... lol
 
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