Two anchor handlers haul the Ocean Valiant up the Firth, the start of a journey from Invergordon to the Northern North Sea.  Lots of smoke as they struggle to both get her up to four or five knots, and keep her straight as she is towed up the Cromarty Firth. In photography terms a summer evening shot, looking down the Firth is tricky, as the setting sun is always right behind the subject, whether its a Rig, a Cruise ship, the steam of Invergordon’s industries or trying to get an evening shot of Ben Wyvis. The trick here is to use the sun to get a silhouette, to use photoshop to darken and contrast, and to accept the grainy gloaming colours that distant fields of spring barley and oil seed rape give through strong, but diffuse light.

I like the result, and its a powerful dramatic end result, in my humble opinion.