Shona Perkins, NiSi UK Ambassador
Shona is a Scottish Photographer, specialising in Seascape and ICM Photography.
Heavily influenced by contemporary art and abstract minimalism, Shona has spent the past few years developing her passion for intentional camera movement (ICM photography).
Whilst largely self-taught, Shona previously enrolled with the British Academy of Photography gaining a greater knowledge of the fundamentals and complexities of digital photography.
Technique is extremely important to Shona and whilst ICM photography demonstrates a certain creative freedom and experimentation, Shona applies a considered, focussed and disciplined approach to her work ensuring the best results are achieved in camera.
Often described as creating a sense of calm through her imagery, Shona manages to capture emotional depth, solitude, tranquillity and haunting beauty in her work, all whilst maintaining her distinctive painterly style.
Known as an inspirational leader and speaker, Shona also has a wealth of experience in coaching, mentoring and developing teams, having worked at a Senior level in Retail Management for 20+ years. Shona loves nothing more than helping people reach their full potential and has been running photography workshops, creative retreats and private tuition for the past 3 years, having established her Business My Beautiful Scotland in 2018.
Shona’s Gear Bag
- Nikon Z7ii
- Nikon 24-70mm f/2.8
- Nikon 70-200mm f/2.8
- Nisi V7 Holder with True Colour CPL
- NiSi Swift FS ND Kit 82mm
- Nisi Soft and Medium 0.9 graduated ND filter
- Nisi IR ND 3,6,10 stop filters
- Benro Tortoise 35C/GX35 Tripod
- Shimoda action 30
What got you into photography?
Shona:
I have enjoyed taking photographs all my life, my first camera was a Kodak Instamatic back in the 80s as well as having numerous self-wind point and shoot models over the years. But it was when my corporate career ended in 2017 that I really started to explore photography, falling in love with the Scottish landscape all over again!
What is your dream location to Photograph?
Shona:
Besides the Outer Hebrides, which is always a dream to photograph, I would love to return to Cape Cod National Seashore for some ICM and long exposure photography.
Every photographer has that one day when it all went wrong – tell us about yours
Shona:
We have all done it, which perhaps makes this a little less embarrassing (Maybe)! You know, that time when you are at the most amazing location and you just have to get a selfie.. Here I was, in the Isle of Harris with my husband and my dog a couple of years ago at a particularly remote and incredibly beautiful beach, the perfect backdrop for a family selfie, one for the mantelpiece!
So, tripod in position, camera focussed, dog behaving, what could go wrong? Well, anyone who has been to the Outer Hebrides will know that the weather is unpredictable, ever changing and that a ‘squall’ can come out of nowhere. The weather system in the Outer Hebrides is like nowhere else, I knew this!! However, we were having a moment and I wanted a selfie to capture it and right on que, a sudden and mighty violent gust of wind knocked us quite literally off our feet! The storm that followed (of which we weren’t prepared for), just added to the comedy value!
Sadly, we don’t have a photo to show, as it knocked my tripod off its feet too, smashing my lens in the process and sandblasting my camera! Of course, we can laugh about it now but I haven’t taken a family selfie since!!
Moral of the story: Never, ever underestimate the weather in Scotland, be prepared for every eventuality and invest in good camera insurance.
Shona’s photos:
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