It is with great pleasure that Document Scotland can today showcase the work by Glyn Satterley, from his latest book ‘Going To The Hill, Life On Scottish Sporting Estates’. This is the tenth book by Glyn, a renowned freelancer whose work has been widely exhibited and published in magazines. He has spent many years documenting life on Scotland’s sporting estates, and his earlier book, The Highland Game, concentrated purely on Highland estates was published in 1992. This new book brings estate life up to the present and covers the whole of Scotland.
“I have always loved this work by Glyn, and it gives me great pride to be graciously allowed to feature it here as a folio. It truly is a treat to delve into the books and archives from which this work is selected and to be able to choose images, to read Glyn’s words, and to learn about both the sporting estate lifestyle and culture, and also through the words sense Glyn’s enthusiasm for his work, and his love for Scotland’s landscape.” – Jeremy Sutton-Hibbert.
All below captions and images are © Glyn Satterley 2012, all rights reserved.
“Looking somewhat dismayed, these guns were deposited high up on the Invercauld hillside in pursuit of ptarmigan. Helicopter is not the usual mode of transport, but this was a charity auction day.”
“On this particular day out on the hill, stalker Ronnie Buchan not only had to put up with four people in the party, but also accomodate the photographer and find a ‘shootable’ stag. Great stalker that he is, Ronnie delivered the goods.”
“Universally, keepers and stalkers are obsessed with controlling foxes and Jimmy Lambie is no exception. He does, however, have the advantage over most other keepers who usually work single handedly, aided by only a couple of terriers. Jimmy runs a pack of thirteen fox hounds.”
“Rather like Dr. Who’s Tardis, a glimpse inside this wagon reveals it to be full to the gunwales, including one of the guns, umpteen beaters and a whole gang of dogs.”
“These ladies were heading for one of the outlying lodges on the estate to prepare for incoming guests.”
“These Easter-time trials are often a lottery regarding the weather. This one was brought to a halt as a snowy squall passed through, leaving the landscape covered in white, frozen, human and doggy sculptures.”
“This was a wonderful scene, set amidst dramatic landscape, but eventually the euphoria wore off. The stag had been shot on a steep down slope, and the only way to extract it was to drag it downward, and then along the valley floor. Sounds easy, but the bottom of the valley section was a mile or two away, traversing burns every few hundred yards. The three of us shared the pulling, working two at a time, but it became more and more difficult as we got hotter and hotter, and each tiny incline felt like a mountain. The person not pulling had the added burden of carrying everybody else’s discarded clothing, plus my camera kit. You can imagine our relief when we finally got close enough for the Argo to collect it.”
“Controversial though they may be, wind turbines have revived some estates fortunes. This one at Farr required sixteen miles of road to be laid, which has given keepers access to the moor and helped with vermin control. Interestingly, the highest densities of grouse are now being recorded in and around the turbines, which probably means the blades deter raptors. It does however look and feel a little unnatural, having huge structures whirring away in the backdrop whilst people are shooting from butts.”
Click here to purchase Glyn Satterley’s ‘Going To The Hill, Life On Scottish Sporting Estates’.
View Glyn Satterley’s photography website and print sales page here.