The pass is one of the most arresting visuals in the UK, and I have filmed up here many times over the years. Of course, I am far from alone, and the celebrated film director Sam Mendes chose Glencoe as a key location for Skyfall in 2012. I am sure his decision was influenced by the fact that the Fleming family has, for four generations, lived in the region, and Ian Fleming himself spent many a day in the shooting lodge just 45 miles down the road in Glen Etive. This is most emphatically Bond country.
From the single-track West Highland Way running parallel to the main road, we were able to offer a sense of journey to Bond’s DB5, and the other props came to mind quite naturally. At first light, the red telephone box certainly popped against such a formidable backdrop, and we had made sure the lighting inside the box was functional. That made all the difference, and we are again reminded that it’s often the small things.
The strongest photographs have an emphatic sense of place, and conveying this was acutely necessary to do justice to both the destination and the Bond parody. We did get lucky with the weather, and I also want to thank the Fleming family and the Alba police force for their help with this project. It was not a bad few days to spend in pursuit of my craft."
- David Yarrow