Kate MacLeod Photography

Giving back with Trees for Life…

I believe that there is one love story that most of us share, and that is the love of our incredible natural world. How many of us turn to nature for solace when there is a storm in our soul - to find comfort in the whispering trees of a forest, or the sound of waves fizzing restlessly on sand, or the buzzing of bees among the flowers of a garden.

I know I do.

To me, the most beautiful images in my portfolio are those with a natural backdrop; so many of us choose to hang landscapes on our wall to bring nature into our own homes. And to me, it is important that this relationship with nature is reciprocal: that I not only take, by capturing its splendour in my photographs, but give back, to help ensure that our natural world can survive and flourish.

Thus, this is my pledge to nature: for every client I shoot, be it a full-day wedding or a two-hour portrait session, a tree will be donated in your name to my Kate MacLeod Photography Grove in the Caledonian Forest, planted by volunteers for the conservation charity Trees for Life. And, each time that you look at your photographs, you’ll know that you have played a part in creating the wild forests of the future; that the Scottish winds are fluttering the leaves of a tree that is growing because of you.

Read on to have your questions answered, or contact me using the contact form on this website.

Why plant trees? (From the Trees for Life website)

• Help fight the climate crisis: By removing CO2 from the atmosphere and locking it up, trees help to combat climate change. Recent studies have found that trees may be the best way to stabilise our climate.

• Preserve native trees: Trees for Life grow and plant rare and endangered trees such as aspen, dwarf birch and woolly willow. These trees are not usually commercially available because they are hard to propagate and demand is low.

• Create wildlife habitat: Trees provide important habitats for wildlife and are fundamental to the survival of many species; wildlife such as the red squirrel, capercaillie, black grouse, otters, osprey, golden eagle and the Scottish crossbill.

• Tree-planting brings people together: Your trees will likely be planted by our volunteers, some of whom join us from mental health charities who aim to bring people together in nature to improve wellbeing.

• Reduce the impact of wildfires: Scottish hillsides have been ravaged by fires in recent years. Young, healthy forests can help to suppress wildfires and increase the speed of recovery.

• Trees maintain local water sources: Trees hold water, prevent flooding, restore underground reservoirs and maintain water vapour in the air, increasing the chance of rainfall and reducing drought and desertification.

• Trees clean the air: Humans breathe in oxygen and breathe out carbon dioxide, trees do the reverse – cleaning the air that we breathe. Trees also absorb pollutants such as nitrogen oxides, ammonia, sulphur dioxide and ozone.

• Protect endangered wildlife: Species like the red squirrel have found their last stronghold in the Caledonian Forest. Planting trees will help create a stable habitat for the red squirrel and other similar animals.

• Create a seed source for the future: Natural regeneration of trees is only possible where a viable seed source remains. Planting in areas without a seed source means the forest will be able to succeed itself once established.

Which types of trees will be planted in the Kate MacLeod Photography Grove? The Caledonian Forest is a rich tapestry which includes over 30 different types of trees. Your tree will be a sapling grown from locally collected seed and will be one of a number of species we plant such as alder, aspen, birch, bird cherry, hazel, holly, rowan, Scots pine or willow.

Can I visit my tree? Your tree(s) will be planted at Dundreggan, near Loch Ness in beautiful Glenmoriston. Dundreggan includes ancient Caledonian pinewoods and superb birch and juniper woodlands. With mires, wetlands and wildflower meadows, Dundreggan is a haven for wildlife. You are very welcome to come and visit the area in which your trees have been planted.

I encourage you to take a visit to the Trees for Life website to learn more about the wonderful work undertaken by this conservation charity.To see a map of where the tree-planting takes place, click on this link and scroll down the page.

Finally, I would like to invite you to consider donating a tree to the Kate MacLeod Photography grove in the future, perhaps to commemorate a special occasion linked to our shoot together. If we had a maternity session together, you may wish to donate a tree when your child is born; if I shot your wedding, you may want to donate a new tree on each anniversary of your wedding, thus ensuring that your love of nature is honoured every year of marriage.