A local Devon photographer based near Okehampton, with extensive knowledge of Dartmoor and it’s surroundings. Published in local magazines and involved in helping several Dartmoor based institutions.
I shoot all of my work on old film camera lenses or adapted lenses - I’m not technical, it’s all made up as I go along 😂
Paul Harris (Glavind Strachan photography) photographing Dartmoor National Park for over 40 years, based near Okehampton in Devon. Landscape photographer, qualified Hill & Moorland Leader, and guide offering bespoke photography walks, workshops, and themed portrait shoots across Dartmoor.
Who is Glavind Strachan ?
Probably the most common question I get asked is "why Glavind Strachan?"
... my name is Paul Harris ...
if you Google 'Paul Harris Photography' you get rather a lot of results, and although I have absolutely no problems with having a common name after a chat with a friend who had spent a long time in marketing she suggested something that might stick in people's minds a little easier.
"Do you have a middle name?" she asked me
My middle name is Glavind, it is Danish, from my step grandfather... every grandchild and step grandchild of his has the same middle name
... spurred on by my friend's obvious glee at discovering this fact, I went on to mention that my dad was adopted, and that his birth father's surname was Strachan, my grandfather being from The Gorbals in Glasgow, before lying about his age and joining up during the Second World War.
Hence "Glavind Strachan"
Ten Tors 55 Mile Team
Devonport High School - sometime in the mid 80's 🤣
Paul Harris - Dartmoor Photographer & Qualified Guide
I've been walking on the moor since the 1970’s and then photographing it since the mid 1980s, when I first took part in the Ten Tors challenge as a teenager whilst at Devonport High School. What started as a love of the moor itself eventually became a passion for capturing it — its granite tors, its ancient oak woodlands, its unpredictable weather, and the quiet, in-between places that most people walk straight past.
I'm based near Okehampton on the northern edge of Dartmoor National Park, which means I have daily access to some of the moor's most dramatic and least visited landscapes. A friend once described the north of Dartmoor as “Mordor” and I kind of enjoyed that description, it’s off the beaten track and not as touristy and safe as the south, giving it a more rugged, exciting edge. It’s easy for me to take a short trip to the high ridges of High Willhays to the ancient woodland of Black-a-Tor Copse and the sweeping valley on Taw Marsh.
As a fully qualified Hill & Moorland Leader, accredited by BMC Mountain Training, I'm qualified to lead groups safely across open moorland and upland terrain. Which means my guided photography walks are as much about safe, confident navigation as they are about creative photography.
My Approach to Dartmoor Photography
I shoot almost exclusively on adapted vintage film camera lenses - Helios, Takumar, even projector lenses, mounted on modern digital cameras. It's an unconventional approach that produces images which I feel add a distinctive character. Softer rendering, gentle swirl, painterly bokeh. Combined with Dartmoor's inherently moody atmosphere, it produces photographs that people often describe as feeling handmade rather than manufactured.
I'm not about chasing technical perfection. I'm looking to capture the feeling of actually being on the moor. It might sound a little romantic and fanciful, but the smell of rain on peat, the sudden break of light through cloud, the quiet weirdness of an abandoned ruin appearing through the mist.
If my images make you want to pull your boots on and explore, then I've done my job.
Publications, Collaborations & Community
My work has been published in many local magazines and I've been involved in supporting several Dartmoor-based institutions and organisations, including the Dartmoor Preservation Association. I regularly collaborate with other Dartmoor guides and creative, including historian and guide Paul Rendell, archaeologist Alan Endacott, and the team at Moorland Guides in order to offer walks that combine photography with a deeper knowledge of Dartmoor's history, folklore, and landscape.
I also run a Facebook photography meetup group and host occasional group walks open to all abilities and camera types, from smartphones to full professional kits.
Follow me on Instagram
Work With Me- Dartmoor Walks, Workshops & Prints
Whether you're looking for a guided Dartmoor photography walk, a bespoke portrait shoot on the moor, a photography workshop tailored to your level, or simply a fine art print for your wall, I'd love to hear from you. Get in touch and let's talk about what you'd like to create.