The Original Edinburgh Photoshoot Private Tour

The Balmoral Hotel is Edinburgh's iconic city-centre hotel, originally called the North British Hotel when it opened in 1902. The hotel took 6 years to construct, and was part of the British Railway Hotels group before Gleneagles Hotel purchased it in 1983. Gleneagles sold the hotel to Forte Hotels in 1997. The exterior of the hotel offers a few photoshoot opportunities, but arguably the best is crossing Leith Street, this gives us the chance to create a documentary style shot of you in amongst tourists crossing the road on their way to Calton Hill.​​​​​​​

Calton Hill overlooks the whole of Edinburgh with views directly down Prince's Street, across to Arthur's Seat and Holyrood, and across to Leith and the Firth of Forth. Calton Hill is the location of several monuments and buildings: the National Monument, the Nelson Monument, the Dougray Stewart Monument the old Royal High School the Robert Burns Monument the Political Martyrs Monument, and the City Observatory. Calton Hill offers a myriad of possibilities for shoots, including tight head shots and creative poses around the landmarks and with iconic Edinburgh Skyline backgrounds.

Edinburgh’s Jacob’s Ladder is a steep pedestrian pathway and steps, carved into the volcanic rock of Calton Hill. The route first appears on a map in 1784, though it probably existed long before then. This path links Calton Road with Regent Road, the location of St Andrew’s House, Calton Hill, and the Old Royal High School. The route is a perfect shortcut for residents, workers and tourists, and the path offers some unique views of Waverley Station and Old Town. The length of the path offers a unique series of shots in any photoshoot, potentially the model showing their vulnerability when shot from above on the steps, and when the photographer is shooting from below the model on the steps, the model can look dominant and confident. And, for a city-centre backdrop for a simple posed shot, it doesn't get much better than this. All participants are urged to use caution when walking down Jacob's Ladder due to its steep gradient and narrow steps.

Jacob's Ladder takes us down Calton Hill on to Calton Road, from here we walk through 'Waverley Square' and onto the Canongate - the south end of the Royal Mile. The Royal Mile is Edinburgh's iconic medieval street which runs from Edinburgh Castle, down to the Palace of Holyrood House, and the Scottish Parliament Building. The Tolbooth Tavern is part of the original Canongate Tolbooth which was built in 1591. This medieval building was used to collect tolls from travellers entering the burgh at the Canongate. The ground floor became The Tolbooth Tavern in 1820. The building was used to collect tolls from travellers entering the burgh but has also served as a Council Chamber, Police Court and Prison. Tolbooth Tavern acts as another iconic backdrop to our photoshoot, with a myriad of potential poses in this area, either across the road or close to the Tavern itself.

Holyrood is located at the bottom of the Royal Mile and is home to the Scottish Parliament, the Palace of Holyroodhouse and Holyrood Park, all in the shadow of the Salisbury Crags and Arthurs Seat. The area originally took its name from Holyrood Abbey, which has been in ruins since the 18th century. The Palace of Holyroodhouse is the official residence of King Charles in Scotland, and was the resting place of the Queen on her final journey whilst she was in Edinburgh in September. Across the road from the Palace is the Scottish Parliament building, which opened in 2004. This quirky building offers a unique backdrop for a shoot, with the Canongate Wall giving us the chance to shoot with the Royal Mile in the background too. The reflection pools outside the Parliament Building also offer a wide range of shoot possibilities.

From Holyrood we head back up the Royal Mile in the direction of Edinburgh Castle, and this iconic medieval street offers a variety of additional photoshoot opportunities.

The Grassmarket is one of Edinburgh's historic market places and was used for the sale of horses and cattle, and it was also used as a place for public executions! The Grassmarket is situated below the Royal Mile and it has a truly tremendous view of the Castle, which will offer a splendid backdrop to a photoshoot. We can take advantage of the benches and seats in the Grassmarket for seated shots of the model.

The Vennel viewpoint is perhaps the most instagrammed spot in Edinburgh in recent years, and I am sure the residents of the houses either side of the stairs must be past annoyed by now! But nevertheless it is an absolute must for any photoshoot tour of our wonderful capital city. There are opportunities for a wide range of shots here, all with the castle either fully or partially in the background of the image. The model could be stood, half-turned towards the photographer, or leaning against the hand rail, or sat or walking up the stairs.

Another popular instagram spot is the Dean Village, but you just cannot have a photoshoot tour of Edinburgh without going there, it is wondrous. Dean Village (from dene, meaning 'deep valley') is a former village immediately northwest of the city centre of Edinburgh. It is bounded by Belford Road to the south and west, Belgrave Crescent Gardens to the north and below the Dean Bridge to the east. It was formerly known as the "Water of Leith Village" and was a successful grain milling area for more than 800 years. At one time there were no fewer than eleven working mills there, driven by water from the Water of Leith. There are two primary shoot opportunities in the Dean Village. Firstly as we enter the village and we see the Water of Leith (as shown left) and then down by the water with the village in the background

The Water of Leith is the main river flowing near central Edinburgh, and flows into the port of Leith where it flows into the sea via the Firth of Forth. Both the walkway, which runs past St Bernard's Well, and the Water itself, (shown in. adjacent images) offer great photoshoot opportunities.

Princes Street Gardens and the Scott Monument provide numerous opportunities for a great photoshoot, especially with the castle in the background

Waverley Bridge offers a superb vantage point to get a shot with the Old Town in the background

The final stop of the tour is the remarkable curved street of Cockburn Street