100 Weeks of Scotland: week 18

In the run-up to the independence referendum in 2014, we will be featuring Alan’s work on Scotsman.com.

As well as the photos, Alan tells us the story behind the shots:

Krispy Kreme

“On the way home last week, I was caught in a lot of traffic at the Hermiston Gait roundabout on the outskirts of Edinburgh. It was only when I got back to the studio that Twitter revealed the truth – Krispy Kreme, seller of multi-coloured doughnuts had arrived in Scotland.

Over a week later, just after 9am I headed to the store to get a photo, and was quite surprised to find the queues were still there. Twenty minutes of queuing later I had a coffee and two vibrant doughnuts. And the verdict? It was a coffee and two vibrant doughnuts. (Actually they were quite nice, but I still doughnut understand the massive queues.)”

Maggie Wall

“By the side of a quiet B Road, a few miles to the east of Dunning in the rolling Perthshire countryside stands a monument with the inscription ‘Maggie Wall burnt here 1657 as a Witch’.

I have photographed here before but came back to see if any changes had occurred in the five or so years since I last visited. Nothing was different, and the inscription looked as fresh, and newly painted as before. Exactly who keeps those words freshly painted is as much a mystery as the identity of Maggie Wall herself.”

Hand in Hand

“Often, I will spend a lot of time planning a photograph. This can involve travelling to specific locations, making sure the time of day is right and that the light is falling from the best direction for an image. Usually this will involve a recce beforehand just to check details and angles for the final shot. It can, and often does, take a lot of time just to create a ‘spontaneous’ looking photo.

And then, at other times, you are out walking the dog and in front of you an image appears out of nothing. If you are quick enough you snatch it. This is what happened for this photo – the teenage couple had just walked past some lights set up by workmen and for a couple of seconds were caught in the light.”

Alan McCredie began the ‘one hundred weeks of scotland’ website in October last year, and it will conclude in Autumn 2014. McCredie’s goal is to chronicle two years of Scottish life in the run-up to the independence referendum.

McCredie says ‘one hundred weeks...’ is intended to show all sides of the country over the next two years. On the site, he says: “Whatever the result of the vote Scotland will be a different country afterward. These images will show a snapshot of the country in the run up to the referendum.

“The photos will be of all aspects of Scottish culture - politics, art, social issues, sport and anything else that catches the eye.”

Watch our slideshow of some of the photos from ‘one hundred weeks of scotland’ above, and follow the project at http://www.100weeksofscotland.com. You can also follow Alan on Twitter.

• All pictures (c) Alan McCredie/ 100 weeks of Scotland