Photographer and artist, Maureen Du Preez left Sgoil Lionacleit in 2005 and went on to study an HND Media course for 2 years at the Nautical College, Glasgow.

“I wanted to get into film school, but didn’t do well enough in school. I was very shy, nervous and had no self-confidence back then. I did filmmaking as part of my college media course.“

But never mind that, Maureen and her camera went on to have a glistening and transatlantic career, photographing weddings all over the globe.

“I’ve had some amazing experiences. I spent 9 years as a travelling photographer using public transport, which at times could be a nightmare. I’ve photographed weddings in London, Australia, Singapore, Ibiza, Fuerteventura, Italy, France, Switzerland and all over the place. My work has been featured on wedding blogs and magazines, so that may have helped secure the exotic gigs.“

“Instead of travelling, now I want to focus that energy on my family and work closer to home and do more personal photography.”

As a teenager, Maureen couldn’t wait to leave home, the blustery winds of the Hebrides just weren’t for her. However, things have changed and she’s now happy to be back on the island.

“My husband kept asking to come back to Uist. The last time he asked, we were in Australia for a wedding shoot and that was the first time I said yes, so off we went. He loves it here and he’s the one who brought me back. He always suggested it and I was like ‘Oh, Noooo!“

Maureen met her South African husband, Chris, in Tarbert Loch Fyne while visiting friends. Fast forward a few years, a few thousand miles and quite a number of photoshoots and now the couple are back in their Hebridean home with their young son. Chris now works as a seaweed harvester with Uist Asco and Maureen’s photography career is still blossoming.

At first I said that we’d go on a month by month basis and now we’ve been home for 8 years and I’m delighted. I now say to him ‘Oh thank you, I’m glad you suggested it.’ Maybe most people from here have to convince their partners to try island life, but for me it was the opposite.

Although Maureen felt that Uist was never an option for her to return to, she explains: “I was always a shy teenager and I didn’t like school either. My family has been here forever, but I never had the Uist accent, so I felt like I didn’t fit in. I felt like an outsider, but now I feel more confident and closer to my home even with a South African husband and a stranger surname.“

“I feel a lot more rooted in where I live, I do feel like having my child has made me go back to my ancestral roots and I’m so much more interested in my heritage and where I’ve come from. I’m even trying to learn Gàidhlig now.“

Before moving back home, Maureen carried on her education in Edinburgh and studied a BA in Film and Media and taught herself the art of photography on the side. It was there where she learnt the less appealing parts of the business, like PR and advertising and the corporate parts of media.’

In 2013, Maureen took the scary leap into self employment and her career kicked off while she was living in London. Her work has allowed her to travel and photograph the most special day of a person’s life in many corners of the world.

At the start when you’re self-employed, you’re hustling and trying to get your name out there, but now I am able to make my own time up and make my own art. 

These days, Maureen has decided that she prefers to stay a little closer to home and capture the smaller, more intimate wedding where often the only guests include her and the happy couple’s pets!

The weddings I do just now are mostly elopements, so it’s normally just the couple and maybe their dog. I’ve done these all over the highlands and islands. We sometimes hike up a mountain and get some sunset pictures, or we have a picnic on the beach and it’s really lovely.

I love the really small weddings. I’ve done quite a few in Lewis and Harris so now I’m trying to promote North Uist as an elopement location.

2020, the year that changed the world also shifted Maureen’s priorities. Covid stopped international travel, and as she says even getting the ferry is sketchy in Uist these days.

I’m now putting a lot of time and effort into where we live, since I want it to be nice for my child, and for my family. This is somewhere where I want to be. I feel like I know so many people here now and made so many amazing connections that I didn’t have before.

Maureen and Chris have recently bought a house which came with an old post office, maybe a space for a potential business.

My husband does really good food and I would love to sell photography and have a studio there. At the moment it’s at about shed quality, so it needs a lot of work. I just want to do something and give back to the community a bit more.

As the pandemic changed the world it certainly made life easier for people in rural areas to connect to the wider world and this has definitely been the case for Maureen. Remote working has shown people that you can work for yourself and start new businesses in a way that previously wasn’t possible. There are many ideas that you can make work here and make them viable.

I originally moved to London to be able to create art and do my own work, but now it seems that I’ll actually be able to have more freedom to do it in Uist.

I’m going to go back to the roots of why I got into photography, why I got into film making and why I picked up my camera in the first place. I would love to make time to create more of my own work while I grow veg, look after my chickens and work on my allotment on the side! 

As a finishing note, Maureen talks about the life that she’s created in North Uist with her family. 

“There are so many parts of life here that’s just better. You’ve got the community, you’ve got the culture, you’ve got the wide open spaces, it’s safe and you’re not really that far from the rest of the world. Initially I didn’t want to come back, but now I’m so glad I did.“

“I realise now that I live in a beautiful part of the world and I don’t need to go very far for some stunning shots.“