Photographer & videographer in Ras Al Khaimah

Most visitors come for the resort strip of Al Marjan Island and Al Hamra — man-made islands and a long west-facing beach an hour north of Dubai — and the shoot there is a sunset on the sand. What makes the emirate worth more than a beach session is behind it: the Hajar rise straight out of the coastal plain, and the Jebel Jais road climbs to the viewing decks in about forty minutes. Up there, a winter morning can be near freezing and a summer one is the only bearable outdoor light in the country.

Between the two are things that photograph quietly: the mangrove channels north of the old town, worked by kayak; Dhayah Fort on its hill above the date palms; and the abandoned pearling village of Jazirat Al Hamra, coral-stone houses with the roofs gone. Ras Al Khaimah is also less crowded than Dubai and less regulated in its outdoor spaces, which makes it a sensible place for a long session that moves — mountain at dawn, beach at sunset.