Nature's reset: using social media to get outdoors more, with digital creator Chris Lawlor

In this episode we chat with digital creator Chris Lawlor, who joins us to reveal the inspiration behind his social media channels and his dedication to sharing fascinating content from around Scotland.

Chris explains how he's built an online community who share in the wonder of nature and the outdoors, and tells us how they contribute to his never-ending quest to discover hidden Scottish treasures.

We explore a range of subjects, from mental well-being and the joys of rainy days, to the challenges of dealing with negative online comments, and how to improve video content.

A great listen.

More information

Follow Chris on Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, or at [email protected].

Follow our 10 ways to make space for nature in winter.

Transcript

Kirstin:

Hi, and welcome to Make Space for Nature from NatureScot, the podcast that celebrates Scotland's nature and landscapes. I'm Kirstin Guthrie, and in each episode, we'll help you connect with and take care of our amazing natural world. In this episode, Tim Hancox and I chat to digital creator Chris Lawlor, who specialises in creating content about Scotland's outdoors, encouraging more people to head outside. He gives us an insight into what drives his creativity and provides us with his top tips for heading outdoors and making space for nature. So, hi, Chris, welcome to the Make Space for Nature podcast. We've been working with you on content for our campaign to encourage more people to get outside and take care of wildlife. Can you tell us how you got into creating content about enjoying the outdoors, please?

Chris:

First of all, thanks for having me on the podcast. Yeah, so I started recording hill-walking content back in 2022, initially on TikTok, and that evolved over time. Initially, just little clips of me on the hills and at the top of the hill, but eventually I went into doing voiceovers and researched on what people wanted to see, and also the algorithm on TikTok and it's all about keeping people engaged and watching the video all the way through. So, kind of changing the video to work around that and then I later started posting to Instagram and from there, Instagram actually grew faster reaching almost 200,000 followers there and a hundred thousand on TikTok. But I've always enjoyed outdoors and the benefits from it and being able to share that with other people is great.

Kirstin:

Yeah, definitely. And you know, we've obviously worked with you on, Instagram and TikTok and you've got such a great following there, as you say on Instagram in particular. So how do you come up with your ideas and the kind of creative ideas that you have and the places that you really enjoy going to.

Chris:

It's actually a question I get asked quite a lot, and over the years I've done a lot of Googling and researching online. I do find that when you Google something like the best walks to do in Scotland, all the articles are very similar, like they've given a top 30 places to go in the blog posts and things like that. So, as I went on, I started to run out of places to go, just by that method.  But I asked my followers, when I gained quite a few, is there anywhere you think I should go? And I did get a lot of responses on suggestions, especially from people who live in areas and they're locals there and they know the spots to visit. So, I'm able to actually crowdsource my research there and it saves me a lot of time and it makes me find places that a lot of people don't know exist.  And so that's kind of how I go about it. These days I've actually inputted all these locations into a map that I use. And there's about 300 locations there currently that I've not visited. So, every weekend I'll look at the map and I'll say, right, okay, so this one's an hour away, so it's not too far. And I can see what else is around that area and maybe tackle a couple in the one day.  So, that's kind of efficient for me to try and cover as much ground as I can without having to travel back another weekend. So that's how I go about it. 

Kirstin:

That's a great idea of getting feedback from your followers. I certainly do that locally as well. I think it's important to say that a lot of the walks and a lot of places you can go are literally on your doorstep and it's perhaps places you don't actually know about. Even within like Facebook groups and these kinds of things you can ask these questions on where to go. So, I think that's a really important thing to do.

Tim:

Yeah. It sounds like you've got your work cut out for you with more than 300 places still to go, that's brilliant. You mentioned your following there and it seems to be a very positive and engaging following you mostly have, which is really nice, especially with the way social media can be.  Do you ever receive any negative comments or feedback and how do you deal with it if you ever do?

Chris:

So yeah, there is some negative comments that will crop up. It kind of comes with having a social media account when you go up to that level.  Initially, it used to actually really affect me. Like if I get one negative comment, it could ruin my day. But over time, once you get hundreds out of thousands, it does get easier. And the comments are usually just things like if I pronounce something wrong, like if I mispronounce a word in Gaelic, and I don't speak Gaelic, I do get people who will correct me, sometimes not in a nice way. So, I've realised that it's better not to respond to those comments and fuel the fire, but also the people who comment on these things, they might not be having a great time, they might not particularly be having a great day, so for me to retaliate would just make their day worse, and it's trying to be empathetic about it, and not really respond negatively to negative comments, would be my advice if anybody else would come across that online.

Tim:

Yeah, absolutely. I think that's good advice. And also, another opportunity to head outdoors and clear your head a bit rather than immediately firing back a response. So, we try to encourage people to head outdoors or to local parks and paths, especially places on your doorstep as, as often as possible, and a lot of people appreciated these spaces a lot during lockdown in particular, although that feels like a while ago now, thankfully. Do you think these kinds of habits have continued?

Chris:

I think it's one of the few positives that came from lockdown. The people understanding by going outdoors how beneficial it is to their health, physically and mentally. I think there is also the flip side, where I know people who through lockdown have actually gone the opposite way where they've actually got into a space where they stayed inside so long they didn't actually want to go outside. So, I think there's still a lot of work to be done in terms of educating people on the benefits of going outdoors. But I do think it's something that through lockdown it has continued.  And I've had comments on some of my social media videos that have said things like I discovered walking through lockdown and it's something that started for them going into nature, going on hill walks, going on trails, in a forest at the weekends, and how it's benefited their mental health.

Kirstin:

And I think we're coming into winter now, or we are in winter, and many of us really just want to hibernate and stay indoors and be all nice and cozy. But as you say, it really can help our physical and mental health. So, what's your advice for our listeners to get them out more often, particularly now in the winter when it might be wet or snowy even outside? I mean, some of your videos are brilliant with you getting absolutely drowned with the rain. But, that's the Scottish weather, as we know. So, what's your advice? How do you get outside on these kinds of days?

Chris:

So, I actually really like the rain. There's something about the rain hitting off my face that makes me feel alive in a way. I always feel like there's countries out there that don't get a lot of rain and it's really about perspective and being grateful for it. Because without sounding too morbid, one day you won't experience that anymore. And yeah, I'm just really appreciative of it. As well as that, I feel like in the rain, particularly in the forest walks, there is something peaceful about it, the sound of the rain and it makes the trails quieter because there's not as much people there because they are hibernating. So, that's a couple of reasons why I enjoy that type of weather. In the winter when it is cold, I like the.  element of wrapping up and putting on a scarf and feeling, not being cold, but feeling the cold air hit my face as well. So, it's things like that, but being in the outdoors and seeing the greenery and being in a forest is linked to a lot of benefits for your physical and mental health. Obviously, you've got the exercise element of it.  But you've also got the being in nature and there's been studies that show that it reduces anxiety and stress, which is something that's helped me over the years.  So, just that alone helps you recharge and get you through the darker, wetter days.

Kirstin:

Yeah, I think it's that actually, thinking of the end, after the walk or after being out in the forest. It's that feeling that you get, isn't it? That you kind of need to think of before you contemplate actually opening that front door and heading out there.

 

Tim:

I like that idea as well of the weather's not great, but even better, that might mean fewer people out there so you can enjoy some almost alone time with nature rather than fighting through crowds in everyday life.

Chris:

Absolutely.

Tim:

So, Chris, we often talk about the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss, which can be quite scary and overwhelming when we hear about it in the news and reports coming out. But one thing that's quite nice is to try and break that down into little things that, that we can all do in our day to day lives to be able to help nature or help wildlife in any way. Are there any tips or ideas that you might want to share?

Chris:

I think it all starts with not leaving a trace when you're out and about.  I was actually speaking with Keep Scotland Beautiful last week and one of the statistics was 80 percent of marine litter, so litter in the oceans, come from land. So, although we're thinking we don't want to leave litter on the ground because it will affect the wildlife around it, it can end up in a stream, it can end up in a river and actually affect wildlife in the oceans. So, I think it's just thinking about the effects that that can cause and being mindful of it.  And that is I feel like the most important part that we can do is just not leave a trace. As well as that, you've got looking after local wildlife and leaving food and water out in your garden as in the winter months, it can be more difficult for wildlife to get food, especially if there's snow on the ground and things like that, so just being mindful of the wildlife life around you.

Kirstin:

Yeah, that's so true. And even people out on walks, they can easily pick up bits of litter and just pop them in the bin. That certainly helps. And it goes along with what you're saying about leaving no trace, whether it's your own trace or somebody else's trace. It's just a case of picking litter up. I certainly do it on the school run. If I see anything, I just pop it in the bin. But many of us do head outdoors and, and one of the things a lot of people like to do when they're out on a walk or, or just a kind of a meander I suppose is taking videos or photos of what we see. It's such a great way to appreciate what's out there. So, what are your top tips for taking videos outdoors, particularly on phones rather than using any kind of fancy cameras as such? 

Chris:

These days, phones are very capable of taking videos and photos with the camera.  I actually use a lot of the content from my phone for social media and it's all about keeping it steady when you're videoing it or taking a photo and not moving too fast. There is various settings within the phone camera that you can change to make the photo a little bit better. Even tapping on the subject will help bring that into focus. In terms of posting it to social media, I just thought a couple of tips on that if you're producing video content. It really is all about the human attention span and that's what the algorithms are suited to work towards. So, when I do a video on my trail or in nature, it's always about the very first clip that you see and it needs to be something that gets people engaged and they want to continue watching the video without swiping to the next one. And one of the things that I do is change clips every four seconds, just to keep the user engaged. And, yeah, that's just a couple of tips for video content.

Kirstin:

And when you're taking videos, how do you get that effect where the camera kind of looks down on you or in front of you? How do you do that? 

Chris:

So that's a 360 camera. And it's attached to a selfie stick. It's called an invisible selfie stick. So, when you export the video, you don't see the stick. So, if I hold it on my shoulder, the camera looks like it's a drone following me, but it's actually, I'm actually just holding it on my shoulder. Which is great, because I do a lot of solo hikes, so I don't have somebody follow me about, or I wouldn't use a drone in that environment either, so it's handy, yeah.

Kirstin:

That's really good, I always wondered that, I thought how does he do that? And I did wonder whether it was a drone, as you say, but that's interesting. Thanks, that’s really useful, the four seconds on the videos as well. I think I'll be using that myself.

Tim:

And, Chris, you've obviously created quite a lot of content in the last couple of years, and by the sounds of it plenty more places that you're looking to explore, which is one of the great things about Scotland, I suppose, is that there are so many places that we can all go. But from all the videos or content that you've made, do you have a favourite and why’s that?

Chris:

Yeah, my favourite would be when I did a hike to Ben A'an in Callander. And that was before sunrise, and so I woke up at 4am, and I hiked up Ben A'an, so in the dark I had my torch, it was pitch black, but I did Ben A'an maybe five times before that in the daylight, so I knew the route. I wouldn't do a hill that I hadn't been before in the dark, but that was one of my favorite hills of all time, doing it before sunrise was magical. I got the drone shot at the top as the sun came up and it's not my most successful video in terms of views and engagement, but it is - from a creative point of view and a visual point of view - my favorite one.

Kirstin:

Brilliant. That sounds amazing. I was actually going to ask you if your Highland Fling was your favorite one.

Chris:

That was scary. So that was a drop from, I think it was 132 feet. And that was in the dark, which you can go in the daytime as well, but I posted that video after I did it, about nine o'clock at night, I drove home, took me like an hour and a half, and by the time I got home it was over a million views. So that was a really successful video and yeah, but it was a scary experience and over in five seconds, but yeah, just the bungee drop was something that I kind of thought this will make some good content.

Kirstin:

Maybe not your favourite one then, but certainly got the views. That's brilliant. You didn't look very scared when you were doing it, to be fair, so well done you. But no, that's great. And, lastly, we want to know how getting outside helps you - well, obviously not doing a bungee jump like that, I don't think that would help you - but what do you do each day, even when it's raining and blowing a hooley, we know you like the rain, but how do you make space for nature in your life every day?

Chris

So, believe it or not, I'm actually in the city centre five days a week, which is the furthest away from nature that I could be. And when Saturday comes, that's when I get out to nature every weekend. So, it's having that balance. And because I'm not seeing nature five days a week, it's actually for me personally a necessity that I get out to nature on the weekends just to recharge and kind of reset my mind, and that's how I primarily make space for nature, but that's more for myself. And then having the offset benefit of sharing it with other people and letting other people know these are the places you can go in Scotland and get other people out to nature as well.

Tim:

Thank you so much for coming on, Chris. It was great to hear a bit more about your adventures and how you go about it. And we look forward to what else you come up with, especially during this cold period when a lot of us are a bit nervous about getting outside and we hibernate, but good to remember that there's still a lot to be gained from heading out. Even when it's dark and cold, there's winter magic outdoors. So, thank you so much.

Chris:

Thanks a lot for having me and thanks for your questions. 

Kirstin:

Thanks for listening. If you're enjoying Make Space for Nature, please follow it on your podcast app and leave a reviewer rating. We'd also love you to tell more people about the series. For more ways to connect with and help protect Scotland's natural world, go to nature.scot.