The atmosphere and character of a forest through the seasons is like nothing else. From the enchantment and frozen beauty of the Winter, the coming to life with an explosion of vibrancy in the Spring, the lush verdant cover of Summer and of course the dazzling array of colour during the Autumn. Forests are somewhere I could explore for hours, happy spending time in nature seeking out compositions

‘White Out’A shot back from the Winter of 2020 and a stunning hoar frost up on the South Downs. The freezing mist made for a truly enchanting atmosphere and was one of the first times I had ventured out with the camera in conditions like these. The …
‘Sketched in snow’Given snow is somewhat of a rarity in Sussex, they are not conditions I am especially used to shooting in. So when the opportunity came, there was a degree of improvisation involved. With the snow falling and still conditions, I we…
‘Spring Canvas’This is the sort of place, with or without a camera you could just spend all day. This is the sort of place that truly restores the soul. Nothing but the sounds of nature around you and an explosion of spring colour in front of you, this to me is the embodiment of an English, springtime woodland.This was shot shortly after rain, which I always find turns the volume up on the vibrancy a bit. The use of a polarising filter here also helps those colours pop.
‘Serenity’Like most shots, the light and composition are what made this shot for me. A path makes for a great leading line in the forest setting as it really helps navigate you through the scene. This shot was also composed to the rule of thirds through the horizontal to give it a sense of balance and the fresh green Beech leaves form a nice boundary in the top third. The all important light was typical of those long drawn out May sunsets. There was just enough to give a lovely golden glow through the back of the scene, further inviting you along the path to get there.
‘Greens & the grey’Summer wake ups are often a thankless and difficult task, with the alarm set at an hour some people are coming home from a night. But there are rewards to be had. This was taken on an early morning wander in my local woods in early June, the rich verdant greens were offset nicely by the graphite tones of the beechwood and mist permeating through
‘Dreamchaser’Through August and September there is only one place to be with a camera and that is out on the heathlands. The explosion of purple, promise of mist and more sociable waking hours makes it a great time to be out exploring. Another prominent feature of our heathlands is the gorgeous Silver Birch, definitely one of my favourite trees to shoot. In this scene, the Birch make for a nice background subject with the path leading you past the heather towards them.

‘Dreamchaser’

‘Dreamchaser’

‘the morning show’The great thing about having scouted and familiar spots to go to, is that when the conditions are right, you have compositions already lined up in your mind.. for this one, I knew this gnarly old tree would have the heavy red sun rise up under it’s branch, which inspired the composition for this shot
‘resplendent’This late August morning was the gift that just kept giving… it was one of those mornings where everything came together even when you weren’t fully expecting it to. It was one of those mornings where the pre sunrise mist was nice, but then as the warmth of the sun go going, it lifted it off the ground where it then stuck around for ages, floating in the air and glowing with the sun.
‘lighting the way’.
‘individual’.
‘spiritual’This was one of my favourite spots to frequent, a mysterious and atmospheric location set in the middle of a woods. This former church & school used to be a hidden gem, but sadly its whereabouts became well known thanks to social media during lockdown. Subsequently this once beautiful and untouched spot became trampled, littered and graffitied. I’m glad I managed to capture this ruin at its best and hopefully once the crowds disperse, will do again.
‘lava flow’Sometimes a scene evokes thoughts and memories of other things. For me, this scene immediately made me think of a lava flow. The way the autumnal Brackens cascaded down the hill, engulfing the pines , coupled with the mist and sparks of the Silver Birch leaves…. i’ll let you decide if you see it too…..
‘wood framing’.
‘beacon’.
‘dream’.
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Landscape