PHOTONOMY

WOODLAND AND TREES

At the base of Yr Wyddfa (Snowdon), near the beginning of the Watkin path, is an expanse of ancient woodland, which I decided to explore before visiting the nearby more well-known waterfalls, a little higher up on the path. These woods were wet, overgrown and often very steep, but full of photographic opportunities… except that it can nonetheless be hard to isolate a theme or subject amid the mass of branches and foliage which obscure ones main focus: woods are so full and busy! I nonetheless came away with a few pleasing photos, and this one showing a moss-covered tree trunk with fern growing out of a cavity at its base; the moss had caught the morning light; the sunlight had also penetrated the background trees, giving a wonderful sense of luminosity. The left side of the trunk also mirrored the angle of the left-side leaning background trees, complementing the lines on the right of the picture.

Early morning mist on Watlington Hill in the Chilterns. In late autumn these few remaining leaves almost looked suspended in mid-air, and together with those on the ground made a beautiful contrast to the blues of the early morning mist. It remained to find a pleasing combination of tree trunks to frame the image. Photographers often like the mist in a woodland photograph, because it gives visual separation of the layers of trees, which get fainter and hazier the further they are away from the camera; and the mist can simplify the scene too, leading to a stronger image.

Tŷ Canol wood, in Pembrokeshire’s Preseli hills, is one of the most ancient woodlands in Britain, and its ancient, twisted oaks amid moss and lichen covered rocks have resulted in the wood being designated as a National Nature Reserve. I’ve chosen a panorama where the network of oak trunks reach expressively skywards, with the foreground trees gnarled so that they resemble characters conversing as they stand on the rocky mound. The image needed to be taken in a season where the trunks were not obscured by foliage. With a slight haze the background trees had a warm glow above which the cooler blue sky formed a satisfying contrast.

Walking up Crimpiau, near Capel Curig in Eryri, I was blessed with some beautiful light which resulted in patches of sunlight on the hills where the sun shone through. Looking at this scene of lush woodland and epic hills, I formed in my mind an idea of where I would like those patches of light to be: highligting a tree-covered rock and some of the ridges and slopes higher up, as well as the main summit. I got this final image by taking several exposures of the exact same scene, with those light patches in different places in each one as the clouds moved quickly across the sky, and then blending them together in post-production, a technique I learned from the photographer David Griffiths, who also introduced me to this wonderful location.

I discovered Glen Strathfarrar in May 2025. At the base of the glen I found more lovely woodland than I could explore in a whole week or more. These woodlands changed in character the further up the glen I travelled, and near the top of the glen I was up in the hills with a much sparser landscape. I should have been keeping my eyes on the road at all times, but then I wouldn’t have seen this near the base of the glen! The light was perfect to showcase this scene. I was attracted to the central tree which was very upright and straight, and was darker and without any of the sunny haze of the other trees. I formed a composition with this tree in the centre, and at its base the grass and mounds were as if lit by a spotlight. From a technical point of view it was important for the exposure to be dark enough for the bright areas not to be “whited out” so that they would retain detail; the darker areas could be brought up in the edit. I like the dreamy quality of the image: and the lighting was the crucial factor.

The treeline in Glen Strathfarrar, with Sgurr na Lapaich in the distance. As I ventured higher up Glen Strathfarrar (see previous image) the more the woodland changed. Scots Pines became more common, and gone were the lush grass woodland floors. Here I was attracted to the four dead trees (probably struck by lightning) which held pride of place high up on the near ridge; that seemed to tell a story of some pretty wild weather! On the front right of the image the deciduous trees looked at their best - I love them in late Spring - newly emerged foliage at its most vibrant, and yet the branches still visible. In the background the mountains - the front layer in the shade and the the high peak at the back in the sun; above, a stormy sky. I’ve tried to compose all these disparate elements into a satisfactory whole. In any case, this is the upper part of Glen Strathfarrar at its best.

Rural scene near Newcastle Emlyn in Carmarthenshire, Wales. This seemed so quintessentially West Wales: country lane, hills, rolling fields and unsettled weather. A wide-angle photo, shot from quite low, accentuating the tapering away of the snowy lane.

Morning mist near Llandysul, Ceredigion. Low-lying mist in the early morning is common in the area: and usually a prompt for me to get out and about with the camera.

Evening mist on the slopes of Cwm Teifi, above Cenarth. When the mist emphasises the layers of hill and valley the effect is very beautiful. Once you’re at the right place at the right time, it’s a relatively easy image to create.

Woodlands at Blaen y Glyn, between Merthyr Tydfil and Abergabvenny. A whole series of lovely waterfalls cascades down the valley here, attracting walkers and photographers alike. But the largely coniferous ancient woodland is also full of opportunities for an image. Here I saw the sunlit path, leading deep into the wood, bright in the distance: “Path to the Light”, I thought. The twin trunks on the left leaned inwards to balance the narrower moss-covered trunks on the right, with a single darker tree in the middle, almost silhouetted against the distant light. With some imagination each tree becomes a character in a story.