peak district landscape photography workshop

Dramatic Grit stone Edges, ancient woodland, heather clad moors, beautiful Limestone dales and valleys, gentle rolling hills and farm land. The Peak District has it all, making it the perfect setting to explore on a landscape photography workshop. Straddling five different counties; Derbyshire, Cheshire, Staffordshire, Yorkshire and Manchester, and covering an area of over 550 square miles, the Peak District was the very first area of the U.K. to be designated as a national park, way back in April of 1951. The Peak Districts many footpaths, trails and a variety of activities, attract around 13 million visitors a year on average, and whether you’re keen to explore the elevated views from the highest point up on Kinder Scout, or enjoy an altogether less strenuous, but no less rewarding stroll, there’s always a location to ideally suit your ability level.

Throughout the year, I’ll be running a number of different landscape photography workshops, within the Peak District National park. Each workshop will be timed so that we can hopefully take advantage of some of the stunning seasonal highlights that this area is renowned for. Many of the grit stone edges of the Peak District are West Facing, making them the ideal place to photograph more expansive views, and especially at sunset. Around the middle of August until mid September, the moorland is ablaze with colour as the purple Heather reaches its peak, and this is a fantastic time to visit.

Late august and throughout autumn usually brings about a drop in temperature, and these cooler, clear nights often lead to a temperature inversion with mist forming in the bottom of the valleys and lower lying areas. Again, the grit stone edges and elevated areas of moorland can look amazing as you gain height, above the sea of mist below. The woodland of the Peak District is also well worthy of exploration, and especially around the end of October and beginning of November, as autumn colours reach their peak.

Finally, the low angled sunlight of the winter months provides dramatic, warm light which emphasises the contours of the surrounding hills and valleys. At this time of year, the days are shorter and the sun never gets very far above the horizon. But this means the light is softer and warmer, even during the middle of the day. We’ll obviously be hoping for cold, crisp conditions for the winter workshops, and maybe even a dusting of snow!