Returning to Landscape Photography in the UK | A First Peak District Trip

December 9th 2025, and I landed in a cold, wet Heathrow airport in London.  I left the UK in 2011 and, more importantly for this blog, I hadn’t photographed it in nearly 15 years.

In that time I have worked, raised a family and fallen more and more in love with photography in South Africa.

It is a wonderful country but full of contradictions.  On a daily basis the chasm between rich and poor is apparent and the level of poverty is brutally visible.  In general, the people are wonderful, warm and friendly, but there is crime and, more than that, there is an ever-present fear of crime.  I found that I was on alert the whole time, whether in a city, in the car or even in my own home.  The only place I truly felt safe was in the bush and the nature reserves.  These places were new to me and my camera. Wildlife and bird photography became my thing and the bush and the reserves my happy place, a focus that still shapes my Wildlife Collection today.

Leaving Wildlife Behind in South Africa

After leaving corporate life, my business partner and I set up, grew and sold our own business. The story of that business would be a book rather than a blog, but in one sentence, it was hard - bloody hard! After selling, my tie in period ended in the same year as my two daughters finished school and university and my wife wanted to come home to the UK to be closer to family.  So, the decision to return was made.

With very mixed emotions, we packed up and headed home.

A final tour of South Africa to say Goodbye

Coming back to the UK, of course, meant leaving my happy places behind, especially the wildlife.  Aside from any moral debate, photographing Lion and Leopard in a zoo just isn’t close to being in the middle of the Kruger National Park.  So, I decided to focus on landscape photography for my first year back.  This is very different; wildlife trains reaction and landscape demands patience.  So, I took a couple of trips in my last few months in South Africa to ‘get my eye in’ and adjust to the slower pace.  I left South Africa excited about what was going to be possible in the fantastic and varied scenery across the Peak District, Lake District, Scottish Highlands and so many more.

Returning to Landscape Photography in the UK

As I type, the cold and wet still hasn’t gone away.  The UK has a reputation abroad as being a country that always rains.  This winter has been one of the wettest on record and opportunities for photography are a minor casualty, compared to what some people have endured through the floods and the storms.

With that thought in mind, I have gotten out with my camera as much as possible and visited four or five places local to me as well as taken a few multi-day trips around the country.

The first proper trip back was four days solo in the Peak District and, while the weather was mixed at best, I loved every minute.

I stayed near Padley Gorge and got to see so much variety in the scenery, from vistas to waterfalls, from ancient woodlands to rocky crags. Winter landscape photography in the Peak District demands flexibility and patience, especially in wet conditions.

It is just a phenomenal place and you can see more of this work in my Landscape Collection. I left with the very strong feeling that photographing nothing but the Peak District for a year would still leave so much to discover.  I think I will be back two or three times a year.

The photography opportunities are very different here but just as wonderful.  The ability to grab a camera and just go walk, without being overly concerned about personal safety is liberating.  The huge range of scenery is every bit as diverse as it is in South Africa. Different but just as inspiring.  Coming home has really made that apparent to me and even though the weather has done its best to dampen spirits, in reality it just makes me look forward to photographing in Spring, even more.

Check out the video page or my YouTube channel to see me out and about in these locations.