Wild Somerset Photographer of the Year

I am very honoured and happy to announce that I have been named Wild Somerset Photographer of the Year 2013. This means a more than I can say to me as Somerset is not only my home but an incredible county for nature and wildlife with so much diversity which changes with the seasons. With over 3000 entries in it's first year it really shows the love and popularity of people getting out with their cameras in Somerset to capture wildlife and landscapes all around them and I would like to extend a huge congratulations to all the winners, highly commended and runners up for their wonderful images. 

So here is my winning image, my Somerset Otter which is the one image above all others that reminds me of why I dedicate my life to what I do and why I love it so much. 

I have also been awarded a Highly Commended for my "The Weevil And The Fern" image that was taken at Westhay Moor, another really special image to me and one that has really kick started not only a real love of bugs but also challenges to find new ways to photograph them to make people think differently about them. 

I will be on BBC Radio Somerset this Tuesday (17th December) at 1pm along with some of the other winners and highly commended photographers from the competition talking about our images. You will be able to listen on 95.5FM and 1566MW, online and on your mobile. Really looking forward to meeting the other photographers and having chance to chat about all things wild Somerset. 

Competition Success

Hello, 

It seems that Autumn is well on it's way now here in the UK and rumour has it the autumn colours are going to be spectacular this year due to the weather we've been having, that is if the leaves aren't blown from the trees before they start turning! Things have been hectic the last month or so, but I'm slowly catching up. I have some fantastic news however with regards a competition I entered earlier in the year run by The Zoological Society of London. Firstly here is a little more about the competition: 

The ZSL Animal Photography Prize aimed for more than just pretty pictures, they were looking for images that would form part of the exhibition and ongoing collection of work which would challenge the viewers' perception of and relationship with the natural world and its inhabitants. 

The competition attracted entrants from around the world and the calibre of the work entered has been truly remarkable. The winning and highly commended images in each category of the junior and adult divisions will now form the basis of an outdoor exhibition to be displayed in the heart of ZSL London Zoo.

Now for the news:

I entered several images and two of them were short-listed, a few weeks later I received news that one of the images (The Weevil and the Fern) won its category and the second image (Mating Bubbles) had been highly commended and that both of these would now be part of the exhibition in the grounds of London Zoo until the end of the year. Both images are of insects and both taken in Somerset, they are available as prints via my website or as keyrings and magnets from craft markets (details later in this post). So here they are, the images and photos of me standing next to the images at London Zoo. 

The Weevil and the Fern - Winner in Size Matters category  Green nettle weevil taken at Westhay Moor Nature reserve on the Somerset Levels. 

Mating Bubbles - Highly Commended in Birds and the Bees category. Mating yellow dung files silhouetted against the sky in Shepton Mallet

In other news, I am now very much gearing up for Christmas and starting to prepare winter and Christmas themed products to sell at the craft markets, new dates and venues are been added all the time so keep checking the list on my website and why not pop along and pick up some wonderfully unique presents, cards or stocking fillers! 

Craft Markets

Right back to work on some very exciting projects which I will bring you more news about in the coming months but just to wet your appetite one involves tigers and India and the other insects!

Take care and keep safe