My photography gravitates around the urban environment, so with some trepidation, I, together with a friend, set off to experience the “Englishness” of the Lake District. Armed with only the knowledge gained from books and the internet, the plan was to visit popular tourist locations. My expectations of producing any work were low, as I was anxious that throngs of fellow visitors would compromise the photography.

We based ourselves in Keswick, a busy town throughout the day, as were the walking paths around Derwentwater. Yet, except for a few like-minded photographers, joggers and dog walkers, we had the place to ourselves at our preferred shooting times of dawn and dusk.

Capturing the sublime, the picturesque and the beautiful is the essence of landscape photography. It is an endeavour that is far easier in writing than in doing, as it entails long waking hours and long walks laden down with cameras and, at times, camping gear. However, the rewards of watching a fabulous sunset from Fleetwith Pike and enjoying the peace and tranquillity of Crummock Water were priceless.

It is little wonder that Wordsworth, Coleridge, Southey, Gary, Turner and Constable, to name but a few, have all used the Lakes as their muse, as the metamorphosis of the landscape brought on by the interplay of the changing seasons and weather conditions would be awe-inspiring.