2020 | A Photographic Year in Review
Wow, what a year it’s been! It’s been a tough one for so many people but you won’t find me complaining here as I feel I have got through it all so far relatively unscathed. Yes, I had to stay indoors, cancel some of my travel plans and home-school my children but I count myself lucky compared to many that have suffered devastating loss or our heroes on the front-line fighting back against this invisible disease on behalf of us all. As I said, I can’t complain.
Overall, it’s not been a bad year for me. My family and I still managed to get a holiday to sunny Greece during the summer, I’ve been able to continue working from home while using the time I would have spent commuting to continue focusing on my fitness and just the other day, ran my 1000th mile since the start of 2020.
So, what about photography? I started 2020 as I finished 2019 with some trips into London in January and February before it all changed. My camera went into hibernation during March, April and most of May and only really came out again from June but my photoshoots in London which I love so much have been few and far between ever since. Last year, I managed over 40 trips into London with my camera whereas this year I only just made it to 20 but thankfully I still came away with some photos I really like, three of which I’ve shared in my favourite 9 landscape shots of 2020 below.
Photographing the woodland
I would say the single biggest change I’ve experienced this year was my venture into woodland photography. It’s a photographic genre I’ve flirted with before but never really given it a good go. My photography style has always been about a significant subject in the landscape, be it a skyscraper in London or the piers along England’s south coast, but with the need to keep away from the crowds and remain socially distant, woodland photography was an obvious direction to take, but I have to say, trying to create interesting compositions in an otherwise random and chaotic environment was very new to me and a challenge to say the least.
That being said, I have stuck with it and after a few months of exploring my local forest and regularly coming away without a photo, I do feel I’m getting into a groove and finding my style so I’m very much looking forward to seeing what I can capture during the upcoming winter months.
I have absolutely loved reconnecting with nature and have really enjoyed the peace and tranquillity which has, without doubt helped me personally during the more anxious times this year. So, when life gets back to normal, I’ll certainly be continuing this woodland photography adventure.
Print and backup your photos!
During 2020, I released a couple of longer form articles and shared some useful information about two photography related subjects that I feel are incredibly important. I’ve been printing my photos for a few years now and whether you use a print lab or your print at home, I think there is so much to gain by creating printed versions of your photography.
Next up and although not quite as sexy as printing photos this one is equally as important. To some people, protecting their photos is a bit of a minefield, full of pitfalls, uncertainty and jargon, so I decided to share my own photo backup workflow in order to help others who might be struggling with their own.
9 of my favourite landscape photographs I took in 2020
Given the year we’ve all had, I was still pretty pleased with the crop of photos I took in 2020. I have around 20-25 keepers taken in London and across the South East and as I have done over the last few years, I have shared my 9 of my favourite landscape photos taken over the last 12 months.
For those I’ve already shared on my Weekly Photo page, I have included a link to take you straight to the post where you can read a little more about the picture.
Landscape photography in London
Fujifilm X-T30 | XF35mm F2 | 35mm | 1/20th Second | f/10 | ISO160
Titled “London’s Burning”, this photo was taken early in 2020 during one of the most epic sunrises I have ever seen and a worthy inclusion in my top 9 photos. Find out more about this photo here: London's Burning | Weekly Photo #64.
Fujifilm X-T30 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 1/9th Second | f/11 | ISO160
Taken around More London, I had to get down low to get the strong lines that lead the eye over towards the recognisable shape of Tower Bridge and with the sunrise providing all of that amazing colour, I knew I had a keeper when I took this photo.
Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 10mm | 1/6th Second | f/6.4 | ISO200
As soon as the restrictions were lifted after the summer, I booked myself in for a couple of trips to the Sky Garden to capture London from the rooftops. I took this wide-angle shot of The Shard across the river and just love the way that iconic shape stands alone in the centre of the frame, towering over the surrounding buildings under those moody clouds which shortly after brought some heavy rain which you can see over on the right-hand side of the frame.
South of England landscape photos
Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 11mm | 1/20th Second | f/10 | ISO200
After deciding to photograph more around the south of England and less in London during the pandemic, taking a trip to the beautiful Bodium Castle was high on my list of places to photograph and I could not have asked for a better first visit back in May. The light was amazing and there was a light mist over the moat adding a special amount of atmosphere into the photo. Read all about it here: Misty Moat | Weekly Photo #63.
Fujifilm XT2 | XF10-24mm | 18mm | 1/50th Second | f/10 | ISO200
I was after a photo of wild heather for some time and after scouting a few locations, I came across this beautiful scene in East Sussex during a misty late summer morning. Read all about this photo here: Late Summer | Weekly Photo #72.
Fujifilm XT2 | XF18-55mm | 18mm | 1/1250th Second | f/7.1 | ISO200
One I haven’t shared yet but boy what a morning I had over at Halnaker in West Sussex back in the Autumn. I love the way the scene was lit by the sun behind me, those dark stormy clouds adding some epic drama and to top it off, a fantastic double rainbow! I’ll talk more about this morning in an upcoming Weekly Photo post so stay tuned for that.
Woodland Photography
Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 55mm | 1/3rd Second | f/9 | ISO200
While on a sunrise shoot during a foggy morning in my local forest, I took this woodland photo of these Scots Pines amongst the ferns. Read all about this particular shoot here: Misty Dawn | Weekly Photo #78
Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 86mm | 2 Seconds | f/10 | ISO200
Titled “Zigzag”, I took this photo in a local Forest and was drawn to the strong lines created by this interesting tree to the right. I wrote more about this photo here: Zigzag | Weekly Photo #80
Fujifilm XT2 | XF55-200mm | 55mm | 0.5 Seconds | f/11 | ISO200
I had some great fun photographing my local woodland during a foggy morning in November and really liked the arrangement of the trees on the left and right of the frame. These trees almost look as if they are bystanders watching the performer in its “ta-da” pose in the middle. I love the muted tones, carpet of dull orange ferns and that mist is the icing on the cake. I’ll talk more about this photo in an upcoming Weekly Photo post in 2021.
At this point, I normally talk about what I have planned for next year but to be honest, I just don’t know. Yes, I’ll continue to photograph London and the South East of England, I’ll continue to write my Weekly Photo posts and I’ll certainly be back photographing the woodland but other than that, with all that’s going on, we will just have to see what the year brings.
Thanks to all of you that have visited my website, supported me on social media and written to me with words of support and encouragement, it all means a lot and it really does motivate me to keep writing these articles.
I wish you all a 2021 that’s full of renewed hope, freedom and above all else, good health.
Until next year,
Trevor