Welcome

Big mountains – I just really love being in the big mountains. Ever since I started mountain biking and taking photos in my youth, I’ve been mesmerized by the big snowy peaks, the vast sweeping views, and that feeling that you’re on top of the world. The mountains are also a great reminder of how insignificant we are, and help put our petty personal problems into perspective. Whether it’s Whistler in British Columbia, the French Alps or the Scottish Highlands, these epic mountain landscapes are all begging to be captured with my Canon gear. This issue I spent a long, enjoyable day in Snowdonia National Park in north-west Wales, photographing beautiful green valleys surrounded by big, striking rocky mountains. See the shots I captured and the DSLR tips I’ve shared on page 28.

Also in this issue, we test Canon’s new EOS 4000D, the cheapest DSLR available today at only £329 (RRP body only), and its ‘bigger’ brother, the new EOS 2000D. They’re both basic budget DSLRS for newbies, but how do they perform in our tests? Find out on page 98.

Award-winning wildlife photographer Ben Hall takes our Apprentice on a day out at a bird of prey centre, teaching him how to capture great bird portraits as well as action shots of the birds flying at speed – see page 8. I also get to interview the inspiration that is Chris Packham, BBC presenter and nature photographer. He’s overcome his Asperger’s condition, turning it into a positive when approaching his unique nature photography (see page 64). We have new photo projects and imageediting tutorials in Canon Skills (page 43), with free video guides. We also test eight of the best prime lenses for portraits (page 106), and much more inside.