The big country

Dave Meades shows how to craft your own take on popular locations

Back in the 1990s, I first picked up a film camera and I have loved photography ever since. After school I used to develop my own images in a local club: everything from documentary to still-life, but strangely never any landscapes.

I have only been shooting landscapes since 2019, when I borrowed an old Lumix G1 and a couple of lenses. It quickly became clear that it was worth investing in a higher-grade camera than the point-and-shoots I had owned so far, so I got a Lumix G9. The Micro Four Thirds system provided me with the perfect entry point, and I have used it since. There are so many pros and cons when deciding between full-frame or a cropped sensor – size and weight differences while out walking being one.

In my 20s, I lived in the Scottish Highlands and that’s where I fell in love with the outdoors and the natural world. When I got my new camera, I started out by taking photos of my local woodland and hills. They’re not as dramatic as the mountains, but still a great area to learn the skills I would need once I got back there. Soon I was diving into every resource I could find to improve my photography and do the landscape I loved justice. You won’t find many places in the UK that haven’t been shot a million times before, but with the right approach and some work in editing, you can make the images your own.