‘Britons are lucky to have so much natural beauty on their doorstep’: Photographer captures Britain’s otherworldly beauty, from snowcapped mountains to enchanting ancient woodlands

• Here we put a spotlight on the work of Demiray Oral, a landscape photographer based in the Peak District
• Referring to Britain’s climate, he says: ‘The worse the weather the better it is for landscape photography!’
• READ MORE: Secret beaches and mysterious monasteries – magical places to visit for adventure in Greece

This photographer has a talent for capturing Britain’s landscapes at their most magical.

Yielding mesmerising results, Demiray Oral has turned his camera on moss-covered woodlands in Devon, mist-laden valleys of the Peak District and sun-dappled glens of Scotland, among other UK beauty spots.

The photographer, who is originally from London but lives in the Peak District, says that landscape pictures can remind Britons just how lucky they are to have ‘so much natural beauty’ on their doorstep.

What makes the UK landscape so special? According to Demiray, it’s the weather. He says: ‘We are lucky to have such a changeable climate in the UK and we usually get a good dose of all four seasons each year. The worse the weather the better it is for landscape photography!’

Landscape photography is a labour of love for Demiray, who is used to rising at the crack of dawn and hiking long distances in order to secure the shot he’s hoping for. The semi-professional photographer, who also runs a management consulting business, says that people often underestimate the skill that’s required to capture standout images. He says: ‘The biggest mistake is thinking it’s easy, or looking at an image taken on a proper camera and thinking, “I can just take that on my phone”.’  

He also feels that certain landscape photographers don’t take the time to truly appreciate the scenery they’re photographing. He says: ‘Some photographers just see locations as tick boxes, once the stamp has been collected there’s no need to go back, and that’s a shame. It isn’t just about the photograph. I’ll still go back to places I’ve shot lots of times to just enjoy them again.’ Scroll down to see a handful of spellbinding pictures from Demiray’s portfolio of work… 

This enchanting photograph shows Wistman’s Wood, which lies in the Dartmoor National Park in Devon. Demiray describes the site as a ‘brilliant, complex and fragile woodland’

The Peak District’s Chrome Hill is the subject of this mesmerising picture. Demiray reveals: ‘Of all the locations in the Peak District this one’s got a special place in my heart. I’ve been here in the mornings getting on for over 80 times now, possibly more… I still get a buzz looking back through the different versions of this scene I’ve shot’

This stunning picture shows a Staffordshire woodland on a ‘perfect autumn morning’. Demiray says he took the shot ‘on a day when the transition from green to yellow to orange and red was so abundant the whole place had an auburn tint to it everywhere you looked’

This eerie picture shows the ruins of an old barn on Cow Low, a burial mound in the Peak District, Derbyshire. In the background, a hail storm can be seen ‘barrelling down’ over Hope Valley

The moss-covered trees of Padley Gorge in the Peak District, Derbyshire, are the subject of this haunting picture. ‘I thought autumn leaves coupled with blue hour fog would create a compelling backdrop for these marvellous old oaks,’ says Demiray

This stunning picture shows the winter sun setting over Curbar Edge, a steep slope near the Derbyshire village of Curbar 

LEFT: The subject of this shot is Mam Tor, a hill near Castleton in the Peak District. Demiray notes that unusually, there are ‘no footprints’ in the scene, though it’s a popular walking spot. RIGHT: Chrome Hill in Derbyshire is beautifully captured in this picture. Demiray says that the shot shows ‘the last of the snow for the year and the first warm light’

Layered with shades of green, this atmospheric photograph was taken in Padley Gorge 

Demiray turned his lens on Glen Lyon in Perthshire, Scotland, for this spellbinding picture. He describes it as ‘an eerie place’, adding that ‘not much is known about the monolith structures found in the glen’. He adds that the site has ‘oodles of mood and mystique’ 

This magical picture was taken on Shining Tor, the highest peak in the Cheshire part of the Peak District

Mist covers Staffordshire’s Manifold Valley in this ethereal shot. Demiray notes that this is one of the first places that he photographed in the Peak District 

This richly-coloured picture shows a woodland walkway with ‘twisted trees’ near the Derbyshire town of Matlock. Demiray recalls: ‘It was [a] full moon. And a clear night. Sunset had long passed by the time I got there and it was pitch black but for an ivory-white eerie moonlight glow.’ The photographer adds that he set out for the image to have an ‘ethereal’ atmosphere to it 

This spectacular shot was captured near the opening of Thor’s Cave, a cave in the Staffordshire part of the Peak District National Park. ‘There’s a bit of local mystique about this location as you don’t see a lot of images from it, or not in sought-after conditions anyway,’ Demiray reveals

Chrome Hill is captured here dressed in winter apparel, with a mesmerisingly colourful sky above

To see more photography from Demiray Oral, visit his Instagram account and his website.  

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