Water wonderlands

Phil Cooke meticulously plans his waterthemed landscape shoots in a bid to capture lighting conditions inspired by paintings

- Phil Cooke

MISSION: Plan for the best light and use it to capture beautiful water-themed landscapes

PHOTOGRAPHER: Phil Cooke

LOCATION: Fife, Scotland

KIT USED: Nikon D800, Nikon D300, Nikon AF-S 16-35mm f/4G ED VR, 24-70mm f/2.8E ED VR, 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G ED VR, LEE Filters

WEBSITE: www.philcookeimages.com

INSTAGRAM: @phil_cooke_images

I took up photography by accident about 15 years ago. I was looking for a new hobby and a friend happened to invite me to a local camera club and I absolutely loved it. I’ve tried various genres of photography, however my love of the great outdoors always brings me back to landscapes.

I was part of the Scotland team that won the FIAP (Fédération Internationale de l’Art Photographique) World Cup at the 34th Monochrome Print Biennial in 2018 (our theme was trees in winter) and am honoured to be in the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain’s Hall of Fame.

I’ve had my Nikon D800 and D300 for a few years now but have invested in new lenses rather than new camera bodies. I believe that the camera is only as good as the quality of lens it has on it – especially when it comes to landscape photography. I also use neutral density (ND) and graduated ND filters in the field to achieve the exposures I require in-camera.