IN THE KNOW
Photographers
IN THE KNOW Magazine has the pleasure of working with the most talented local photographers to bring you stunning imagery that captures the true beauty and character of our community. Each issue showcases breathtaking shots that reflect the people, places, and moments that make our area unique.
Are you a photographer with a passion for capturing incredible local scenes? We’d love to collaborate with you. If you’re interested in being featured on one of our upcoming monthly covers, contact us today and let’s create something unforgettable together.
Clive used a zoom lens to shoot this laburnum and wisteria arch in a private garden in Sussex © Clive Nichols
The delicate paper like petals unfurling from this ranunculus flower was recorded using soft light with a macro lens © Clive Nichols
The romantic rose garden at Asthall Manor in Oxfordshire was taken early in the morning with a zoom lens © Clive Nichols
Clive Nichols: Capturing Gardens in Their Most Exquisite Light
In the rarefied world of garden photography, few names resonate as profoundly as Clive Nichols. For over 40 years, he has devoted himself to capturing the subtle poetry of flowers, plants, and gardens, transforming them into images of timeless beauty. From the private gardens of HRH The Prince of Wales in Scotland to Lord Rothschild’s Corfu estate and Lord Heseltine’s Oxfordshire grounds, Clive’s lens has explored the most exceptional horticultural landscapes across the globe.
His work has appeared in hundreds of books and magazines, graced countless calendars, and enhanced innumerable brochures, culminating in an archive of over 140,000 photographs, and supported by a global audience of more than 203,000 followers on Instagram; each drawn to his extraordinary eye for composition, light, and quietly luxurious beauty.
Beyond photography, Clive shares his mastery through masterclasses for The Royal Horticultural Society and serves as one of the lead judges for the prestigious International Garden Photographer of the Year awards.
In the Summer of 2025, Clive was invited to photograph the Beckhams’ garden for Country Life magazine, an assignment befitting his standing at the very pinnacle of garden photography.
Hidden from view and immaculately composed, the garden unfolds as a masterclass in cultivated luxury, where craftsmanship, restraint, and scale coexist in perfect balance. With his signature sensitivity to light and form, Clive captured its refined geometry, lavish planting, and quietly confident elegance, distilling a space of exceptional privilege into images that feel both exclusive and enduring; an unmistakable expression of modern English grandeur.
2024 proved a year of remarkable recognition for Clive. He was awarded the Gordon Rae Photographer of the Year at the Garden Media Guild Awards, while publications also named him Britain’s Best Garden Photographer, a fitting acknowledgement of his artistry, vision, and dedication. His work is celebrated not only for its technical excellence but for its ability to convey the very soul of a garden, capturing fleeting moments of light, colour, and form with sublime elegance.
For those seeking his guidance, Clive’s advice is as clear as the images he produces;
"Select a garden carefully; somewhere photogenic. Shoot in good weather, ideally without wind. Early morning or late afternoon light is the most flattering. A tripod ensures every detail is sharp. For close-ups, choose a specimen that speaks to you, isolate it from distractions, and place it against a complementary background. Techniques can refine your work, but the most essential ingredient is love for your subject. Passion will always shine through your images."
Clive Nichols does not merely photograph gardens, he interprets them, capturing their character and translating it into a visual language of grace and sophistication. In his hands, every flower, leaf, and shadow becomes part of a narrative, a quiet celebration of nature’s artistry, immortalised with elegance and care.
Capturing Stillness:
Photography by Mook
Capturing nature’s quiet elegance through natural light, shifting weather, and delicate reflections, Mook’s work transforms simple rural moments into breathtaking scenes of tranquility.
The countryside becomes a living canvas. A lone winter tree stands silhouetted against a molten sunrise, its branches mirrored perfectly in a rain-filled puddle below; a fleeting alignment of light, symmetry, and stillness. Frost-kissed fields stretch toward a porcelain-blue horizon, revealing the gentle geometry of farmland from above. Golden hour settles over grazing sheep beneath a dramatic sky ablaze with amber and ember tones, while an ivy-framed brick archway offers a contemplative passage between shadow and luminous pasture beyond. Morning mist drapes the valley in softness, allowing treetops to emerge like brushstrokes through layered veils of light.
Mook’s instinct for atmosphere is matched by technical finesse. Working predominantly with natural light, they embrace changing weather, frost, fog, rainfall, and fiery sunsets; to create images rich in mood and authenticity. Reflections are used not merely as visual devices, but as storytelling elements, doubling the emotional depth of each frame.
A distinctive element of their portfolio is the refined use of drone photography. Elevated perspectives reveal the sculptural patterns of hedgerows, the rhythmic patchwork of fields, and the quiet grandeur of open landscapes at dawn. From above, familiar countryside transforms into abstract art; lines, textures, and tones woven into expansive compositions that ground the viewer while expanding their sense of scale.
This is a beautiful showcase of the very best our local landscape has to offer; unhurried, unspoiled, and observed with patience. Through careful composition and a reverence for fleeting light, Mook invites us to pause, breathe, and rediscover the quiet poetry of the natural world.
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Bottom: The Radcliffe Camera, Oxford,, Photo © Barry Prentice
Bottom: Boddington Reservoir, Photo © Barry Prentice
Barry Prentice: Capturing the World from New Perspectives
In a hobby where patience meets creativity, local photography enthusiast Barry Prentice is quickly carving out a name for himself. Though relatively new to the world of traditional photography, Barry brings a wealth of experience from his background in drone flying, an interest that sparked three years ago and soon grew into a full-blown passion.
What began as an exploration of aerial viewpoints has evolved into a deeper artistic journey. Barry’s favourite subjects, sunsets and sunrises, low-light scenes and aviation photography, reflect his fascination with light, atmosphere and motion. The sky, in all its moods, remains both his canvas and his inspiration.
Barry expanded his craft beyond the drone’s perspective, developing his photographic style by blending sweeping aerial compositions with more grounded, deliberate image-making.
Though he considers photography primarily a hobby, Barry’s work has already gained attention, several of his images have sold, a testament to the growing appreciation for his eye and technique.
In 2025, Barry joined the Dunchurch Photographic Society, where he has embraced the club’s competitions and collaborative spirit.
His very first entry earned a joint first place with his striking image of the Radcliffe Camera, marking a promising start to his involvement in the local photographic community.
With the Society’s external competitions and upcoming exhibitions on the horizon, Barry is continuing to refine his craft, driven by curiosity and the sheer joy of capturing the world from unique vantage points. Whether through the hush of dawn, the glow of dusk, or the thrill of aircraft in motion, his images reflect a photographer who sees adventure in every frame—and is only just beginning to explore what’s possible.
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