Looking back at 2025
My favourite images from a busy year
Hello, I’m Gill and I write a photography blog inspired by the landscapes of Suffolk and beyond. Please subscribe to read more of my writing and visit my website to view my images.
It is December 27th and I am sitting at my desk writing this on a quiet, grey day. Christmas didn’t quite go to plan but it did fly by and the new year is creeping up fast - hence the reflective mood.
I have been looking at my years work, wondering if I feel satisfied or slightly annoyed that I didn’t get out more with the camera. I think I always feel like I could have done better but overall I am happy with the work I created.
Looking back through my Lightroom catalogue I have picked out 12 images, one from each month, to tell the story of my photographic year.
2025 began in Suffolk with some frosty weather and some lovely conditions for early morning photography. My January image is the header image and was made at Hollesley Common shooting towards the rising sun. I love the combination of warm sunrise colours and bright white hoar frost. Two months later these silver birch saplings were cut down as part of a heathland management program and this scene no longer exists.
In February I spent a lot of time on my local beach working with the wooden groynes and remnants of the old sea defences. This image is one of my favourites because of its low viewpoint and is a composition I hadn’t seen before.
Late winter sunrises are my favourites, particularly on still mornings. My March shot was taken on the river Deben and I love it for its sunrise colours and patterns in the mud. To me it shows that even the most unlikely landscapes can be beautiful.
In April, I took a trip to Assynt and Sutherland and had one of my most memorable days in the pouring rain. This photograph was taken at Balnakeil Beach and shows the remains of an old shipwreck leading to a distant headland. I really like the muted colour palette created by the pouring rain. This image formed part of my Coalescence project.
By the beginning of May I was back home in Suffolk and used some of the quiet misty mornings to explore a local ancient woodland. I was working on images for my ‘Connection project’ and this was one of my favourites from the shoot. It didn’t make the project but I love the foreground tree which reminds me of a hunched figure.
One image that did make the final portfolio for the project was this shot across a poppy field taken in mid June. I love the soft colours and gentle light and the beauty of the flowers backlit by the rising sun. The Connection Project ran from 4th - 10th December at the Artspace Gallery in Woodbridge and you can read more about my portfolio in this On Landscape article.
In July I took a trip to Norfolk to run some workshops along the North Norfolk Coast. I used to spend a lot of time here growing up and the locations have a special place in my heart. This was one of my favourite shots taken outside of workshop time.
No August would be complete without a trip to Suffolk heathlands. The purple carpets of heather are glorious at this time of year. On this particular morning I was really lucky to have perfect conditions with mist and some lovely sunrise colours.
In September I bought myself a vintage helios lens and had fun playing with the bokeh and early autumn colours. This was my favourite image from several sessions out with the Helios 44-2.
In October I was back in Ardnamurchan running another workshop in the West Highland Peninsulas. This image was taken just outside the house that we use for the workshop and was one of those amazing moments where all the conditions and light seemed to come together perfectly. I will be returning to Ardnamurchan in October 2026 and you can find more information about the workshop here.
From the highlands of Scotland I headed back to the West Country to run my Exmoor workshop. This was the first time I had run this session in the autumn and it was stunning. My favourite image came from a sunrise shoot which coincided with a high tide and some perfect conditions. I don’t think we could have asked for more on this particular morning. (except maybe taller wellies! )
My final image was taken on a misty December morning on my favourite local beach. I love the early morning colours and the subtle tones of the vegetation. This is definitely an image best viewed printed but for me it sums up the beauty of winter on the Suffolk Coast.
I hope you have enjoyed my selection of images from 2025.
Finally I just want to bring your attention to my new website which I hope gives a better representation of me and my photography.
Thank you all for your support in 2025 and I hope you will continue to follow my work in the year to come.
Best wishes and Happy New Year
Gill
Beautiful. The hunched tree, wow!
Thank you for sharing, it is lovely to read these blogs and get the story behind the images which Instagram doesn’t quite delivery.