Here are a few of my recent images of the Spring wildflowers on Kingsdown beach near Deal.

I’ve been to this small Kent beach before but my aim this time was to capture the wildflowers that grow behind the beach huts in their peak condition. This time of the year is always busy for Spring colour with bluebells and many orchids species growing that by the time I turn my attention to the coast the Red Valerion flowers, in particular, are a bit worse for wear. However, I’ve got no excuses this year as many plants have been delayed by the cold weather.

I began by visiting this location in the evenings at the end of May to check on the blooms and also to try out potential compositions. The flowers were already looking great by this point however it was clear that the direction of the morning light would suit my shots better which was something I was hoping to avoid.

Now, I tend to prefer sunrise trips to sunset shoots; there is often no one around and the light is generally softer and colours more subtle. But, in Kent and in June this means a 3.30 am alarm so it is something of a last resort!

I waited until the following week for the ideal weather conditions. ‘Ideal’ for this shoot meant a calm morning with a clearing sky and next to no wind so I could capture the flowers with the lowest ISO and therefore highest quality.

The sun rises very quickly in the Summer so there is not a lot of time to shoot before the light gets too harsh. I had already planned out most of my compositions to make the most of the best light but also when I saw the spectacular sunrise unfolding I quickly found something before the moment was lost.

As the morning wore on it was a case of getting the pre-envisioned shots in the bag. I cycled through these a few times in the changing light and skies before experimenting with my new fisheye lens once I thought I had safely captured what I came for.

The fisheye is a unique lens that creates very strong distortion. Usually, I am keen to maintain a sense of realism in my landscape photography by keeping architectural lines straight but it was fun to try out a new approach.

By 7.30 am the best of light had gone. The past 3 hours had flown by but now I was keen to get some sleep before work..!

Here are the rest of my shots from this year’s trips to Kingsdown.