Padley Gorge, Derbyshire, October 2026
I was back at Padley Gorge in the Peak District recently, and it didn’t disappoint. It’s one of those places that rewards a return visit, with tumbling water, mossy boulders and ancient woodland all packed into a short walk even if it's a bit steep in places. I miss hills living in Suffolk so it's always a joy.
It’s also no secret. When I was there the stream was lined with photographers, tripods dotted along the rocks like herons. One passerby stopped and asked what the special interest was, and I think she was half expecting me to say a very rare bird had turned up. I had to confess it was just the water and the colours.
But that’s the fun of it. A place that thousands of people have photographed can still give you something of your own, and long exposures are a big part of that for me. Water in a fast stream is a blur of chaos to the eye, yet slow the shutter right down and it turns to silk. The image on this page was a 13 second exposure, and the cascade becomes a soft, flowing ribbon that you could never actually see standing there.
It’s a small bit of creativity, used by many others, but it changes the whole feel of a composition. The rocks stay sharp and solid while the water becomes something dreamlike. (The tripod, I should say, definitely came along for this one!)
So no rare birds to report, I’m afraid. Although if one of the photographers had turned up in a feathered hat, I might have been fooled too.
