Winter Colour: an OWPG highly commended photo set

I've been a member of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild since 2019, and every year I enter magazine and web articles, books, and images into the annual awards. I have won on two prior occasions, for a magazine feature and for this website. This year, to my surprise and delight, I received a 'highly commended' certificate for a photographic submission. This is the first time my photography has been recognised for an award of any kind.

Here is the full photo set. The awards officer Jacquetta Megarry chose images #1, 3, 5, and 7 to illustrate the submission (probably the strongest in the set). My personal favourite is #3, showing alpenglow just touching the summit of Sgor an Lochain Uaine. It's probably my best image of 2024 so far. Overall, I think the set fits the 'winter colour' description quite well, as I processed carefully to bring out the gorgeous tones of blue, purple, and rose in the images.

The images are from an exceptionally good multi-day tour in the Northern Cairngorms from January this year. I camped on the summit of Beinn Macdui – a challenging night! My stove turned into a fireball while melting water after dark, but luckily I managed to kick it outside into the snow, where it did a China Syndrome into the snowpack. There's a bit more about this memorable trip in this post from April, but I'm still planning to publish the full story elsewhere.

In terms of gear, all images were shot on my Nikon Z 5 with the 24-120mm f/4 lens – a reliable combo for winter use, although I've since upgraded to the Zf. As I was going solo, the environmental portraits were all set up using tripod and self-timer. This is a bit tricker in winter when you might only get one chance for the shot; multiple sets of footprints do tend to wreck the zen of a nice pristine snow blanket!

The judges said: 'A very satisfying portfolio of photos, with a narrative that flows from the first image through to the last. All the more impressive for the harsh winter conditions, with limitations on daylight available and the weight of wild-camping equipment.'

It's a true privilege to receive this award from the OWPG. Although the Guild is not large, its members are highly experienced professionals, and I always think that an award judged by your peers is worth far more than one with a public vote. Chris Howes received the winning place for a set of absolutely spectacular caving images – a well-deserved win. In my opinion he's by far the most talented photographer in the Guild, and has won this award several times before.

If you are an outdoor writer, photographer, filmmaker, or other creative professional, please do check out the OWPG. I've benefited tremendously from the collective experience of the Guild over the years and have many good friends there. Our annual Big Weekend, which encompasses the AGM and awards dinner, is a highlight of the year. This year the venue was Shropshire, and Josephine Collingwood, newly elected Chair, led a group of us on a walk over the Long Mynd.

All images © Alex Roddie unless otherwise credited. All Rights Reserved. Please don’t reproduce these images without permission.