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| Winning photo to Weekly Challenge 1 "New Beginnings" by Ollie Simons |
The UK Amateur Photographers' weekly challenge for New Beginnings brought together photographers from across the UK, each offering their own creative interpretation of the theme. This week’s entries ranged from beautiful sunrises to subtle portraits of life, making the final selection especially difficult.
Below, we’re pleased to feature the weekly challenge winner, along with several honourable mentions whose photographs also stood out.
Congratulations to Ollie Simons for winning UKAP's first weekly challenge of 2026! We caught up with him to ask about the story behind the photo and a little bit about himself.
Photographer Interview – Weekly Challenge Winner
Hi, I’m Ollie Simons, and I live in rural Wiltshire, UK. I’ve been into photography for around five years now, originally starting out using just my phone. I’m very lucky to have some stunning views right on my doorstep. I’ve always worked in jobs where early mornings and late nights were part of the routine, which meant I often found myself outside at sunrise. That’s really where my passion for landscape photography, especially at sunrise, began.
The image is of Bear, a friend’s horse, taken at one of my favourite locations, Martinsell Hill. We’d spoken for a while about meeting up for a sunrise shoot, but with both of us working shifts, it was tricky to find a morning when we were both free, and the weather looked promising. In the end, we picked a date about two weeks in advance and hoped for the best, and the conditions couldn’t have been better.
One of the things I love most about sunrise photography is that even when the conditions aren’t considered “good” from a photography perspective, they’re still usually pretty special. Every sunrise feels like a fresh start. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve been up on the hill and not even taken my camera out of the bag, but it’s still a brilliant way to begin the day. This is one of my favourite photos I’ve taken recently because everything just came together and resulted in some really special shots.
I was using a Nikon D600 with an 18–105mm f/3.5–5.6 lens, shot at 48mm, 1/30 sec, f/10, ISO 100. One of the biggest challenges for me was having a moving subject in the frame. I’m very used to photographing landscapes, which thankfully don’t move, so this was a bit of a learning curve.
I had to find the balance between keeping the horse sharp while still capturing enough detail in the background so the low cloud and landscape stood out. Slower shutter speeds that I’d normally use for landscapes just weren’t going to work here, so I found myself thinking more about capturing an image that would hold up well in post-processing.
Bear also wasn’t too keen on the tripod. Anyone who knows horses will understand they always seem to pick the strangest things to be terrified of, and as far as he was concerned, that tripod was not to be trusted!
I’m mainly drawn to landscape photography, especially at sunrise. I love the calm, the light, and the atmosphere you get at that time of day, and being out in nature when most people are still asleep is something I really enjoy.
When people ask me about my photos, I often say that I just photograph what’s already there; it’s there for everyone to see. I keep an eye on the weather, know where the sun will rise, and make the effort to get up early and get out there. Even if you don’t come home with a photo, it’s still a brilliant way to start the day.
I also love the phrase, “The best camera is the one you have with you.” I’ve taken some great photos on my phone while wandering around. My setup on the day this photo was taken cost less than £500, so you definitely don’t need thousands of pounds’ worth of gear to create images you’re proud of.
The best place to keep up with my work is on Instagram:
@simons_ollie. I tend to be more active at certain times of the year, but one of my goals this year is to get out and shoot more through the summer months.
Thank you to everyone who took part in this week’s UK Amateur Photographers weekly challenge. If you’d like to get involved, join the group and keep an eye out for the next theme.
👉 Check out the Weekly Challenge Archive
👉 Join the UK Amateur Photographers community
All images and interview content are published with permission. Copyright remains with the original photographers.
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