I am lazy, and I suspect I share this trait with the majority of people reading this. How many times have you woken up to a glorious day, only to think “I can’t be bothered to go out for a walk / photography trip / etc.”? Like others, I manage to push past that lethargy most of the time and get out in the fresh air and have a fantastic time. What baffles me is that I never regret it, yet I still have that same reluctance next time around.

With photography it’s a harder thing to overcome. As photographers, we all know that the “golden hour” is when we should all be out and about with our cameras. The results all prove that it is well worth the effort. Yet, how many of us get out at this time more than a handful of times in a year, if that?

For me, additional motivation was required, which came when I said that I was going to produce a book (“Working the View”). If you need to get 40 superb photographs in a year, then you can no longer ignore the fact that you need to get out early and late in the day, even in summer when dawn is before 4am. OK, so maybe I waited until it was after 5am, but that’s still early when you have to haul yourself out of bed and drive at least half an hour to where you want to photograph.

Were the results worth it? You bet they were. Not only were the photographs successful, but the whole experience of being out and about at that time, watching the colour seep into the landscape, the mist rise, the shafts of sunlight burst through. I’ll be out at dawn every day from now on, if only I can get out of my warm bed………………..

As part of “Working the View”, I am adding photography tips to a blog on the project website – follow this link to view.

“Working the View” is a joint project by Mark Butler (photographer) and Sarah Butler (writer) to produce an exhibition and book of landscape photographs of the Yorkshire Dales National Park, with accompanying texts exploring the relationship between the landscape and its guardians.

Visit the recently launched Working the View website for more details.

We all have to move with the times and it was time for me to update my website to make it easier to edit and add images to, without having to edit the code each time.

So here it is, my new website. Built with the very kind help of peredur.net and almost fully operational. There’s some work to do on the gallery, but it should be all done by the end of the week. Enjoy!

Well I talk the talk in supporting the 3 Peaks Project, so on 21 September 2011, it was time to walk the walk.

Friends of the Three Peaks were asked to complete Three Peaks related sponsored activities (without putting more pressure on the area itself), to raise money for the Three Peaks project. I chose to walk “not the Three Peaks” – in this case, Buckden Pike, Little Whernside and Greater Whernside – 25 miles, which was just slightly longer than the usual Three Peaks walk.

When a press article was featured in Grough (an online outdoor news site), I was committed. Shame I chose the wrong day to do it on!

The easy stretch from Kettlewell to Buckden along the river was fine (if a bit dreary), the high winds on Buckden Pike slowed me down a little, but a brief sunny spell coming down to Walden Head lifted my spirits. However, after lunch the rain started and stayed with me for most of the rest of the day. The wind also became stronger and going over Fleensop Moor I started to wonder whether what I was doing was really very sensible! Still, I pushed on down into Braidley and up the side of “Dead Man’s Hill” (what an encouraging name that was!). The walk from there for the next 4 miles to the summit of Great Whernside was one I was very glad to finish! Walking into a gale force wind, with the rain lashing down and peat bog underfoot was not my idea of fun! Still I made it in the end, and with only one blister to show for it!

Thanks to everyone who helped me to raise £283 for the Three Peaks Project and I look forwards to next year’s challenge (which I might plan a bit better this time!).

Some images of me on the walk are on the Yorkshire Dales National Park Facebook page.