A Meadow at the Top of the Hill

Some landscapes work because of what's far away. This one works because of what's right in front of the lens: a hilltop crowded with oxeye daisies, with the valley and a building storm stretching out behind them.

The oxeye daisy

Oxeye daisies are a meadow classic, flowering from late spring into summer in open, sunny grassland and along roadsides. Each flower head is really a cluster of tiny florets: the white 'petals' round the edge and a dense yellow centre full of the florets that make pollen and nectar. That's why they're so popular with bees and hoverflies. Look closely and there's one working a flower here.

Foreground, middle, distance

Putting flowers big in the foreground, a band of dark forest in the middle and a far horizon behind creates depth. The eye starts on the closest daisies and travels back through the frame. A wide lens held low exaggerates the effect, making the nearest flowers loom large.

Watching the weather

The dramatic sky here came from a summer storm moving across the valley. Changeable weather is a gift for landscape photography: a few minutes of broken cloud can give you light and shadow that a clear blue sky never will.