Nov 05, 2025

Super November Outdoors: Photography Themes & Inspiration

November may feel like a month to hunker down a start chipping away at the latest Netflix blockbusters, but actually it's one of the most exciting months to go out exploring with a camera!

The recent warm, damp climate will likely extend any fungi photo forays, and when the nights to turn colder, the early frosts promise to be truly spectacular!

Kicking things off though is a the double whammy of a Super (Beaver) Moon and Bonfire Night lighting up the sky on the same night (5th Nov)! For the super moon, look North East from around 15.30 (Yorkshire - check for your own location). For the rest of the month I've shared more themes and ideas to keep you inspires in the weeks ahead...

Focus of the Month: Fallen Leaves & Woodland Floors

1m7s f8 ISO 400

By November, the drama begins to shift from the treetops to the forest floor. Layers of gold and rust coloured leaves make brilliant subjects whether as part of a woodland landscape, backdrops for portraits or wildlife , macro details, abstracts and more! Look for ferns, fungi, seed heads, and twisted roots — all those small, often-overlooked signs of seasonal change.

It’s a great month to go low and get in close (which leads neatly to this month’s photography tip…).

Photography Tip of the Month: Low Composition Angles

1/500 f8 ISO 125 - Mushroom on a raised footpath verge negating the need to kneel or lie down.

Getting low instantly changes the feel of an image — it can add drama, depth, and a more immersive perspective. In November, when the world feels closer to the ground, it’s the perfect technique to try.

Use a tilting screen if your camera has one it can be immensely useful for framing the perfect shot.
Look for naturally raised areas It's not always possible, inviting or easy to get down for those low angle shots, that's when looking for areas of raised ground can be really useful. Church yar
Focus carefully — shooting close to the ground can trick your autofocus, so try using a small single focus point or even touch focus on the camera screen.

The world looks different from ground level — and in November’s light, it’s a view worth exploring.

Creature of the Month: Redwings

1/1600 f5.6 ISO 4000

November sees the arrival of more redwings in search of warmer climes, and berries! — winter visitors from Scandinavia who bring a flash of colour and offer exciting subject for the months ahead. They tend to travel in flocks, often mixing with fieldfares, and their speckled chests and orange-red flanks stand out beautifully.

Redwings can appear anywhere in fact supermarket car parks, public parks, and roadside hedgerows become hotspots when berry trees and hawthorns are heavy with fruit.

Photography tip: watch and wait near berry trees in good light, ideally early morning or late afternoon. Use a longer lens if you have one, but even compact cameras or phones can work well if you move slowly and quietly. Capture that pop of red and orange before the berries — and birds — move on.

Inspiration of the Month: Andy Goldsworthy

This month’s inspiration is Andy Goldsworthy, the environmental artist whose delicate, fleeting creations feel perfectly in tune with November’s mood. His sculptures — made from leaves, ice, stones,, trees and branches — celebrate impermanence, with photography as the only lasting record.

Goldsworthy’s work encourages us to look at nature’s details, patterns, and rhythms. A photograph doesn’t always need grand landscapes or blazing sunsets — sometimes a simple arrangement of fallen leaves or a patch of frost can say just as much about the season.

Walk of the Month: Knaresborough Night Photo Walk

Review of the Month

Rich is an amazing teacher and fountain of all knowledge when it comes to all things photography. I had a 1:1 full day session with Rich, where we covered theory, key principles and put this into practice with an outdoor shoot. A truly fantastic experience and would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone looking to increase their photography knowledge and have fun doing it. Thank you and hope to see you again 🙂