Mark Denton is one of Yorkshire's leading landscape photographers, a master of the panoramic camera. His latest book The Yorkshire Dales is the last in a trilogy of books about the county. His earlier books Yorkshire Coast and Yorkshire Moors and Wolds are bestsellers and there is no doubt that his latest work will also win acclaim.
He began his photographic career on the Yorkshire coast in 2006 and Yorkshire Life was one of the first magazines, if not the first, to celebrate his work. He has travelled the length of the UK and flown around the world on various projects but still his love for the county, his home for more than 20 years, is as strong as ever.
‘I live near Bedale, after a spell in East Yorkshire, and it is a perfect base for my work, particular on the Dales, but handy for getting away too.
‘Looking on the map we are slap in the middle of five national parks, and that was partly why we moved here.’
The Yorkshire Dales book has taken eight years from start to finish with quite a gap in the middle for other projects. ‘I’m glad I took my time over the book,’ adds Mark. ‘I think it made for a much better volume than one that might have been released in a rush in 2007 or 2008. I was able to give my full attention to the subject and find locations I wasn’t previously aware of.’
He still has plans for a ‘Best of Yorkshire’ book. ‘There are quite a few photos I have that have never been published so it’s probably time for some of those to see the light of day,’ he says. He is also keen to photograph Yorkshire’s cities, again a subject he has still to explore. He hasn’t got a photograph of York, for example.
Mark’s new book, published by Frances Lincoln, price £16.99
5 photo stops
We are asked Mark to tell us his five favourite places to take photographs in the Yorkshire Dales so readers can follow in his footsteps. Let us know how you get on. Email your images to feedback@yorkshirelife.co.uk and we will publish the best. We would love to see them.
1. Ribblehead
Position yourself in the middle of a huge amphitheatre of British landscape and architecture, one of the finest spots in Britain, never mind the Dales.
2. The Howgill Fells
They are beautiful from virtually any angle even if some of which aren’t actually in Yorkshire. But they are in the Dales!
3. Cowside Beck
Tucked away between Littondale and Malham, this is a lesser-known gem of the Dales, with very few visitors which was ideal walking and photography country.
4. Wensleydale from Leyburn Shawl
My local haunt and the classic view of Penn Hill, I think of as the gateway to the Dales. There’s also a version without walking from Preston Scar Quarry, if I’m feeling lazy.
5. The barns of Upper Swaledale
It doesn’t get much more Yorkshire than this. Can be cheesy in full sunlight, but wait for interesting passing light and cloud breaks and you can make the scenes your own.
