The 7 Best Places for Landscape Photography in the Lake District

The Lake District in Cumbria is one of the best places for landscape photography in the UK. Located in north west England, it’s a marvellous, mountainous region home to the largest lake and the highest peak in the country. Sprinkled with quaint villages and plenty of water sports opportunities as well as some of the most incredible hiking, this area of England is a photographer’s playground.

I have visited the Lake District several times in the last few years since living in a van, which has meant I’ve been able to see it’s magic in all weathers and seasons. With this experience, and probably hundreds of hours worth of walking, hiking and exploring with my camera, I’m here to tell you the top places to visit as a photographer in the lake district and the best seasons for them, including one of my favourite hidden gem photo spots..

1. Ambleside (Wasdale & Red Screes)

Starting strong with Ambleside, you have the best of both worlds here. Not only do you have the charming village of Ambleside for street, architecture and some lake-side photography, you have paths that lead straight from the village to the mountains for some incredible hiking opportunities. My personal favourite is hiking the Red Screes, walking from Ambleside up a road aptly named “The Struggle” and then up to the summit of the Red Screes where you get a gorgeous view over the valley down towards Ullswater and also a fabulous view of Helvellyn. You can do a circular route back down towards Ambleside via Scandale Fell to make the most of your photographs here.

My favourite time to come here is in Spring when the trees are starting to turn green again!

2. Lake Windermere & Bowness-on-Windermere

This is the largest lake in England and is a phenomenal backdrop to the wonderful town of Bowness. You can find unique streets with independent shops, a hub of ferries and rental boats, the Glebe (a gorgeous green with fantastic views), and plenty of paths for walks that lead to little hidden beaches or jetties. I have spent many days here and am always finding new spots to photograph, there are parks and fields and hikes all starting from here, including Orrest head which is a short 1 or 2 mile hike up to an incredible viewpoint over the lake.

Best time to shoot here is sunrise or sunset in any season, the light over the lake is gorgeous and the seasons look beautiful for different reasons.

3. Borrowdale & Seatoller

Two places I adore for a true reset and you can walk between them. You can take your camera here, walk for hours and hours in any direction and continue to marvel at the views. There are so many paths, streams, sheep and old but gorgeous buildings waiting to be photographed. Whether it’s overcast or sunny, morning or late golden hour, the photographs are always beautiful. These tiny (read - micro) villages are just bases to get to the stunning surrounding landscapes as it’s definitely more of a hikers/walkers paradise. I love to go here, lose phone signal and get lost in the landscape taking 1 (or 100) too many photographs.

Best time for me is autumn, though summer is gorgeous too. But I LOVE the moody, cloudy atmosphere and the colours of autumn, they really give it a new life.

4. Langstrath Valley

My absolute favourite place to photograph, get in lost and wander through in the wold of the north of England. I can’t explain the way I feel when I visit there, it’s overwhelming. For me, it’s inspiring and fills me with creativity. The landscape is seemingly endless and in different weathers and seasons it transforms. I usually walk/hike here for 7-10 hours and I have never returned disappointed with my photographs.

For best results go in autumn, the colours are unmatched, in summer it is endlessly green but I should have stayed until sunset to get better results!

5. Keswick & Derwentwater

Keswick is another gorgeous town with plenty of shops and pretty streets to explore, I like it here because it’s a bit more hustle and bustle and you can get a bit of street photography in. It’s on the north end of Derwentwater which is another stunning lake and also has views of Skiddaw and other mountains. The is a large nature reserve area with plenty of wildlife, gorgeous trees and of course the lake with it’s various shores and incredible reflection opportunities.

My favourite time of year is spring and summer, it’s very lively and lush here with lots of people and subjects!

6. Mickleden Valley

This valley is located on the other side of the mountains from Langstrath and also sports some fantastic landscape views (let’s face it, where doesn’t in the lake district?). However, I find that the actual atmosphere and feeling of this valley is entirely different, it feels less remote and more like a charming village. You can hike from here up to the top of Bowfell mountain or, another hike for an incredible vantage point, up to Pike O’Stickle.

All seasons here are incredible, my favourite is autumn for the light and colours pictured below but summer is just as beautiful.

7. Conniston

Conniston is a small scenic town populated with trees, a quiet walk to the lake and a bulbous mountain backdrop. It’s a great photography spot because it’s quiet and interesting, you can hike up past a river and waterfall fairly easily and theres a lovely cafe by the lake where you can watch the steam boats depart. I went with my friend Paul and you can see some of his lake district photography here.

We visited on a moody autumn day where the sun came out for the afternoon and golden hour made everything orange, highly reccommend.

8. Ullswater

Ullswater (in my opinion) is probably the least exciting lake to visit from the perspective of a hiker/walker/explorer. There aren’t too many trails to get close to the lake and I don’t think the backdrop is as dramatic and exciting as some of the others. However, if you could spend an hour or two there it is worth it with a camera. There is an area on the north side of the lake that has some jetties and trees and a small stretch to walk where I have gotten some very gorgeous photographs that I am still very proud of!

Autumn has to be my favourite, the oranges! Truly glorious in an autumnal golden hour.