Outdoor Photography: Britain's Magazine for Landscape and Nature Photographers
Outdoor Photography is a British magazine for landscape and nature photographers, published by GMC Publications Ltd from Lewes in East Sussex. First published in 2003, according to photography directory listings, it combines location guides, fieldcraft advice, portfolios and technique features for photographers who work outdoors. Its website is outdoorphotographymagazine.co.uk, and its issues — recently numbered well into the 330s in the publisher's shop — run to more than a hundred pages.
The title should not be confused with Outdoor Photographer, the separate American magazine founded in 1985. The British Outdoor Photography is a distinct publication from a different publisher on a different continent, and it has continued publishing while its American near-namesake went through closure and relaunch. British readers and contributors occasionally have to make that distinction in photography forums; this profile concerns the Lewes magazine throughout.
Overview
Outdoor Photography serves photographers whose subjects are found outdoors: landscapes, wildlife, the coast, the seasons and the built features that sit within the landscape, from ancient ruins to gardens. Directory descriptions summarise its focus as capturing the beauty of the natural world, covering wildlife, landscapes, travel photography and adventure photography.
Each issue mixes inspiration with instruction. Photo essays and interviews show what leading photographers are producing, while practical articles cover gear, techniques and post-processing. Location content helps readers plan their own shoots, with inspiring places to photograph in particular months and seasons — a February issue, for example, will point readers towards locations and subjects suited to late winter light and weather.
History and Founding
Photography directories date the magazine's first publication to 2003, published by GMC Publications. It emerged from the same Lewes publishing house as Black+White Photography, giving GMC two complementary photography titles: one defined by a medium, monochrome, and this one defined by a place, the outdoors.
The magazine built its reputation during a period when British landscape photography was enjoying a popular revival, with accessible digital cameras bringing more photographers into the hills and onto the coast. By the middle of the following decade it was running a major national competition, Outdoor Photographer of the Year, and its editor was speaking for a well-established title rather than a newcomer. The growth of its issue numbering — passing 260 in the early 2020s, 314 soon after, and the 330s in recent publisher listings — reflects a steady, frequent publication cycle over more than two decades.
Publisher and Ownership
The publisher is GMC Publications Ltd, part of the GMC group based in Lewes, East Sussex. GMC handles subscriptions, single issues and back issues through its own subscriptions shop, offering print delivery and instant-access digital editions, with savings of up to thirty per cent for subscribers.
Within the GMC portfolio, Outdoor Photography is the publisher's principal title for landscape and nature photography. Its Lewes base places it close to the South Downs and the Sussex coast, landscapes that feature regularly in British outdoor photography, though the magazine's coverage ranges across the whole of Britain and far beyond it.
Editorial Content and Sections
A look at recent issues shows the magazine's regular mixture. Issue 314 offered guidance on creating atmospheric winter landscapes, wisdom from wildlife photographer David duChemin, an interview with Isle of Skye specialist Nick Hanson, a discussion of Sally Mason's abstract nature images, creative drone landscapes, winter wildlife photography tips and inspiring locations to shoot in February, with a cover image credited to Orla Fleming.
Earlier recent issues follow the same pattern. Issue 266 covered capturing the insect world and using artificial light in wildlife photography, alongside landscapes evoking peace by Vanda Ralevska, Jeremy Walker's photographs of ancient ruins in the landscape, and pictures from International Garden Photographer of the Year. Issue 264 featured winter landscapes, coastal pictures by Rachael Talibart, a photographer moving to a deserted island, photographing local wildlife, the camera-shy purple heron, and images from Bug Photographer of the Year. Wildlife, landscape, macro, coastal and competition photography all share the same pages.
Notable Editors and Contributors
Steve Watkins was editor of Outdoor Photography during the period when its Outdoor Photographer of the Year competition was prominent, and he spoke for the magazine in announcing the 2014 winner, describing the winning image's sweep of light across Icelandic peaks. His own participation in the Fjällräven Polar dogsled expedition in 2014, reported in connection with the competition, reflected the magazine's ethos that its staff should be practitioners who spend time outdoors.
Contributors and featured photographers in recent issues include wildlife photographer David duChemin, Skye-based Nick Hanson, abstract nature photographer Sally Mason, landscape photographers Vanda Ralevska and Jeremy Walker, and coastal photographer Rachael Talibart, who also won the sister magazine's Black+White Photographer of the Year award in 2018. The magazine draws on the strong community of British landscape and nature specialists, as well as international names working in wilder places.
Outdoor Photographer of the Year
The magazine's best-known enterprise was the Outdoor Photographer of the Year competition, known as OPOTY, which attracted entries from photographers in Britain and beyond and was judged with involvement from sponsors including Fjällräven, the Swedish outdoor clothing company. The overall winner for 2014 was Greg Whitton, an enthusiast photographer based in Solihull, whose image of light building across Icelandic peaks was the overwhelming favourite among the judges, according to editor Steve Watkins.
Whitton's prize was a place on the Fjällräven Polar 2015 dogsled expedition, and the judging panel included Ralph White, managing director of Fjällräven UK, who praised the number and quality of entries and the care with which each submission was treated. A competition offering an Arctic expedition as a prize, rather than equipment alone, summed up the magazine's values: the photograph and the outdoor experience behind it mattered equally.
Audience and Readership
Outdoor Photography addresses photographers of all levels, in directory descriptions of the title, from beginners looking for their first location guide to experienced landscape specialists refining advanced technique. Its blend of breathtaking visuals and informative content is aimed at readers who want both to be inspired and to improve.
The readership is rooted in Britain's strong culture of walking, climbing and nature observation. Location features assume readers will actually visit the places described, often in demanding weather and at unsocial hours, since landscape photography rewards dawn starts and winter conditions. At the same time, wildlife and travel content broadens the appeal to photographers whose outdoor work takes them overseas.
Print and Digital Editions
The print magazine is published frequently through the year, with subscription and single-issue sales handled by GMC. Individual recent issues, such as issue 314 and issue 266, are listed in the publisher's shop with instant-access digital editions that can be read on mobile, tablet or computer, alongside print copies while stock lasts.
Digital access has changed how a location-based magazine is used. A reader can check an issue on a phone while planning a trip, or revisit technique articles in the field. The publisher's shop presents print subscription as the route to home delivery, with digital editions offering immediate access to the current issue and recent back numbers numbered through the 320s and 330s.
Fieldcraft, Locations and Technique
Beyond portfolios, the magazine's practical core is fieldcraft: how to work in the landscape responsibly and effectively. Articles address seasonal subjects, from atmospheric winter scenes to insect photography in summer, the use of artificial light for wildlife, shooting camera-shy birds such as the purple heron, and creative approaches including drone landscapes and abstract nature images.
That range reflects the modern outdoor photographer's toolkit. The same reader may carry a tripod for dawn landscapes, a macro lens for insects, a long lens for birds and a drone for aerial patterns. Outdoor Photography's structure — locations, portfolios, interviews and technique side by side — is designed to serve that whole practice rather than a single genre within it.
Recent Developments
Outdoor Photography continues to publish from Lewes, with the publisher's shop listing current issues in the 330s and maintaining subscription offers for the title. Its continuity stands out in a photography magazine market that has seen many closures, including, temporarily, its American near-namesake; forum discussions among photographers in 2025 noted that the UK magazine endures while the US title's fate was uncertain.
After more than twenty years, the magazine's proposition remains the one it started with: take photographers outdoors, show them where to go and what is possible there, and give them the technique and fieldcraft to come back with better pictures of the British landscape and the wider natural world.
