Misty morning shot wins drone photography award

Christopher Harrison said his photograph highlighted "a perspective that you can only get with the flexibility a drone can give you"

A photographer has won a prestigious award for his drone image capturing the perfect moment of trees casting a shadow into early-morning mist.

Christopher Harrison, from near Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, scooped first prize in the nature category at the world's leading international drone photography competition, the Siena Awards in Italy, on 27 September.

The Long Shadow was captured at Brightwell Barrow near the Wittenham Clumps, where a small group of trees stands on a small, raised hill.

Mr Harrison said it highlighted "a perspective that you can only get with the flexibility a drone can give you".

Christopher Harrison (farthest on the left) said he had mingled "with some of the best photographers across the world" at the awards ceremony in Siena

He said he had started taking photography "more seriously" a few years ago.

"I just love being outside and in nature," he said.

"I started taking my camera out with me, started going out at sunrise, which is just the best part of the day for photography because you get interesting conditions."

Christopher Harrison said he planned to continue to shoot the "amazing locations" across Oxfordshire and Berkshire

It was that rare blend of the right conditions when "the mist can sit at perfectly the right level, where the trees essentially cast a shadow into the mist directly just as the sun comes up above the horizon".

That was how his winning shot became possible he explained.

"The photograph is quite simple when you first look at it," Mr Harrison said.

"But when you look a bit closer, you can see the detail in the trees, you can see the details in the fields around the trees."

The Siena Awards ceremony took place in Italy on 27 September

He described the awards ceremony in Siena as "a fantastic event, mingling with some of the best photographers across the world".

Moving forward, Mr Harrison, who has a full-time job, said he "just want to keep shooting the local area".

"Oxfordshire, even Berkshire, has some amazing locations to shoot, so I plan to continue doing that," he said.

"I've got a couple of exhibitions coming up later in the year locally in Henley, so I look forward to that and just see what the next six months to a year brings."