When people think of woodland and streams in the Peak District, they tend to associate it with Padley Gorge. Padley is, without doubt, a stunning spot, but it can get busy with photographers. And, personally, I find it difficult to make clear compositions there – Padley’s scenes tend to be busy, tangled, and complex.

Wyming Brook, on the other hand, is a smaller, more intimate location just outside Sheffield. Unlike Padley, it’s much easier to set up a tripod directly in the stream (so long as you’re equipped with a good pair of wellies). It’s a quiet, magical location covered in moss and ferns.

I headed over to Wyming Brook on a misty autumn morning, hoping to catch the location at its best. I’ve visited before, and my plan of action was to leave the car park and walk about three-quarters of a mile down to the bottom of the stream. (On this occasion, the walk was slightly longer than usual as, midway down, I realised that I had left my tripod in the car…)

Once at the bottom, I worked my way slowly back up, stopping whenever I spotted a composition that appealed to me.

As always, Wyming Brook was delightful, but on this day, with the autumn colour and the mist veiling the trees, it was spectacular. I spent a good four hours there, though it whizzed by.

This sense of losing time, of completely immersing myself in the moment, is one of the reasons I enjoy photography. It’s a meditative experience that lets me achieve a state of flow, where I’m fully engaged with the landscape and the challenge of finding compositions that work photographically. I had to remind myself to take a break for a sandwich and a flask of tea.

I’ve heard another landscape photographer say that “going out is going in”. This idea of photography as an introspective activity really resonates with me.

This trip was a reminder that in photography, the experience itself is often just as valuable as the images you bring home.