ALTHOUGH those of us that live here know Herefordshire has some beautiful scenery, others might not think of it on the same scale as the likes of the Lake District and beautiful coastal spots.

But one landscape photographer based in Aymestrey is helping to showcase just how stunning Herefordshire is on a national scale.

Rob Scamp's photograph of of woodland above the Riverside Inn in Aymestrey was the only image taken in the county to be commended in the Take a view - Landscape Photographer of the Year competition.

More than 20,000 entries are submitted but only around 200 make the final selection. Mr Scamp's image will be included in a book called Collection 11. The collection will also become a national tour.

The 50-year-old said: "I took the photo in November 2016. I'd checked the weather forecast the night before just to see what was going to happen and it wasn't great for normal people – it was mist and fog first thing but moving into sunshine after that.

"So I thought if I could get on the edge of that early enough it could produce something special. I walked from the house in the morning, crossed the river and went into the woodland where I knew the sun would be coming through later. I had to wait from a dawn start for about two hours or more before the shot.

"On that morning there was a lot of shots. It seemed everywhere you pointed there was something to take. There was something about it that was special.

"It's surreal really. Because somewhere in there there's a little kid screaming 'yes, it's fantastic, it's me' and the next part of me that thinks 'wow, other people like what I do'.

As a landscape photographer going into the middle of somewhere on your own is at odds with social media and self promotion and marketing. That's quite a conflict.

It does feel like it's immortalised somewhere. When I have the book and it's sitting there it'll be great."

Mr Scamp's first foray into photography was in 2010 when he was living in the Lake District. But he grew frustrated when his images did not reflect the beauty of the area and halted his photography.

But after giving it another go, he said something 'just clicked'.

"It was the difference between photographing the scene and the light. It just didn't represent it but if you could capture the light then that is the key," he said.

He now runs his business, Muddy Slippers, in Aymestrey, where he lives with his wife and stepson.

His photo was the only Herefordshire image to make it into the final – and he is proud to be spreading the word about how beautiful the county is.

He said: "If I would put money on it that it;s the only landscape without travelling to get the shot. It's on my doorstep and I'm really proud of that. Herefordshire has got so much landscape around and to be able to showcase that on this scale is something I am really proud of.

"My favourite area to photograph is probably where I am – that sort of triangle from Shobdon to Croft Castle and back to Wigmore, right in the tip of Herefordshire.

"But you can be with crowds of people, at Croft Castle for example, and then turn down a little track and it completely changes. These things are right under your nose if you just take the time to stop sometimes."