New National Park Photography Competition

Many people take a digital still camera with them whilst going out walking – and many more have cameras built into their mobile phones.

So a new competition launched on last Thursday (12^th April) will be of great interest.

The UKs National Parks have launched a photo competition with a special prize – submit your winning landscape taken in a UK National Park and you could win a pair of boots.

There are 15 National Parks in the UK - Brecon Beacons, The Broads, Cairngorms, Dartmoor, Exmoor, Lake District, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs, New Forest, Northumberland, North York Moors, Peak District, Pembrokeshire Coast, Snowdonia, South Downs and the Yorkshire Dales.  They cover some fantastic scenery and a broad range of landscapes from rolling green meadows to mountains and rocky coastal cliffs.

The idea is that if views could compete in the Olympics, views from the UK National Parks would be up there on the podium.

The competition will be judged by TV adventurer Ben Fogle President of the Campaign for National Parks (CNP), Kathryn Cook from the UK Association of National Park Authorities (UK ANPA) and Emily Carr from its partner organisation, outdoor gear specialist Merrell.

Ben Fogle said:  "The UK's National Parks offer some truly gold medal-winning views, which is why I think the UK National Parks team's idea to seek out fans' best photos is a great idea. I look forward to seeing some stunning views and to judging the winning landscape in May."

The winning image will be picked from a shortlist of up to 10 photographs and the lucky winner will get to pick one pair of footwear from Merrell’s excellent spring/summer 2012 collection.

The competition has already started and closes at noon on May 10^th.  To upload your image, visit the Competition page on the National Park’s website here

Our website has some handy hints and tips for taking better landscape photographs - visit our page here.

Our May podcast will feature professional photographer Dan Santillo's top tips to help you too!  You can subscribe to our podcast on iTunes here.