Photographer 'humbled' by award-winning picture

A photographer and his picture of winter mist rolling over cliffs has won the South West Coast Photographer of the Year 2025.

The picture, called Falling Fog, was taken above East Cliff at West Bay in Dorset on a misty January morning in 2025.

Nick Barnes from Dorset says he feels "very humbled" to have this picture chosen as the overall winner and hopes "people get as much enjoyment and wonder at seeing it as I did when I captured it".

Primarily a landscape and seascape photographer, Barnes said he spends "many hours" on the South West coast path locally looking for photo opportunities.

Barnes used a drone to take the picture while out on a walk with his dog Betsy.

"We walked down to the end of the pier at West Bay and the fog was now clearing so I sent my drone up to take a look, which I affectionately call Minnie," he said.

"The cliffs are just a short distance from the pier and although I could see Minnie from below when she got high enough I could see from her camera how the fog and mist was steadily moving from the land at the top of the cliffs and spilling over down towards the beach, an incredible sight to see.

"As I approach my 50th year as a photographer, very very occasionally I get that feeling of amazement and excitement when I see something really special and this felt like a once in a lifetime opportunity, I was absolutely thrilled to be able to capture it."

The photo won over the competition judges, including Jessica Lennan, lecturer in Photography at University of Plymouth, who described the image as: "A beautiful view of the Dorset coast where mist drifts gently across the cliffs, creating a profound sense of calm.

"At first glance the scene feels timeless, but on closer inspection the signs of a recent landslide reveal the coastline's fragility – a place of delicate balance and constant transformation."

The annual competition is hosted by the charity South West Coast Path Association, which said it received more than 1,500 entries.