Have a seat with...

Clive Nichols

We're revisiting some favourites from our Have A Seat With series, and this was an early one that we loved as we greatly admire his work.  

Named Britain's best garden photographer by Canon Photo plus magazine, Clive Nichols is also a lecturer for the RHS and has over 30 years of experience.

Claus Dalby Garden, Denmark

Thank you for taking the time to answer a few questions, firstly, what got you into photography?  

At university in Reading, I was studying Human Geography and I had a friend called Aidrian who was taking fantastic black and white pictures, so I asked him how he did it and he showed me how to operate an SLR camera. 

A great success from day one, fantastic! Which aspect of an average photoshoot do you enjoy the most?

I certainly don’t enjoy getting up at 2am which I sometimes have to do to drive to a garden for sunrise! But when I am there I am in heaven – especially if it’s a beautiful warm morning and the sun is shining.

The first hour on your own in a magical garden can be like stepping into the Garden of Eden.

Of all the flowers, plants and garden designs that you’ve photographed abroad, what elements would you love to see more of in the UK?  

Foreign gardens have a better structure than English gardens, which often rely a little too much on flowers for their impact. French gardens for example tend to have more hardscaping and topiary in their designs – there is nowhere like Marqueyssac in the UK for example.

With over 30 years of experience in garden photography you must have seen some eccentric gardens, what’s the most bizarrely beautiful shot you’ve taken? 

I think the huge horse head sculpture in frost by Nic Fiddian-Green at Malverleys in Berkshire is probably the most extraordinary beautiful thing I have photographed.

Pettifers, Oxfordshire

We’ve read that dawn light is great for outdoor photography, but what other times of day bring their own rewards to the photographs you take?  

Yes, dawn light is the best – especially the first hour or so when the light is low and raking across a garden scene.

In the morning on a sunny day there is usually a lot of moisture around, so plants are often at their best covered in gossamer cobwebs or emerging out of mist. Evenings are good too but usually the moisture levels are lower because of the suns effect.

Dawn light is the best - especially the first hour or so when the light is low and raking across a garden scene.

How do you like to relax when you’ve been especially busy? What space are you in, what can you see, smell and hear?

If I am in a garden that I have been photographing I like to just relax by walking around listening to the sound of birds and smelling the flowers. I have a very good sense of smell and it’s amazing just how many flowers are fragrant. If I am at home, I like to watch sport – cricket and rugby especially.

Morton Hall, Worcestershire

Finally, of all the gardens you’ve visited, what is your favourite garden? 

There are several – one is Pettifers – a garden which I visit often as it is in my village. I am also fond of Morton Hall garden near Redditch, Wollerton Old Hall in Shropshire, Silver Street farm in Devon and Tresco on the Isles of Scilly, a very special place.

The Sitting Spiritually 'Have a Seat With' series takes a look behind the scenes at how we switch off from the bustling modern-day lifestyle. We speak to people of all sorts of backgrounds and lifestyles around the country as we seek to explore the different ways of relaxing and just taking a moment.