“I didn’t bring a tripod. Big mistake.” Second attempt at low-light plant portrait lands young photographer prestigious award

Jacob J Watson-Howland might only be 20 years old, but his painterly image of a snowdrop, Streetlit Snowdrop, beat over 13,000 entries to win the Botanical Britain category in the prestigious British Wildlife Photography Awards [BWPA].

The young wildlife photographer has already amassed a formidable following on Instagram, but admits: “Flowers aren’t usually my subject of choice, so for it [the image] to be named the best botanical photo of 2025 in Britain is beyond exciting!”

The image was captured at a snowdrop hotspot near Chilham, Kent, in the UK. Jacob explains that he visits the location every winter, but usually photographs the snowdrops during the day. This time, he decided to change things up and descended upon the location with his Canon EOS R6, after dark.

Jacob used his trusty Sigma 150-600mm f/5-6.3 DG OS HSM | C to frame the shot, but the low-light conditions proved challenging. He told me: “On the first night, I didn’t bring a tripod. Big mistake. Without a tripod, there was too much camera shake”.

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A hint of motion blur is what gives this striking image its painterly aesthetic, but this created another challenge. “There was a slight breeze, and I knew I wanted to capture some motion”, says Jacob.

“Enough to show that there was wind, but not too much, otherwise the flower would lose its shape and would be too blurry. After a few attempts and changes of shutter speed, I got the shot I had visualized.”

The photograph was edited in Adobe Lightroom Classic, but a single editing tool could have changed the outcome entirely. “I don’t shy away from removing distracting tension points in my frames, but using the cloning tool to remove distracting snowdrops in the background almost cost me”, explains Jacob.

It turns out that removal tools are prohibited, save for dust-spot / dirt removal, when entering the BWPA. Thankfully, Jacob was able to come up with a workaround that provided similar results, without any cloning whatsoever. “I used the brush tool to underexpose the distractions to create the minimalist composition I visualized”, he says.

So, is there anything this promising young wildlife photographer would do differently, despite the image’s success?

“You can always improve your images, regardless of whether it wins an award. To improve, I’d love to get a shot with a starry night sky background, rather than a clean all-black backdrop. That’ll be my next step!”

Jacob's top tips for low-light flower portraits

Jacob’s first tip is to “Visualize the image in your mind, before you go out with your camera.” He says, “This will increase your chances of making standout images.” And of course, don’t forget to bring your tripod! “This ensures you can lower the shutter speed to let in enough light, while avoiding camera shake. Your images will be sharper.”

Finally, Jacob recommends that you, “Use editing software to your advantage. Don’t stop yourself from using software to help create the image you envisioned. Especially if you see yourself as a fine-art photographer like I do.

“There’s no harm in using software to remove anything that distracts from the main subject and narrative of your work.” But he, of course, warns: “Be sure to check competition guidelines before submitting images”.

To see more of Jacob's work and to pick up more of his top tips, visit his website.

Check out previous Photo of the Day images, and the stories behind them. If you have an image you'd like us to consider for Photo of the Day, email it to us at digitalcameraworld@futurenet.com

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