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Monday 16 Apr 2012

RECORD YOUR RAILWAY VIEW AND WIN £10,000 IN LANDSCAPE PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE YEAR COMPETITION

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The search is on to find the best photography of the British landscape and the rail network. Entries are now open for the Take a view - Landscape Photographer of the Year Awards 2012, which includes the ‘Lines in the Landscape’ Special Award.

The special award has been sponsored by Network Rail for three years and is given for the best photography of Britain’s rail network. Last year’s winner was Shahbaz Majeed from Dundee, with a beautiful shot of a train passing over the Tay Bridge at dusk.

Runner up entries included an atmospheric shot of a train passing over a viaduct in south Cumbria, and one of a speeding train in Bescot in the West Midlands.

Network Rail is supporting the competition in which amateur and professional photographers can highlight the very best imagery of Britain’s beautiful rural and urban scenery and compete for the top prize of £10,000.

The competition, now in its sixth year, is the idea of renowned landscape photographer, Charlie Waite, and the best images will be displayed at an exhibition at the National Theatre in London.

Mr Waite is keen to encourage more people to enter the railway award. He said: “Judging this award is a great pleasure for me as Britain’s railways have always been close to my heart.

“Network Rail looks after an amazing 20,000 miles of track and owns over 2,500 stations and so the photographic opportunities are endless. I will be looking for an image that captures the spirit of today’s railways, be they in the busiest cities or most remote countryside. Details, urban views and sweeping tracks are all eligible and I am hoping to see many photographs that inspire.”

Jo Kaye, Network Rail’s route managing director, said: "This competition celebrates something very special: the way this country looks in all its different ways, some changing, some not. I am delighted that the railway, which forms such an important backdrop for both the urban and rural landscape in so many places, should be a part of it, and look forward with anticipation to seeing the entries."

This year’s winner of the Lines in the Landscape special award will receive a prize of a weekend break. They have the option of joining a flight in Network Rail’s helicopter, which has onboard infrared technology to monitor thousands of miles of track. Alternatively, they can ride on Network Rail’s New Measurement Train, a converted high speed train that is used to capture real time geotechnical track data, clocking up 80,000 miles a year.

Either prize would offer a unique photography opportunity not available to the public.