Philippa & Colin Campbell - Wildlife and Landscape Photographers

Finally hanging up our paddles after over a decade of international dragon boat racing and other activities around the world, we were looking for a new challenge. We rekindled our individual interests in photography, and together started out in wildlife and landscape photography around the UK, and in 2012 made our first overseas photography trip to South Africa. Enthused by that trip, nature and landscape photography became our main activity for future trips around the UK and overseas. Using our competitive drive to perform at elite level in sport, we continually push ourselves in a positive way, always encouraging each other to develop our photography; both technically and artistically through practice, workshops, reading, and of course YouTube. Combined, these are where we have developed as photographers and together honed so much of our workflow.

Our shared interest in nature photography continues to take us to some amazing places, both in the UK and around the world.

At PhiCoFoto you’ll find a selection of our photographs, grouped by a theme, in our Galleries and you’ll find our particular favourites in the Portfolio.

Our Blog page shares highlights from our past trips; sharing extra photographs and background information, as well as acknowledging people who have helped us along the way. There will also be the occasional e-Book (some patience required to download); and Vlogging is a 2020 project that is “work in progress”.

Thank you for visiting us and we hope you enjoy our photos as much as we enjoy creating them.

About Colin

Colin developed an interest in photography using 4x5 Large Format field cameras in the landscape. It was a great medium to learn about both the art and the science behind the photograph.

LF eventually became an impractical medium, due mainly to prolonged foreign travel during his military career, coupled with the challenges of sourcing and rising costs of developing 4x5 slide film. He changed medium to digital DSLR, firstly a Pentax *ISD followed soon after by a Nikon D200.

He continues to use Nikon gear and believes that, from his experience in LF photography, investing in glass is far more productive than wanting the next ‘latest & greatest’ camera body. It was a chance-purchase of a (well) used Nikon 200-400mm f4 that sparked his interest photographing wildlife in the landscape. The development of Lightroom, having endured years of frustration scanning 4x5 Slides into Photoshop, has made a huge impact upon his workflow; having the opportunity to create and produce a photograph from a vision through to the final print.

Colin is fortunate to be married to his best friend, Philippa : together they are PhiCoFoto.

They now have the opportunity and time to travel the UK and abroad together; through guided tours, occasional workshops, and also planning their own trips; enabling them to pursue their shared interest in nature and its environment, whatever the weather. They both shoot with Nikon gear and do a lot of hiking and walks into areas that require map-reading skills, and a compass for those times when mobile-phone, and occasionally sat-nav, technology are not accessible.

Contrary to popular belief, they are not “joined at the hip”: they pursue one or two other interests individually and both undertake their own voluntary works in the charity sector.

About Philippa

Having decided to hang up her dragonboat paddle after the 2007 World Championship in Australia, with over 10 years competing successfully on the International stage with GB, Philippa was looking for a new challenge. Inspired by Colin to get involved with photography, she has developed and grown in confidence over several years with some guidance and lots of support from him. Philippa initially used a Pentax SLR 35mm and migrated to digital, initially using a Nikon D3100; having reasoned early on that it was easier for both of them to have the same base-system. Her workflow has really progressed through using Lightroom and the aim is to produce her own prints. She has had a love for nature from an early age and is pleased to have found a new way to experience the natural world, capturing “precious memories” with her camera along the way.

Philippa describes herself as a keen amateur nature photographer. As well as looking afresh at nature on her doorstep, in and around Berkshire, she also enjoys travelling throughout the UK and Worldwide; especially to those remote locations that being involved with wildlife and landscape photography has allowed her to explore.