16-YEAR-OLD Thomas Snowden is riding high after his recent photography exhibition in the Globe, Stokesley.

He exhibited 17 of his photographs which were mainly landscapes from the local area, and the feedback was so positive they have asked him to exhibit again.

However, Thomas is no stranger to acclaim. In 2013 at the age of 11, he inherited his grandfather’s camera and entered his first competition, run by Stokesley Rotary, and was encouraged by his teachers, Pamela Beddows and Serena Metcalfe and Rotarian, David Smith .His photos of the Train man, Passengers and Man in a Tunnel were entered and he won the competition both locally and regionally. This gave him the confidence he needed to spur him on to develop his interest further and in 2014, his photos of Redcar, Saltburn Lifts and the Infinity Bridge at twilight won him first place in the Rotary Competition, locally, regionally and nationally. He was only 12 at the time, and the Queen’s photographer, who was one of the judges, commented that his work was of a professional standard.

He was given opportunities at school to photograph special events, such as Sports’ Day and his photos of local scenes were used in the 6th form Planners. Gary Verity presented him with the Dr Faulkner Award for Creativity in 2015.His inspiration has always been Joe Cornish and later that year, Adam Richardson, Joe Cornish’s Gallery Manager invited Tom to show his photos in an exhibition in the Gallery. Tom kept on winning awards nationally and in 2017, Teesside Hospice contacted him to be their photographer for their 2017 calendar.

Tom has a quiet confidence in his work but is modest about his achievements.“ I try to get across how I want the photograph to look,” said Tom.” It’s a challenge for me, and I’m learning all the time.”

“Tom has always been really observant from an early age,” said his father, David. “He would see tiny insects and wildlife on walks we had just walked past.”

He has been offered places at both Queen Elizabeth 6th form College and the Northern School of Art to study photography, film studies and for a media technical diploma, and would love to do travel photography as his future career. He has both an Instagram account tomsnow4401, and facebook site

Aysgarth Falls- This shot is taken at one of my favourite places. To take this photo I used my Canon EOS 1100D camera and used aperture priority. This allowed me to capture long exposure. Long exposure is hard to manage just hand-held so to take this photo I used a tripod and got down to the same level as the water.

BMC- Back in 2017 I took a variety of different shots at the Tour de Yorkshire and tried to capture every moment with the Canon EOS 1100D camera. To capture this one shot I used a 70-300mm lens which allowed me to take a close up of the riders. To get the effect of a contrast between part black and white and part colour I used an effect called colour popping this means the rider is the focus point in colour and the background is in Black and White.

Grass and dew- I took this picture around Cod Beck reservoir in winter. To capture this photo, I used a 70-300mm lens to zoom right in on the flower head and the dew drops. I entered this picture into the rotary competition in 2017-18 and got as far as the National Finals.

Great Ayton- I took this picture at Great Ayton. My eye was drawn to the lines made by the rails and floor of the bridge. My camera choice was the Canon EOS 1100D camera with 18-55mm lens.

Guisborough priory- I took this photo in April 2016 and it had lots of vibrant colour around that time of year. To create the effect of the blur I used soft focus when editing it this allowed me to create a focus point on the priory and blur the rest of the picture. I took this picture with the Canon EOS 1100D camera and 18-55mm lens.

The Lonely Tree- The picture is taken near Hawnby Hill, a lovely place and nice area to walk. I took this picture knowing that there was only one tree in that area and I then captured the high grass in the foreground leading up to the tree standing on it`s own. To capture this photo, I used the Canon EOS 1100D camera and the 18-55mm lens.

Infinity Bridge- The infinity bridge is one of the nicest places to go it is quiet and it is great for photography. I took this photo in February 2015 and I took it with a tripod and an 18-55mm lens to capture the full length of the bridge.

Infinity Bridge twilight- This shot is a favourite as it shows the bridge to good effect. Not quite the reflection I was after but there’s always next time. To take this shot I used my tripod and an 18-55mm lens with my Canon 1100d camera I also experimented and took multiple shots from different angles to try to capture the best angle. To capture this photo, I had to be there at the right time when the lighting was good and there was a good atmosphere in the sky.

Nanosphere at Cod Beck- For those of you that don’t know what a nanosphere is or does, it is just a glass sphere that turns a normal image upside down. When I was going around Cod Beck reservoir I was experimenting with the nanosphere. This picture shows the nanosphere on the wall at Cod Beck looking into the distance. To capture this picture, I used a Canon EOS 1100D with an 18-55mm lens.

Red Arrows- The Red Arrows are brilliant, and it is always fantastic to see them flying in formation at an air show. In 2015 I went to the Royal International Ait Tattoo at RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire to watch the displays and to take pictures of aircraft. It was a brilliant experience. When I was there I saw all the air displays but my favourite was the Red Arrows pictured here in the Diamond 9 formation. I took this picture with Canon EOS 1100D and 70-300mm lens.

Redcar seafront- This photo was taken in February 2015 and was entered the Rotary competition winning both district, regional and national level. The seafront at Redcar is peaceful and has the sound of nature crashing against sea defences. This picture was taken with Canon EOS 1100D, 18-55mm lens and I used a long exposure to blur the movement of the waves.

Roseberry topping- This photo was taken to the side of Roseberry topping in the snow. I have taken many pictures of Roseberry topping but by far this is the best one. When I edited this picture, I put a large diameter circle on the picture but, so it was faint in places creating the darkness in some places. I took the picture with Canon 1100D, 18-55mm lens.

Saltburn- I have been to Saltburn multiple times to take photos and every time I have been I have always wanted to improve my shots this one is an improvement form the original shot which was in colour, the Black and White creates the effect of there is always grey skies in Britain. To take this picture I used a handrail in Saltburn to steady the camera and I used a Canon EOS 1100D with the 18-55mm lens to capture the full scale of the pier.

The B&W Tunnel- This picture was taken in the south of France in a chateau porch, I love the south of France and have done since I was younger, now I’m older I can venture out and do more things that I was unable to do originally. This picture was taken back in 2015 and it looks down an open archway. The south of France is great for photography it is worth the visit. To capture this shot I used my Canon EOS 1100D with the 18-55mm lens.

The man in the tunnel- This picture is one of the first pictures that I ever took, and it was the first time I entered the rotary competition and won it. The hand rails were a guidance to the figure at the other end of the tunnel. The camera I used to take this picture was Canon PowerShot A580 a small compact camera that fits the purpose for this photo.

The war crew- This photograph was taken in Northallerton and it was taken to represent 1940s day in Northallerton this meant that it was a good day out for everyone. The festival brought people closer together as well as also creating a fun and wacky place. The camera I used to take this photograph was Canon EOS 1100D with an 18-55mm lens.

The war girls- This photo has been colour popped and it shows the war ladies at the 1940`s day in Northallerton it also shows what the woman in the war, were doing and the lives they had to live. The camera I used to take this photo was the Canon EOS 1100D with the 18-55mm lens.