The Isle of Wight County Press Camera Club has almost 1,200 members and we regularly feature their pictures in the newspaper, online, and in our sister publication, Isle of Wight Living magazine.

For this Behind The Lens feature, we meet Adrian Brown of Binstead, who is known for his stunning night-time shots.

Scroll through our gallery above to see more of Adrian's pictures...

Why did you take up photography?

I have always had an interest in photography and carried compact cameras with me to capture memories of the places I went. I purchased a DSLR before going on a holiday to Iceland with my wife and friends, with the intention of being able to photograph the northern lights; as after some research I found out a camera with manual settings is needed to do this. I was extremely fortunate to see and capture the aurora borealis on two occasions during the week that we were there. After this, I became hooked on low light photography and used my (then) new knowledge of this to head out and capture the stars, travelling to dark sky locations on the Isle of Wight.

Isle of Wight County Press:

The Milky Way over the beach at Freshwater Bay. Sea thrift in the foreground. Picture by Adrian Brown.

Why do you love taking pictures?

More so than taking pictures, my camera gives me a reason to get out of the house and witness the things that I photograph. Standing on a beach at 2am and watching a meteor shower in crystal clear, dark skies is an amazing experience and photography gives me the motivation to go and do this. Being able to then have a souvenir of these nights out in the form of a photograph is great and has allowed me to share this with others.

Where is your favourite place to take pictures?

We are lucky enough to live on an Island that has areas which the skies are not affected by light pollution. The stretch of the Island along Military road has excellent night skies, with the clearest (in my opinion) being nearby the 'Pepper Pot' at Niton; however I believe that the cliff tops along Freshwater Bay is my favourite place to visit as the coastline is amazing, especially during May/June, when the sea thrift is in bloom.

What equipment do you use?

I use a Nikon D5500 with a Tokina 11-16mm, f2.8 lens for most of my night sky images. I also use various mobile phone apps to work out the location of objects in the night sky, in relation to the foreground in order to plan my photographs. I use astronomical and lunar calendars to work out moon phases (as the stars appear brighter when the Moon is not out) and events that are occurring in the night sky (meteor showers etc). I also use 'stacking software' to combine multiple photographs together, as one of the issues with low light photography is 'digital noise' and this helps to overcome this. Processing images on a computer is a must for this type of photography.

What is the favourite picture you have taken?

Despite my love of astro landscape photography, my favourite pictures that I have taken are those of my family. I have a small home studio and it is really important to me to be able to have pictures of my children to be able to look back on as they grow.

Isle of Wight County Press:

Adrian Brown and his family in his home studio.

Why did you join the Isle of Wight County Press Camera Club?

I joined the County Press Camera Club so that I could share my images with others and also look at the work of other photographers on the Isle of Wight for inspiration. The photographic community is fantastic and its always great to have a chat with other Island photographs if I ever meet any on location.

If you could photograph anyone or any place who/what would it be?

I wouldn't say that I have a 'photography bucket list', its more about the journey of creating images that I enjoy. I could visit a dream location and may still look back on the images thinking 'I wish the conditions were slightly different' or 'I would compose this image differently if I went back again'. Nobody has better images of a place than the locals, as they can visit again and again if the conditions are less then perfect. Saying that, I would love to visit Iceland again during the spring/summer (as it was winter when we went before) as I feel this is where my landscape photography journey began.

Anything else you think we should know?

In my daily life I am the manager of one of the homes within Ryde House Group (which I adore), providing support to people with a learning disability and I also have two young children with my wife (who are all amazing). The people around me support and inspire my passion for photography and make it possible for me to go out and do what I love. This year I have made my project, what I call 'Astro Landscape Selfies'; in which I am including myself in the image in order to give a sense of scale (I take these with a remote shutter). I like the human element that this brings to my images and think it adds a bit more interest to the scene.

What advice would you give anyone who wants to get into photography?

I would say 'just go for it'. There is a great community of photographers on the Isle of Wight who you can gain inspiration from and don't be afraid to go and shoot the same things as other people already have, it allows you to learn how to then create your own unique images from this. Everyone starts somewhere and with a bit of time, practise, learning and making mistakes, anyone can make images that they can look at in the future and remember the places they have been and the journey that they went on.

Like reading our Behind the Lens features? Have you seen these ones?

READ AGAIN: Early bird Ryde photographer loves capturing the sun

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  • Our Behind The Lens feature is open to members of the Isle of Wight County Press Camera Club. If you like taking pictures of the Isle of Wight, click here to visit the Facebook group and join in the fun!