Autumn Light Over Fountains Abbey

Fountains Abbey has a way of stopping you in your tracks, even when you think you’ve seen it from every angle. Founded in 1132, its long history is written into every arch, every fragment of wall, every shadow that falls across the old monastic grounds. From above, the layout becomes even clearer - the great nave stretching out like a spine, the cloisters forming their perfect quadrangle, and the surviving tower still reaching confidently toward the sky. Sitting within the Studley Royal Water Garden, the surrounding landscape completes the story: rolling fields, ancient trees, and that unmistakable Yorkshire light that seems to make everything glow.

This capture came from an autumn morning where the colours did all the heavy lifting. Mist still lingered in the dips, the trees around the abbey were lit up in deep reds and golds, and the whole valley felt calm, almost hushed. Flying over the ruins with that view unfolding around them is one of those moments where you just pause and appreciate what an incredible place this is - part history, part landscape, and entirely breathtaking.