My Story

Several years ago, I had the opportunity to buy a piece of land just around the corner from my house in Methley, Leeds, West Yorkshire. This land is situated beside a lake which attracts lots of native wildlife. The lake is designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).

I have been a keen wildlife and landscape photographer for over 20 years, which inspired me to build the first hide, which overlooks the lake (bottom hide). After this flooded on a couple occasions I decided to build another hide, higher up the land. This hide is now the busiest of the two. In the summer of 2022 I reconstructed the bottom hide, lifting it approximately five feet from ground level, so there are now two active hides. There is also a reflection pool available for use.

A multitude of bird species (over 30 different species have been sighted) regularly visit the hides and are completely at ease with being photographed.

Some species tend to visit more at certain times of year, but many are present all year round. You can expect to see a variety of species during your visit including; Jays, Sparrowhawks, Great Spotted Woodpeckers, Bullfinch, Greenfinch, Chaffinch, Blue tits, Great Tits, Long Tailed Tits, Robin, Songthrush and Kestrels.

The pictures in the gallery are from my personal collection - all taken at Leeds Wildlife Photography Hides. Cameras used: Canon R6 mk2 rf 100-500 and Fuji XH2S 150-600 and 70-300.

Recently, I have been lucky enough to have had several of these photographs selected by BBC Springwatch to be used on their instagram account.

Special thanks to my good friend Dave for the helpful advice and encouragement you have given in the final stages of this project (https://www.davidspeightphotography.co.uk)