Artworks by Nick Dale

I dreamed of becoming a photographer when I was 15, but my mother wanted me to go to Oxford instead!

I ended up reading English at Oxford and working as a strategy consultant for a few years before retiring at the age of 29. I then travelled round the world for seven years, doing four ski seasons and working on an internet start-up in San Francisco before finally returning to London in 2005. At that point, consulting work felt too stressful, so I decided to go 'quality of life'. I'm now a private tutor and international award-winning wildlife photographer.

I became a tutor in 2009 when I happened to read an article in the paper called 'Ten Ways to Beat the Recession', and I started taking pictures again when I received a random email inviting me to go on safari and climb Mount Kenya.

I've been a professional wildlife photographer since 2013, taking pictures in 36 countries on all seven continents and winning various awards including the Sunday Times/Audley Travel Big Shot.

I have a passion for wildlife, and I want to celebrate all its facets in my photography, including power, beauty, cuteness and humour. These are the qualities I want to share with people.

I’m not an expert in conservation, so I don’t take pictures of endangered animals for Greenpeace or Friends of the Earth. I take them because I love close encounters with the natural world, and I want to share the excitement, relaxation, tenderness and wonder they evoke.

I started out taking 'portraits' of animals. That was all very well, and a lion might look beautiful sitting on the African savannah at sunset, but there isn't much energy in that sort of picture. What I try to do now is to focus on action shots. I still take portraits - and sometimes I don't have a choice! - but my ideal image is much more likely to be a cheetah chasing down a Thomson’s gazelle than a bird sitting on a branch!

My favourite animals are the predators, and the advantage of a long lens is that it can create the impression of being right up close and personal with some pretty dangerous beasts. It’s that sense of excitement that I try to capture in my work, and I'm happy to use whatever technology I can find to do the job.