Booking a photography workshop can feel like quite a big step, particularly if you’re still learning how your camera works or you’ve never attended anything like it before. You might wonder whether everyone else will have more experience, whether your camera is good enough or whether you’ll understand everything being discussed. These are completely natural concerns, but the reality of one of my workshops is far more relaxed and friendly than many people expect.

Buying a better camera is often the beginning of an exciting new interest, but it can also be the point where photography suddenly starts to feel far more complicated. There are buttons, dials, menus and unfamiliar words everywhere, and the instruction manual can sometimes leave you with more questions than answers. It’s hardly surprising that many people turn the dial to Auto and leave it there.

On Sunday 6 September, I returned to the wonderful RSPB Saltholme to lead another of my Beginners Photography Workshops. I was joined by a fantastic group of students who arrived with a mixture of cameras, different levels of experience and their own reasons for wanting to understand photography properly. That variety is something I genuinely enjoy because no two workshops are ever exactly the same, and every student brings different questions and ideas to the day.

This shoot was something a little different from the photography I usually share through here, where much of my work centres around teaching, wildlife and landscape photography. However, commercial photography has always been another important part of what I do, and I work with a wide range of businesses and commercial clients creating professional imagery for their websites, social media, advertising and marketing. It’s nice occasionally to swap the great outdoors for something completely different — and this Monster Factory Clothing shoot was a brilliant example of that.

There are some commercial shoots where the location is simply somewhere to put the product, and then there are shoots where the location is part of the whole story.

Yesterday I was back at RSPB Saltholme teaching another of my Photography Basics: The Complete Beginners Workshops, and it turned into exactly the kind of day I enjoy most.

Everyone arrived with different cameras, different levels of experience and, as is often the case, a few questions about buttons and settings that had never quite made sense before. Some had been relying heavily on Auto mode, while others understood bits and pieces but wanted everything brought together in a way that felt clear and manageable.

That is really what these beginner photography workshops are all about.

A few days ago I found myself lying flat on the beach at South Gare.

To anyone walking past, I probably looked completely mad. Camera balanced just above the shingle, elbows digging into the stones, waiting for a tiny little Sanderling to wander back into the frame.

The funny thing is, I didn't care.

If you'd asked me a few years ago why I spent so much time photographing wildlife, I'd probably have talked about cameras, lenses and getting sharp photographs. I'd have told you about the challenge of capturing a bird that never seems to stop moving or the excitement of finally getting the shot you'd imagined.

When people are looking for somewhere to stay, the first thing they notice isn't the description or the list of facilities. It's the photographs.

Before they've read about the log burner, the hot tub or the beautiful countryside views, they've already made a decision about whether they want to know more. That's why I believe professional holiday let photography is one of the best investments any holiday cottage owner can make.

There are some days that remind me exactly why I've spent the last 14 years teaching photography, and my latest Photography Workshop at RSPB Bempton Cliffs was definitely one of them.

As everyone arrived first thing in the morning, there was a real buzz in the room. Some had only recently bought their cameras, others had been photographing for years but wanted to understand them a little better. That's one of the things I love most about my workshops – it doesn't matter where you're starting from, everyone is there for the same reason... to enjoy photography.

If you’ve ever bought a “proper” camera and thought I have no idea what any of these buttons do…, you’re not alone.

In fact, almost every beginner or amateur photographer I meet on my workshops arrives feeling exactly the same:

• Photos turning out too dark

• Everything blurry

• Confusing buttons everywhere

• Videos and tutorials making it feel even more complicated

• That constant feeling of “I must be doing something wrong”