Brian Matthews

Brian Matthews (UK) is an award-winning wildlife, conservation and environmental photographer whose work explores the effects of climate change, biodiversity loss and human activity on the natural world. With a background in physics, science and engineering, Brian combines scientific understanding with visual storytelling to document wildlife and the fragile ecosystems on which it depends.

Brian’s fascination with wildlife began when he was around four years old, after a gardener on a nearby farm gave him a bird book — a book he still owns today. His interest remained with him throughout his childhood, but photography became a serious part of his life after he bought his first SLR while traveling in 2001. Since then, his work has taken him from Britain’s coastlines and remote islands to Borneo, South Georgia, the Falkland Islands and many other wild places around the world.

Much of Brian’s recent photography has focused on the impact of climate change on the UK’s coastlines and islands. Working above and below the water, he documents seabirds, marine life and changing habitats while exploring the connections between warming seas, shifting weather patterns and declining wildlife populations. His long-term projects have also examined subjects including orangutan conservation, sustainable livelihoods, bird flu and the challenges facing the world’s remaining bear species.

Brian has been recognized three times in Wildlife Photographer of the Year. His 2023 highly commended image, Storm Warning, captured an unexpected tropical-style storm between the Scottish islands of Mull and Tiree during the record-breaking heat of 2022. The photograph was exhibited internationally and featured at COP28 as part of wider conversations about climate change, net zero and the urgent need for environmental action.

Alongside his photography, Brian has held senior roles in science, engineering and the energy sector and founded Terra Ursa, a company focused on climate change. By bringing together scientific knowledge, photography and conservation storytelling, he hopes to make complex environmental changes more visible, relevant and understandable — and to encourage meaningful action to protect biodiversity for future generations.