11 October 2026
Mustang, Motorcycle and Reenactors at North Weald
A P-51D Mustang, a wartime motorcycle and reenactors in US uniform, photographed at North Weald in Essex. The aircraft is […]
Dave Layland Photography
Bringing aviation into your home
Photographs of warbirds, airshows and the aircraft that shaped Britain's skies, taken by someone who spent nearly seventeen years telling them where to go.
Dave Layland Photography is the work of an ex-RAF Assistant Air Traffic Controller turned aviation and military photographer, based in Wiltshire and working across the UK and Europe. From the display line at Duxford to a derelict airframe rusting quietly in a hedge, every photograph starts with the same question: what happened here, and who flew it.
What I do
Four ways to work together
01
Photography
Airshows, static collections and preserved aircraft, shot with an eye for the detail most people walk past.
02
Events
Full-day coverage of airshows, fly-ins and squadron reunions, delivered while the event is still fresh.
03
Commissions
Aircraft portraits and bespoke briefs for pilots, owners, operators and collectors.
04
Prints
Fine art prints of your favourite aircraft, checked by hand and ready to hang.
News
Latest from the Journal
New aviation and military photography, first-flight anniversaries and the stories behind the aircraft I photograph. Fresh work is added to the Journal regularly, with the newest posts below.
Event report | 15 October 2026
Navy Wings Nightshoot IX at RNAS Yeovilton
On 15 October I was at RNAS Yeovilton in Somerset for Navy Wings Nightshoot IX, run by Threshold in support of the Navy Wings Charity. Threshold organises aviation photography events, from sunset and after-dark night shoots to tours and fairs, and this one celebrated naval aviation from the last of the daylight into full darkness.
The line-up was a Seafire (the naval Spitfire), a Westland Wasp, a Lynx HMA.8 and a Fairey Swordfish, on a working Royal Navy air station. The Swordfish held its colour well into the blue hour, while the Seafire and Wasp really came alive once the lights took over.
I came away with the sunset-to-dark set I was after, moving from golden hour through blue hour to floodlit night frames. A selection is shown here.
Interested in event coverage, commissions or prints? Email contact@davelayland.co.uk or use the contact page.
10 October 2026
Hurricane BE505: The Hurribomber at North Weald
Most people picture the Hurricane as a pure fighter. Hawker Hurricane Mk IIb BE505 (G-HHII) shows the other side of […]
8 October 2026
P-51D Mustang G-SIJJ at Night, North Weald
A Mustang at night, with its propeller blurred into a ring of orange light and its blue nose sitting in […]
1 October 2026
First Flight of the XP-86 Sabre, 1 October 1947
On 1 October 1947, North American’s XP-86 prototype took off from Muroc Dry Lake, now Edwards Air Force Base, with […]
Behind the camera
Seventeen years reading the sky
Before the camera, I spent nearly seventeen years in the RAF as an Assistant Air Traffic Controller. I know how these aircraft actually move, not just how they look, and that shapes every photograph I take.
Have an aircraft in mind?
Commissions, prints and event bookings are open. Tell me what you are after.
Get in touch