A NEW exhibition of images and poetry inspired by the Dartmoor landscape has opened at Dartmoor National Park's High Moorland Visitor Centre in Princetown.

Landscape photographer and poet Rachel Burch will be exhibiting her collection of images in both black and white and colour, alongside poetry inspired by Dartmoor, until the end of February.

Rachel has been working as a photographer for 20 years and recently switched to a digital SLR. Before this she used traditional darkroom techniques. She moved to Dartmoor eight years ago from East Anglia and was inspired by the stunning landscape to pick up her camera again, and started to write poetry.

Rachel said: 'I have lived on rural Dartmoor for eight years and feel that living and working on the moor is an important factor in my creative practice, every day responding to the wild beauty of my environment in visual and poetic terms.

'My literary influences are Dylan Thomas and ancient Celtic literature, mainly 6th to 9th century, both I sense have a deep feeling for the power of the land in which we inhabit.'

Rachel has published two books of poetry to accompany her photographs, and runs a variety of photographic courses. The exhibition runs until Sunday February 27. The High Moorland Visitor Centre is open daily from 10.30am to 3.30pm.