Royal photographer reflects on first Royal Ascot without Queen Elizabeth

Royal photographer Chris Jackson has been snapping members of the royal family for almost two decades.

He's captured loads of images in that time but previously told 9Honey his favourite photo he's taken of Queen Elizabeth was at Royal Ascot in 2013.

So this year's race meet, the first since the monarch's death in September, is especially poignant.

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To mark the occasion, the photographer was asked to curate an exhibition at Ascot Racecourse for the week, something King Charles and Queen Camilla spoke of in their welcome on Tuesday.

The frames are located in the grandstand to celebrate the late Queen's close association with the "five days of highly competitive racing", and includes images from some of her 24 winners over the decades.

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"We are sure that this exhibition will prompt many happy memories," the King and Queen noted.

Jackson labelled the task "a huge honour" and "an enjoyable challenge" to capture Her Majesty's more than 70-year relationship with the iconic annual horse racing festival over a series of images.

"It was an enjoyable challenge to delve into the incredible Getty Images archive to put together this stunning set of images across the decades that highlight the late Queen's sheer love of horse racing, breeding and of course some lovely family moments," he wrote on Instagram.

Photos on display include one showing Queen Elizabeth galloping down the course in 1953, as well as Jackson's personal favourite.

"The Queen winning the Gold Cup at Royal Ascot - that was an incredible moment for me when her horse Estimate charged across the finishing line," Jackson told 9Honey over Zoom ahead of Her Majesty's Platinum Jubilee last June.

"We often see her looking at her most passionate and relaxed at Royal Ascot and to win the Gold Cup for the first time in over 200 years for a reigning monarch is an incredible achievement.

"I remember, so vividly, the moment she was handed the coveted trophy and the look on her face and the sheer joy when she had it in her hands — it clearly meant so much to her, it's about the work she's put in, the passion she takes into breeding these horses —it's a story that goes back a long way and this was a culmination of a lot of work and clearly something that made her so happy."

Jackson also recalled a key moment during the race that made it so much more memorable.

"Why I remember it was the cheer of the crowd, the excitement and the fact that everyone was behind her and behind Estimate to win, which is what made that so special."

Now the baton hands to King Charles who on Tuesday opened his first Royal Ascot and had a handful of horses taking to the track, with his face in the royal box often as animated as his mother's used to be.

Jackson is no stranger to photographing King Charles and Queen Camilla as well and was the man behind their now iconic coronation images from the Buckingham Palace balcony looking out onto The Mall.