“It is an illusion that photos are made with the camera…they are made with the eye, heart and head.”
Henri Cartier-Bresson
I grew up in Weymouth Dorset and have fond memories of summer holidays on Weymouth beach. I spent many long walks out with my grandfather and I believe this is where my love for being out in nature first came about. I studied Catering at Weymouth College and alongside this I took a short course in photography. I used a borrowed Brownie camera and spent a little time in the dark room. I would have loved to have been able to paint but lacked the patience required, so I turned to cameras to capture the moment and the beauty I see in the landscape.
It was not until 2009, when I purchased my first digital camera, that I got really hooked. I moved to Worthing in 1994 and live about a five minute walk from the seafront and the beach has been my learning ground. In those early days I would be out everyday, sometimes twice a day and for me it was the best way to learn.
I have two teenage children and work as a self employed bookkeeper. My passion and obsession for photography has to fit around a busy lifestyle so dawn before work and dusk after dinner can work out well. In the early days of going out with my camera I would often miss the sunset and that is how I first recognised the beauty at twilight. I see the most amazing light and skies at these times of the day. I find it such an uplifting experience and feel truly privileged when I can capture the scenes I witness to an acceptable level on my digital camera.
At times I enter competitions and I have had some recognition and accolades.
My kit: Canon 5d mark II and Canon lens 24-105mm, Canon lens 100 – 400 mk II, Sigma 105mm Macro, Benro Tripod, Giotto tripod, extension tube for close up work and a reflector. Lee filter Starter Kit, a Hoya Polariser, a Lee 10 stop ND and a Lee 6 stop ND. I have a Canon 50d that has been converted to infrared. Occasionally I use a Canon 100d with any of the above lenses.
I Shoot in RAW format and use Lightroom and Photoshop through Adobe Creative Cloud for editing.
As my first love is to be out in the landscape I try to get the shot right in camera as much as possible all images need some editing but I try to keep it to a minimum. My aim in editing is to give the viewer the impression of reality, how I saw the scene, unless I am working on something for the abstract gallery.
The image below was taken on a workshop with David Noton at Corfe in Dorset, Corfe in the mist a special morning.
Image courtesy of David Noton Photography