Sicilian musings

“Taking photographs is an attempt, repeated innumerable times to give a more immediate answer to the fundamental question of existence of the world.” 

Lost in space

No, I don’t mean the ‘final frontier’ kind of ‘space’. I mean all that empty stuff that surrounds us.  Have you ever stopped to think about space, of what it means to you and how much you need? If you were raised in the West, it may not be something you’ve ever considered apart from…

Eye spy

“They’re looking a bit bedraggled”, said a man of the roses that I was photographing. I was taken aback.  The sight of the roses, their faded summer glory dusted with the first frost of winter like a sugar creation in a confectioner’s window, had stopped me in my tracks.  

Sparking joy

From looking at my images you might conclude that I’m meticulous, tidy and hate clutter. Add to that my love of all-things Japan and you might hazard a guess that I’m a fan of declutter guru, Marie Kondo. If so, you’d be right on both counts. I gave a talk at a photography club recently.…

A bit of Blurb

“The negative is the equivalent of the composer’s score, and the print the performance.” (Ansel Adams)   Unlike Ansel Adams, today we have the benefit of being able to view (and share) our images without the need to ever print them. But there’s still something thrilling about seeing an image in print, either in a…

Present tense

If survey results about people’s fears are to be believed, a lot of us fear public speaking more than we fear death. So it was with mixed feelings that I accepted an invitation to present my work at a local photography club. A friend had referred me and I felt it was too good an…

You’ve been framed

If you’ve ever framed an image, you’ll know that the framing cost often outweighs the material cost of the print – even if you can find an ‘off-the-shelf’ frame that suits your needs. And yet there’s nothing more satisfying than seeing your work hanging on the wall or, perhaps even better, someone else’s wall.

I don’t believe it!

It’s said that ‘seeing is believing’. In reality, our eyes and our brain deceive us all the time, throwing into question what is real (objective reality) and what is illusion (perceptional reality). As a photographer it’s important to be aware of the tricks that our eyes and our brain can play on us. When I…

Tell me ma

At 5am the air was warm and heavy; along the banks of the river a few dots of light pierced the darkness, the only sign of habitation; the karst mountains, for which the region is famous, could barely be seen looming in that half-light that is not yet dawn but no longer night; the only…

Patience on a monument

It lasted 7 minutes and was as thrilling as it was unexpected. This is the story of how I came to create my image that appears on the cover of a new book about Venice, Dream of Venice in Black and White. I took the shot in January 2017, planning my trip to Venice to coincide…

Veni, Video, Vici

“I can’t wait to see your images” is a phrase I hear fairly often. I’m not complaining. It’s gratifying that people want to see my images from my travels to far-flung corners of the world, but without wishing to sound ungrateful, it makes my heart sink. That and, “I bet you got some great images”.

What’s in a name?

Sometimes, one of the most challenging aspects of photography is not taking or processing an image, but naming it. This shouldn’t be the case – in my day job, I’m a Communications Consultant, words are my trade. And yet there are times when I struggle to find an appropriate title. But how important is a…