First-Year Anniversary
It’s been a year since I started taking photographs and art, seriously. My first steps were going out with my new camera to Southampton common to take some photographs with my partner. I didn’t know how to properly use the camera so I set it to fully automatic and hoped for the best. I wanted to explore the ‘Rule of Thirds’ and so I started with a tree and began . Those photos were very basic but gave me a technical starting point.
My curiosity was peeked when I saw graffiti in an underpass: the colours, lighting and textures all caught my eye and I snapped away. I enjoyed the experience so much I went back the following day and took more images from different positions. Here are two of my favourites from those visits:
These images remain untitled as they were early explorations
My curiosity has served me well over the last twelve months and has been my guiding principle. If something captures my attention or elicits an emotion, whether good or bad, I capture it, even if I only have my mobile phone camera.
My significant highlights have been:
My first exhibition, showing ‘The motorway at Night’ at Hay Castle Open in January.
Creating my first photo book of my favourite night time images.
Compiling my portfolio for interview at Aberystwyth University and being accepted onto the MA in Fine Art.
My Pentax LX film camera was a birthday present and I love it! This building was one of the first images taken with it.
Over the last year, I’ve learnt that taking photographs is incredibly peaceful, almost like meditation. Photographs don’t need to be ‘pretty’ to make them engaging. The limiting belief that I won’t take anymore good photos is a lie: interesting images are all around me, I just need to be observant, and finally, taking images of people is incredibly daunting because of fear that I might upset them.
What are my favourite photographs?
The Bird Cage, 2024
The story: I was making coffee early one Saturday morning and I noticed how foggy and bleak the view looked outside my kitchen window. Unprepared, I ran outside with my camera and captured the mood, which was one of stillness, desolation and mystery. I could feel the dampness in the air. The metal structure in the middle of the field opposite was solitary and lonely. As I took the image, I caught the bird flying over the metal structure at precisely the right time!
April, 2024.
Taken in April in a small town market, I saw Santa covered in a bin liner at the back of the stage. It amused me. I like to capture the funny things that I encounter in everyday life.