New Work.

This small selection of images was made on my recent trip to California (more on my website) and shot along side my Virtual Water series.


It seems that no matter where I travel in the world there are always chairs and disgarded toys a kimbo.


The freedom to roam with a camera and shoot whatever is always rewarding and frees up the mind..

New Beginings..

A picture everyone does on a plane 2015

This was the first trip I have made to the States without a film camera. It was a strange feeling not having to ask if I could have my film checked which although never a problem in the States, it was nice not having to worry about it. 

My kit is also somewhat lighter now with everything fitting into a small sized rucksack (including a nice new carbon fibre tripod).

But despite all this, my work ethic has not changed. Well at least I don't think it has. All I can say is, watch this space..

'Everyones a photographer these days' is a line I hear very often now. It is certainly easier to make a half decent image when cameras can do outragous things with the press of a single button, especially when activating HDR, surely the work of the devil. Having said that, I was aways taught that you should know how to use your camera without thinking. So wheres the problem...?
I believe a large thoughtless void has been created in a time when you can now click a shutter and have an image viewed by millions in a matter of seconds. The thought process between taking a shot, processing a film, making a contact sheet, editing the proofs, and then spending a day trying to get the image to look a certain way in the darkroom before letting it dry overnight has all but vanished as if it never exsisted.
I have always thought that patience should go hand in hand with photography, but sadly feel that virtue is fast dissappearing, be it waiting for a shot, or dealing with it. But thats easy for me to say working in a fine art market where there's as much rush as an Italians lunch hour. 
Truth be told I am nothing more than a nostalgist. My work is full of memory, moods and melancholey moments (read that about my work somewhere). I would like to cling onto the past and keep collecting boxes of film and prints, whilst working in a slow methodical fashion, but the time has come to move on..

ALL HAIL THE DIGITAL BACK!

Oh its just like Paris. But not..

It was an interesting swaray at last nights Syngenta Awards.
Somerset House is a fine place to hold such events, as I am sure it will be for this years Photo London in May. It felt like an evening in Paris.

My Red Chair image was there, but despite its frequent use for brochures and invites, there was no prize for me. However on my return from the bathroom I did hear the words; California, drought, and project. But rather than a mention, this was to be the winning project comission for someone else. A fellow photographer-slash-nemiphis whispered the words; "Thats got to sting a bit.."  which confirmed my suspicions, and quite frankly, yes it did sting (like a giant bees arse spike) but only because the funding is ten times more than I recieved for mine.. But you know I have said it time and time again; 'Someone had either done it, Doing it, Or thinking about it..'

After another trip to the toilet, this time for a short weep, everyone entered the exhibition halls.
The show was a mixture of photography winners, and lets face it loosers. The winning shots were beautifully printed and framed, the other work, not so much. I later found that the winning work was printed at a different lab to the looser bunch. Because of this the show had become a bit of a disjointed mess, a shame because the venue is quite fabulous. 

All in all I found the whole thing a bit of a dissapointment. The overall winning work was good, but I have seen it all before and thought the photographer in third place should of came first, but thats just me.

Well whatever, whatever. The show might of been a dissapointment, but my dinner was delicious..

VW.

 2014

2015

Although still very much in the running, my Virtual Water series has taken a bit of a back seat lately as I have embarked on a few other projects.
The VW project is something I plan to return to in the upcoming spring and summer months as I am interested to see what another season will bring. This is especially since the recent recorded rainfall and heavy mountain snow (which oftern deterines the levels of surface water that Califonia is reliant on).
Above is the Mojave Reservoir. The first image was made in September 2014, the second in February 2015 by my lovely wife (as a favour). Due to my wifes creative photographic flair its a little tricky to see, but the levels of the lake are much higher. You can just about see the tree on the left in my image which was surrounded by dry dirt and rocks, not water..