Introduction
I first became interested in photography as a child having been given various 110 format film cameras by my parents. My interest was inspired further as I watched my father build up an impressive collection of lenses for his Canon AE1, although I was rarely allowed to use this amazing piece of equipment.
In later years my career and family life moved photography from a hobby to a pastime, the usual holiday snaps and pictures of the children growing older. Even so, I have literally hundreds of pictures filed away in albums and drawers, so the interest was obviously not completely dead.
In the late 1990’s I joined the digital revolution in photography working my way through a number of compacts until finally getting a Fuji S5000 shortly after it was released. That camera was a real eye opener so to speak and all of a sudden the passion was back!
It didn’t take long for the bug to bite hard and I followed in my father’s footsteps and moved into the world of SLR cameras, digital though this time, not film. The imagery that can be captured with these cameras is outstanding. Perhaps more importantly, the fact that the image is a digital one, opened up a whole new world of possibilities. Now the artistic influence of my mother, an art teacher, could come into play. The ability to capture technically brilliant images and then change them using techniques from the world of art made me realise that I wanted to do this seriously!
Equipment
For various reasons I work extensively with Canon cameras and lenses. For the technically minded I use a Canon 5D MKII, 21MP DSLR as my primary camera with a Canon 50D as backup and for ‘second shooter’ type situations. I have made a serious investment in lenses over the past few years and use only the highest grade ‘L’ series professional units for all of my work.
Whilst the equipment in itself does not make a good photograph, using the right tools goes a long way to providing the high level of quality that I continually strive to produce in the images that I supply.
Printing
Capturing an image in the camera is of course only part of the process. Printing of photographic images is an art form in itself. For this reason I only use professional quality printers, paper and ink for the work that I print myself. For higher quantity print runs or larger and specialist prints, I work with a professional printing lab in order to ensure the highest levels of print quality.
