I started taking photos when I was five and acquired my first camera from a toy stall at a market in Cheshire. I have a clear memory of asking the stall holder if it worked. It seemed unbelievable to my young brain that I could own this wondrous object with all its magical possibilities. Many, many years, and several cameras later, I'm still enchanted by photography and its potential, though my interests have evolved, and these days I'm excited by more abstract images.
I am drawn to the notion of the liminal, somewhere in between, vague, ethereal, transient. I see the world through an often slightly myopic gaze, finding myself with the wrong glasses/contact lens combination or sometimes with neither. But this soft vision, out of focus is strangely inspirational. I am enthralled by the idea of taking away the fine detail and reducing a scene down to its basic elements: a wash of colour and indistinct, spectral forms.
By using slow shutter speeds and moving my camera or by using selective focus, I have found that I can simplify a composition and render it down to colour, light and shade. On a computer, I then combine elements to create effects that match how I saw a subject and to produce a more abstract, imagined dreamscape, often adding texture to enhance the effect.
The natural world around me is a constant source of wonder and inspiration and photography is a way of connecting with that landscape. I usually take photos when out walking, things that catch my eye or move me. Although I don't restrict myself in terms of what I photograph, trees do feature heavily in my subject matter. I love spending time in the woods and am bewitched by the calm, otherwordly atmosphere that I find there.
I can't imagine ever loosing that sense of awe at the beauty of nature and the wonders of the world, or the desire to capture it. I suppose at heart I'm still that excited five year old at Sandbach Market....