Interview to the artist by Rachelle Gryn Brettler, from our Anniversary Book
I regard my work as observational... finding the beautiful in the ordinary. The parameters vary a lot, sometimes narrow — flowers, lakes, trees; other times wide — a village, a town, region or country. In the case of the latter, I will go to a country and explore. I am not a natural traveller but I find the unfamiliar exciting to photograph. I will research potential destinations thoroughly before embarking on a trip but ultimately it can often be something that catches my eye unexpectedly.
So much of our world is catalogued now, my interest is to take an original image but more importantly it needs to convey something new, an emotion, a juxtaposition, a beauty, something unexpected, something amusing perhaps.
There is a vague plan and a good dose of serendipity. The plan often changes and follows its own path. I am happy for the subject matter to dictate but it is important to ensure that my images are more than a travelogue. In the studio I often change the mood of an image but ensure I do not overwork pictures, it is important to convey my initial reaction to a scene.
I do not consider that I work in black and white. I work in a warm black, which, depending how I print can imply a cool hue. I accentuate light and contrast in a way that is not possible with colour. The simplicity, tones and graphic nature of a subject in black and white are the compelling parts of the image that I am attracted to and make a photograph an instant story. I do not see in colour.
I now use a Leica S, previously a Mamiya RZ when I used film. I almost always use a tripod because my images are very considered, I rarely shoot handheld.
I have always printed my own work, which started at college in the darkroom. It is an important part of the process and one I have upheld. I cannot imagine a creative chef choosing the ingredients then giving them to someone to create something delicious. I often print an image many times before I am satisfied, sometimes making changes over a period of years. Paper quality is important; I print on a heavy Hahnemuhle photographic watercolour paper.
I was brought up on a farm in Somerset until I moved to London to study economics, geography, then photography. I was not particularly creative as a kid, however without a television at home I listened to the radio a lot.When listening to dramas I would wonder what the characters looked like. During the 1970s the M5 motorway was built through my dad’s farm and I spent several years making a long cine film documentary about it, which one day I will try to edit. Editing anything creative is hugely important. I guess that film was the seed that started everything.