Documentary Photos 2.
Working in long-form documentary & classic editorial modes.
Photographs of Britain by social documentary photographer working in the UK. The style is that of photojournalist and the images hope to inspire action or response. Societal attitudes to the greater whole is of importance in these studies, using the camera as recording device of what is simply seen.
The modern examples of documentary images are concerned with looking at; Landscape and the Environment in the Forest of Dean, post Brexit - Climate Change, the impact on the ground - and the decade long photo story known as Fragments from The Surface. Working in both black and white and colour, the photography is concerned primarily with social attitudes and levels of acceptance of both each other as humans and our environment, be it rural Britain or the streets of our towns, villages and cities.
Please click on a Title to view a selection of images from the Portfolios, or view a Slide Show below.
More work coming soon.
Covid 19 Lockdown
I have photographed some strange events and times but none quite like the Covid Pandemic and its Lockdown #1.
Today it's hard for most of us to really think about and comprehend the isolation and anxiety. The endless worry for our loved ones and the future that waited for us at the end, all seems to be buried deep within. Have we plain forgot or have we blocked it out? Seeing the images again while compiling this website gave me a chill, the emptiness came flooding back and as I write this with one ear on the BBC News... it sounds like all the efforts by the courageous NHS Staff and the committed citizens has been in vail. A failed political plan is to blame with shared responsibility going to the non committed citizens, whose aims and ambitions have to be questioned.
About the photos
Photography for me is a mixture of artistic and humanistic expression as well as recording device. I could be on the streets just having fun or working on the Fragments book. Equally I might be on a photo assignment or long-form documentary or landscape project but the reaction to a found scene is the same. That being, "something" resonates with the heart, eye and brain which causes the physical reaction which is to lift the camera, put a frame around the scene, press the button and make a photograph. Making photos with a film camera relies on a lot of experience - we are unable to see the captured image, unlike our digital counterparts. Hence we walk away and are left wondering slightly for a while until the film is processed and turned into a negative. As soon as you introduce shutter speed and aperture adjustments, you are truly making decisions over what is and isn't important, so raising certain features to a higher importance. This starts to become automatic and that marks the point I believe that your picture making starts to become a process based on memory, creativity and most of all, a sense that you are feeling your way in to the scene, just before the actual image making moment. See - Bresson and the Decisive Moment. I think therefore that often we are seeing the moment that will be the final visual product, before it happens.
Fragments from the Surface might also be called The British as it is a long form look at the country and people as well as places. It is concerned with many things and is full of visual syntax, the language of photography. The work is left unexplained and exists as a photographic marker for a period of time and place. The images are off beat and yet have structure and resonance working together to make a statement.
In this portfolio, the landscape images are a mix of scenes depicting the way in which we use and leave the environment, once the perceived benefit has been capitalised. It's a repeating pattern across the country and the photographs explore the way in which we fit into the land, which is often laid out and manicured for our use. Hardly a wilderness experience.
Climate Change is a work in progress: A book concerning the environment and and the on set of Global Warming.
News! Today 26/11/21 funding for the project has been secured. Thanks to the Green Party this work will continue for the next year as text and detailed information is gathered for the book. Further news is that the highly revered Dr. Jacques Rangasamy M.B.E. has written an exceptional piece of text for the book.