Why?

I realised in October 2005 that I wasn't getting anything out of photography. Basically I was just taking snaps, and it seemed clear that I either needed to stop carrying a camera or start using it properly!

This realisation was triggered by a book I bought my father for Christmas, after he expressed an interest in returning to photography in his retirement. The book, 'First Light' by Joe Cornish, demonstrated that photography could be individual in style and execution.

I quickly found that the study of photography stimulated an interest in local scenery and how it changes with the light, weather and the season. This is encouraging me to get to know my part of East Berkshire much better.

This website will help me think about why I'm doing this, what I'm learning and which images work and why. This last point seems to be the most 'dark' of the photographic arts.

How?

I'm sticking with film for now, for three reasons. Firstly, there seems little point in the significant investment of 'going digital' until my photography improves. Secondly, it is a relatively cheap medium; film costs are falling, as are the prices of second-hand equipment as people upgrade. Lastly, I don't want to spend a lot of time at the computer. I do this for a living and I'd rather be out with a camera than sitting here. The same goes for the website; I'll aim to keep it as simple to maintain as possible. In addition, my experience with all things digital makes me quite sceptical about any inherent superiority over 'analogue' without long development and investment.

Equipment. I'm using colour negative 135 film (mostly Fuji Reala), a secondhand Canon SLR and secondhand Lee filters. And a tripod of course. I have bought a film scanner but this has lead to spending a lot of time at the computer (see above).

Photoshop. The aim is NO MANIPULATION. I want to see exactly what I did right (or wrong), so no cropping or retouching. I have been using the computer to match the look of the prints on screen rather than 'improve' on them. In general though, I've found I really can't equal the prints - not surprising really as the print process is optimised and the Labs clearly know what they are doing. Anyway, I hope the results look good enough.

Where?

The UK must have the most diverse and compact geology, most complex human landscape, most changeable climate and best environmental protection of sites in the world. If you walk for 3 minutes in the UK and turn around, you'll see a different view. Plus I live here, which is handy.

The East Berkshire/Surrey/Hampshire area does not seem to be well covered. A quick look at the local publications shows some very uninspiring images. Who, after all, goes to Bracknell on holiday? Has Joe Cornish been here? This brings up an interesting question; do I really want to attract attention to some less well known and quiet places in such a populous area?