A working portrait

Posted on February 2, 2018June 1, 2018 by photograph

A working portrait

I think I should set up a page on my website just for photographs of workers and builders because I find them continually interesting to shoot. This would not be about the specific locations they are working in, glamorous or not. It would be about the skill, the craft and the graft required to work in the building trades. I will let you know when I have set it up. In the meantime, this photo is a candidate for it. Set in

an old cellar in Lewes, the single light casts soft shadows across a room filled with the warm browns of old wood and the cool blue of new plasterboard. Often I am rushing to catch photographs of extreme action on building sites, but here is a different energy of concentration and focus. Until I set up this new gallery page, you can find many photographs of builders working on site in my architectural documentary photographs and more working portraits here.

Crazy red light of Lewes Bonfire

Posted on November 10, 2017June 1, 2018 by photograph

Crazy red light of Lewes Bonfire

After three years as an official photographer for one of Lewes’s Bonfire societies, this year I had intended to experience the celebrations as a spectator. At the last minute I grabbed my camera bag. I couldn’t stop myself. It is hard to resist photographing the extraordinary spectacle of Lewes Bonfire, though the lighting conditions are extreme, to say the least, as is the challenge of dodging exploding bangers. The one disappointment is that a still image can never capture

the overwhelming smells and sounds of the experience. For the full impact you need to be standing in the crush of Lewes High Street as hundreds of wildly, crazily-dressed people stream by holding flaming torches and setting explosives alight. For those of you who have never been here on the 5th of November, I offer this photograph as a mere hint of the full-body experience of the night itself. More photographs of Lewes Bonfire can be found here.

Lewes Bonfire

Posted on November 3, 2017June 1, 2018 by photograph

Lewes Bonfire

Tomorrow our small town of Lewes commemorates Guy Fawkes night with a Bonfire celebration of epic proportions. (When the 5th falls on a Sunday, the festivities take place on the 4th.) This is one of my favourite photos of the event.

I love the conspiratorial relationship between Soldier and Death and find myself pondering what whispered conversation could be taking place. Can a Soldier bargain with Death? Anyone fancy writing the dialogue? More of my Bonfire photos can be found here.

The flower bus has arrived

Posted on September 14, 2017June 1, 2018 by photograph

The flower bus has arrived

A bus made of flowers. To me, a lover of both flowers and public transport, this is a perfect combination! A scaled replica of a double decker bus covered in real flowers was wheeled into the centre of Lewes one Friday morning – in the middle of the road, along with other traffic, of course. The wooden structure was constructed off

site, followed by a labour-intensive two days of work by florists Katie and Becky before the flower bus was ready to roll. I could not resist photographing this quirky, colourful project. You can see more photographs of celebrations here. The bus was commissioned by our local bus company as part of the Lewes Artwave Festival of artists and makers.

Depot Cinema photos on display

Posted on August 18, 2017June 1, 2018 by photograph

Depot Cinema photos on display

This photo of the week is a throwback to last January at the Depot Cinema, taken as part of a two year project documenting the building of this new state-of-the-art cinema in Lewes. I currently have an exhibit of photos from this project in the Studio room of the Depot itself (open daily 10-6). The show runs until 3 September

as part of Artwave, the annual arts festival for the Lewes District. All photographs from this project can be found here.

On 22 August I will be talking with Carmen Slijpen, the Depot’s Creative Director, about the photos and the project. This free event is at 6pm, so please join us.

Depot at dusk

Posted on July 7, 2017June 1, 2018 by photograph

Depot at dusk

I finished my final shoot at the Depot Cinema in Lewes after two years of documenting the renovation of this disused brewery depot. I had photographed the inside of the building early one morning before it filled with people but there was one

further visit I was planning, waiting for the right light and the right weather. I wanted to capture that softness of dusk on a summer evening when the light turns blue and the building interior glows warm through walls of glass. More photos from this shoot can be found here.

Tag: Lewes