I am a photographer and printmaker based in the east of England
I am interested in the contrasts found in a landscape that is both natural and manmade.
My work explores the shapes and textures of the landscape and the interplay between the marks made by human activity and the patterns, textures and patina created by the contrasting natural forces of growth and entropy.
When I started photography the only way to take control of the final print was to master darkroom techniques. I discovered that taking a photograph was only the start of the creative process. By using darkroom techniques such as high contrast printing, posterisation, adding textures etc I could manipulate my photographs to create images that spoke to my emotional engagement with the subject.
I now use photo editing packages to manipulate my photographs and add my mark to the final image. I use colour and image manipulation tools to emphasise the graphic elements in a scene. I often add layers of texture sometimes using texture from one element on top of another element e.g. using texture from the surface of a stone blended into a sky. All of my images are created from my original photographs. Some images may contain elements from a number of photographs but my aim is to make each image true to the core subject.
I use giclee printing on Photo Rag paper to make sure my vision is carried through to the final print.