A reflection on photography in 2020

What a year 2020 was!

The world got turned upside down, the normality we all took for granted went out of the window and life changed for everyone.

You experienced the world, you know what happened and is still happening today.

It was a time of reflection for me, I was just starting to create lots of new work collaborating with make up artist Beth Gauntlett and we had projects lined up for the future.

I felt like for the first time I was starting to show my true skills as a photographer and finding the direction I wanted to move.

Then that went out of the window

Working with fellow people went out the window, we couldn’t be in the same room, my website build got put on hold, the shoots got cancelled and any idea of starting my business fell on silent ears. So I gave up, I let all my ideas drift away and knuckled down in the hope I would come out the other side of this strange time in one piece.

I was still employed as a product photographer, so I had to count my blessings I still had an income. I know lots of photographers who went out of business, fellow creatives who returned to retail or working in bars to get by, but then the pubs closed. Jobs were getting cut everywhere and I got put on Furlough.

We got a puppy

We got a puppy, it was not a snap decision as we had been talking about it for years and this was the perfect time to work on training him. This pile of fluff became my life, the photography still wasn’t happening but I was educating a creature to understand humans and how to function in our world. There were trials and tribulations, clothing got wrecked, I lived in mud and the amount of poo I picked up was monumental!

The hard work started to pay off though and he is turning out to be a fantastic dog. I cannot wait to see what adventures our lives will lead too.

It was a hard few months but one of the most satisfying and I was loving my time at home, loving getting to do the things I wanted and realising that every moment is a blessing.

I used my second instagram account to document my time with Harvey and created short videos of his progression. If you interested in the slightest you can find them here at general_crap

The news was so depressing everyday people were loosing their lives to this horrible virus and it was time I focused on trying to create the life I wanted. At any moment I too may be struck down by the bugs and did I really want to contract it by for-filling the dreams of someone else? I certainly did not.

The Website is launched

So the website finally got built, the portfolio was chosen and the content was created. At the moment the website is a starting point, I think I have some brilliant images on here but my ambition is to create so much more.

I know this will be very difficult in the current circumstances and my portrait photography is on hold for the moment but I feel creative and optimistic that the future will be brighter in 2021.

For the time been there may be a slight divergence from the pure creative portraiture that I aspire too, but keep your eyes peeled for new posts on my creative image making. In the isolation of lockdown I found a new appreciation of still life photography using my product photography skills to tell stories in a still life. This was a safe way to create images and to keep the skills ticking over.

Looking for collaborations

If you would like to collaborate in the future when the world is a safer place I would love to hear from you. Even if its just a vague idea you have and you'd like to discuss how we could make your dream a reality, get in touch.

The smallest seed can grow the biggest trees, so the time we have at the moment could be used to plan some amazing projects.

Stay safe in the crazy world