About
 My first photographic memories are of my Dad’s black and white images from his home-made darkroom. They were the usual – family and holiday photos. Dad had made his enlarger, in the late 1940’s, from two green, metal desk-lamp shades and an Army Surplus bellows camera. He’d welded the two shades together and attached it via metal tubes to a stand. Dad bought me a Halina Instamatic camera when I was 13. Then, when I was 18, I inherited his 18 year old Agfa Solinette, bellows camera when he upgraded to a Zenith. The Solinette had no light meter but my uncle (also a photographer) gave me his Weston II light-meter. I used this combination for 9 years before getting a Canon A1, which I bought just after the birth of our daughter – just like Dad had done when he bought that Solinette. I now use a Canon 7D DSLR or if I want to travel light, a Canon compact G10. I enjoy action or sport photography as I find it is a challenge. Over the past few years I have specialised in photographing competitive swimming – which is definitely a challenge. Why swimming? This is the sport I competed in when I was a teenager and later as a Master. I competed at club, County and occasionally National level. I also enjoy landscape and travel photography. I joined a camera club in 1996 and also started on a City and Guilds photography course at the local college. In 1999 I had five C&G modules under my belt and enough merits and distinctions amongst them to get an exemption from the Royal Photographic Society (RPS) for a Licentiate award. In 2003 I achieved my Photographic Alliance of Great Britain (PAGB) Credit award. In 2004 I put in for my Associate award with the RPS and got it on the first time of trying. I felt on a roll and in 2005 tried for my Distinction award with the PAGB and got that, also on the first time of trying. The next awards are Fellowship of the RPS and a Masters award of the PAGB and yes I am thinking about them and maybe ...... one day .... who knows! In the meantime I am entering national and international competitions through the British Photographic Exhibition (BPE) and Fédération Internationale de’Art de Photographique (FIAP) circuits. I started entering British Photographic Exhibitions in 2003; I currently have the 3 crown award - denoting over 100 acceptances in these exhibitions. Since 2007 I have been entering FIAP International exhibitions. I got my AFIAP award in March 2010 and by September 2011 got all the necessary requirements for my EFIAP – I am now putting together a portfolio of prints for an assessment in early 2012. If anyone is considering doing the FIAP awards my best piece of advice is to keep very precise records of all your acceptances - country, individual salon names, FIAP number for that salon and year. It will make easier putting together your application. Who needs ‘brain training’! As for the future, I’d love to photograph the 2012 Olympic swimming (or other sports) and on a more practical note I’d like to do more natural history photography. I have this idea that sport and natural history have several common factors. *See below for letters information - LRPS – Licenciate of the Royal Photographic Society ARPS – Associateship of the Royal Photographic Society CPAGB – Credit award of the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain DPAGB – Distinction award of the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain BPE – British Photographic Exhibitions FIAP – Federation International Amateur Photographers AFIAP – Artiste of FIAP EFIAP – Excellence of FIAP |
