Clava Cairns (2000)
It may not be the most impressive image I’ve ever taken but it is certainly one of the most memorable of my collection, for it is the first image I developed in a dark room facility from film to final image. The first step, of removing the film from the camera, was something that always frustrated me but once I reached the point of working with the developed negatives in the darkened space it became quite relaxing. Whether it was the smell of the chemicals or the control you have over the image there is little more exciting than watching the image come to life on the crisp white photograph paper. Whilst developing, I needed to burn in the sky otherwise it would have been a small patch of white lacking the detail in the clouds I desired. It didn’t work as well as I’d hoped, but for a first try, I was rather proud of myself.
The Clava Cairns are a Neolithic burial site several miles east of Inverness in the Highlands of Scotland. They have long been one of my favourite locations for photography, and the atmosphere at the site is just as relaxing and peaceful as being in a darkroom.
Light Abstract #4 (2005)
It had been a long and stressful year at my job and I needed a break, so I hopped on a train and journeyed to the beautiful town of Port Fairy in South West Victoria. This town has always been a favourite place of mine, and in order to de-stress my mind I threw myself into taking a variety of photographs of the area.
The decision to delve into abstract interpretations of light was a spontaneous decision after another image I was taking failed in my intention by inspired experimentation. I took several photos that night, some worked, some were epic fails, but this image has remained my favourite of that evening.
I didn’t want light trails across the whole image but rather a deep sea of blue to partly reflect the calmness of the ocean which surrounds Port Fairy. As for the light trails I was attempting to localize them into the centre of the image so I had a second block of solid colour to counter the blue I was aiming for. The light trails are not as symmetrical as I was hoping but when I saw the final image was happy with the balance between colours
