The past few months have been bad for Capitalism. In one of the latest major examples of how globalisation seeps into every section of our lives, a global protest under the name ‘Occupy’ has grown in scale to accommodate demonstrations in no less than 1000 towns and cities worldwide. Beginning in Kuala Lumpur at the end of July 2011, the Occupy movement has unique agendas and demands for every area they’re occupying, including ‘authetic global equality’ – Occupy London, ‘Elimination of the Corporate State’ – Occupy Wall Street, and Occupy Mongolia demanding a 3-5 per cent decrease in loan interest by their commercial banks. In the English capital, Occupy London have a fully functioning mini-village, where supporting members of the general public have been donating anything from food to clothes, blankets, and tents for new demonstrators. They have a media … Read More »

Thursday

Thursday night saw the launch of 2011′s SWN Festival in Cardiff. And what a mighty introduction. Had I not been there photographing it I’d have probably been sitting at home researching another project, and having never been before, I would have had no idea what I was missing. Admittedly, my experience was stuttered slightly due to trying to get around as many gigs as possible – something that became progressively more difficult as the night progressed, but of those gigs I did see (if only for a fleeting minute), I can tell you that if you’ve never been, you absolutely, categorically must.

I was shooting on behalf of an organisation called Creative Cardiff, who have been putting on events throughout the capital during September-November this year. SWN fell nicely into their calendar. As always, my plan was put into action with the use … Read More »

Exciting things are a foot.

I’m joining forces with a Cardiff based journalist to create a website featuring in-depth documentary stories about Cardiff. The website differs from other similar concepts in that we will spend a month working together on one story to create a solid and well considered piece of journalism. We don’t want to diss other websites out there, but we felt that there was an over saturation of ‘snap-shot’ journalism websites, so the idea is to take the time to work with people, companies, or whatever, who we feel are doing something extraordinary by moving Cardiff forward in a positive way. It’s a blank canvas, so the only definitions we want to give at this stage is that each story will be related to Cardiff in some way and be an extended report that provides a monthly story … Read More »

30 years ago my poor mother was giving birth to an alien.

She had waited 9 months and had high hopes for a competition-winning petite papoose of pedigree proportions (grab a cloth and and say that out loud), and instead was rewarded with a creature that looked like it had spent 9 months in an overly chlorinated swimming pool. Two weeks late, I had been cynically building the anticipation of my arrival with a calculated prenatal design, afforded only to those with an innate narcissism and self indulgence beyond the usual realms of imagination.

I even waited until the precise moment that Ian Botham was about to score his hundred in the Ashes. Hearing about my imminent birth, Dad, transfixed by the tensions that surrounded the 500-1 odds against an England win, pulled himself away from the analogue television to witness my entry into the world. Truly, I had … Read More »

2 years is not a long time. In April 2009 I was 27 and finishing a BTEC in Photography at Thames Valley University in Reading. I worked full-time for John Lewis, and had enrolled on the BA Photography course at Glamorgan University. I was excited. Really, really excited about what the future had in store.

These are my holiday photos. Yep, this is a modern version of when granny comes back from Bournemouth and sits the family down to a slideshow of image after image of historical monuments and impressive architecture – the difference being this was shot on a 5D by a chap with an unhealthy interest in rocks. The destination of choice was my girlfriends mums house in Haverfordwest, Southwest Wales. It was a curious place surrounded by some of the most stunning coastlines I’ve seen in Wales, and possibly the UK. Other than nearly capsizing on a boat ride in rough seas and torrential rain, the weather treated us nicely and I came home feeling as if I had spent a few days relaxing and shooting on the paradisaical beaches of Bali (or at least that’s what I told myself).

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One of the benefits of working as a freelance photographer is being given permission to hold my camera underneath someone’s nose without being shouted or spat at. Those magic words, “I’m shooting for (insert name of highly regarded and prestigious media organisation here), would you mind if I took a few pictures?”, alongside a broad and beguiling smile, appear to have the ability to gain you access to just about anywhere, and reveal the inner extrovert in even the most ‘Meldrew-esk’ type personalities. Add a couple of drinks to the equation and you can occasionally expect this repressed exhibitionism to regress into quite bizarre behavior.

You may also encounter times where it’s obvious that the humble folk you’re photographing have long since forgotten the novelty of being photographed and instead do everything … Read More »

Most of the year, I spend my time wishing I was a free spirit, able to roam the land in search of blissful and epic landscapes to photograph. When I do eventually get a day or two free with which to do anything I like, there are generally other restrictions that get in the way – such as not being able to drive, or the Welsh weather failing to be in tune with my work schedule. I’m sure I’m not the only one that feels like this, so I hope you’ll be empathic with my excitement after two of the most perfect days off since I moving to Wales. Living in Cardiff means I have several areas of outstanding natural beauty within spitting distance, including the Gower Peninsula and Brecon Beacons – both of which were destinations of … Read More »