Landscape and Wildlife
A love of the outdoors, its wildlife and sport has defined me and my outlook on life. As I have grown older and the mountain marathons have taken their toll on my legs I no longer rush past our great landscapes, strain to get to the next check point, drive onward and upward to reach the distance summit or to discover how far I could push myself in the pursuit of exhaustion. Instead, with a slower pace, I now seek to travel within the landscape. With more time to observe there is more time to appreciate what we have around us, if only we give nature the chance to reveal Herself.
With time I have been more able to appreciate the subtle changes in nature brought by the seasons and our famous weather. To appreciate how light can transform the view of our surroundings and finally to appreciate the beauty, grace, subtlety and diversity of british wildlife in its natural habitat. My prime motivation remains to be at one with my surroundings and to get close to some of Britain’s wild animals. My photography serves as a way of capturing, as best I can, those special moments that I enjoy in the great outdoors. For me, each one is evocative and has a story attached. I hope that through my images I can convey some of the passion and delight that I have found in our wonderfully diverse countryside.
Sport
Sport has always been my release. I have been fortunate enough to have participated at a reasonable level in rugby, sailing, cycling and running. With twenty six years Naval experience I was also fortunate to be both a competitor and a judge in the Royal Navy’s Brickwood’s Field Gun and also to observe at close quarters the Command Field Gun competition before its demise. Both field gun and rugby epitomise, for me, the values and emotions that only true team sports can foster. Where the role of the individual is subservient to the needs of the team if both individual and team goals are to be realised. Both have proved to be an excellent framework for my view of life in a business and recreational sense. My photography of sport, nearly all rugby, is still taken from the stance of an enthusiastic observer of the sporting athlete. To me the success of any photograph is if it provokes an emotional response. With sporting photographs I also hope to convey the team work, team spirit, commitment, power and grace that rugby and so many other sports portray. It is a pursuit of the end of the rainbow but that should never be an excuse to diminish the ambition.
Celtman
I have attended every Celtman and have tried to capture the emotion of the event through the eyes of the competitor. To achieve this I deliberately use quite a cropped style that whilst it does prevent an appreciation of the wonderful Wester Ross surroundings does, I believe, capture the commitment required to complete Celtman. I station myself as the exit of the swim, close to the end of the cycle and where the high and low routes cross on the run to ensure I can include as much of the field as possible in my photography.
Beinn Alligin
The “Alligin” of Alligin Photography comes from Beinn Alligin found on the northern banks of Loch Torridon, Wester Ross, Scotland. It is my favourite mountain. A strenuous but satisfying day’s walk in some of the best mountain countryside I have come across. The area supports a wide variety of fauna, animal and birdlife. On a clear day the views from it’s twin peaks are stunning. A mountain that provides a challenge, inspiration and a sense of achievement when traversed. Below is a small selection of images of my favourite mountain.