Profile
My main occupation is as a Consultant and academic in a very busy NHS teaching hospital. I love being a doctor, but it can be stressful and demanding - photography gives me a chance to get outside and focus on something entirely different. I think my portfolio reflects the work of someone who seizes creative opportunities when they come along. You will mostly find here quieter and more peaceful scenes that are often detailed and intimate. Photography for me is a time to relax, and I’ve found that a flexible and ‘reactive’ approach is best. When the right conditions come along I like to be spontaneous, so a large portion of my portfolio is from close to my home in Hampshire, partly from necessity and partly from choice about my personal carbon footprint. There are a few images of famous locations on here, when days off work and weather align - and on those occasions I’ve come away with successful images because of practising locally. I love taking the time to observe and absorb my surroundings, slowly seeing details and crafting a composition no-one has made before. This means that the big locations and epic conditions are inevitably quite fast-paced and stressful - and I get enough of that at work! I’m also a keen rock climber, so will often be found dangling off the Dorset sea cliffs rather than taking photos.
Gear
I’ve used a Canon 5D Mark IV for the last 6 years and still love the images it produces, and I use a Canon G5X Mark II for lightweight travel and climbing. My lenses are a Canon 24-70 f2.8 L series, a Canon 100mm f2.8 macro, and Canon 100-400 f4.5-5.6 II L series. The latter is my favourite lens - the detail is incredible, and I love how a telephoto is able to pick out details and compress a scene into the bare essentials to convey a mood or emotion. Composing a carefully crafted image is my favourite aspect of photography, and I will often ‘exclude’ more than I ‘include’. I have a set of Lee filters, and I mainly use the ND ones to slow the shutter speed and soften the movement of water and clouds - I think I probably have quite a ‘dreamy’ style, and I prefer a lighter touch to editing.
Final thoughts
I’ve entered the odd competition and once was a finalist in the International Garden Photographer of the Year but I don’t tend to enter competitions any more, especially ones that charge a fee. Photography for me is a time of quiet and relaxation, and the value I place on it is always to do with my wellbeing. Changing the currency to competition success, prizes, and social media interactions swiftly diminished my enjoyment - and so I have stepped away from all of these. You will find an Instagram account for me, but I’ve stopped using it and feel happier and more relaxed as a result. I decided to create this website instead, and keep a portfolio of my favourite images as well as the occasional blog or diary post when the mood takes me.
Thank you for visiting, and do get in touch.
Mary