A New Zealand based film and digital photographer but one who has lived in a dozen countries.

From an early age I was experimenting with composition and light; I just didn't know it.

One day, the chemist who had just processed my 126 film, asked why I had shot a picture of a hovercraft in the 'diamond' format rather than the usual rectangle. "It just looked right to me" I replied.

I've always been most interested in composition and light/shadow. The camera brands and claims of excellence never called to me as I could see from my teenage years that the best images were created by the most inventive minds and it mattered very little that the photographer used any particular brand of equipment.

Although I studied images to see if I could figure out why they were good or bad, I never tried to copy anyone's style; I just went out and shot a LOT of film and wasn't particularly focused on any specific subject. I always figured that I should learn to shoot any subject well.

From the age of 19, I've worked intermittently in the photographic industry shooting company product images, weddings and events, sports and pretty much whatever I could sell. However, I had also learned that I could make a lot more money in another industry and that working in that industry would free me to shoot anything I wanted to.

I have a restless mind and hate being 'cooped up' so I rarely stay at a job longer than a few years even when I'm really successful. In between jobs, I'd often revert to photography as a temporary living but the financial rewards were never enough to keep me in one place.

Of course, I always shot to please my clients but I prefer to shoot to please myself. If others like what I do; that's a bonus.

Now I'm approaching my twilight years and, with a fridge full of film, my goal is to enjoy life and keep hunting for excellence in photography. I have little to no interest in digital manipulation; if the shot needs 20 hours of work or massive changes to 'look good' it was rubbish to start with and I'd rather just bin it and go back when the light was 'better'.

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