but in doing so I found other important benefits. Making photographs with this specialized camera is a slow, cumbersome process which means making fewer photographs, less often than conventional cameras allow. With this camera the image is viewed directly on a ground glass screen which is shaded by a dark cloth to make the dim, upside-down image visible, and sheets of film are exposed and processed one at a time. The slow working process means subjects have to be chosen more carefully to make the most of the available light. Compositions are created with finer attention to detail, and strangely the upside down view abstracts the scene, making it easier to see if the shapes and contrasts in the subject are balanced. Technical decisions are also taken more deliberately, mindful of the expense of each exposed sheet.

The natural landscape is my favoured subject, and wherever possible I exclude any sign of human presence. While well known and spectacular viewpoints have great appeal, I feel that anonymous locations can yield a more intimate landscape, where the influence of the obvious view is not so overwhelming and I can more easily make a unique interpretation of a scene. 

My images are not manipulated, or post produced, aside from what is required to match the final print as closely as possible to the original transparency as shot. This is not because I believe editing is taboo, but because it reinforces the considered approach I have in making my images. I endeavour to take photographs which express as clearly as possible my experience in making them, and I strive to make images that are complete at the time of capture. Even so the images do not always reflect exactly what I saw at the time of exposure, and they often capture detail, motion and colour not obvious to the human eye. These subtle variations from perceived reality create an element of surprise which I pursue constantly.