January newsletter: planning for the New Year

         Another daily edit from Legends from the Wild-ness series

Workshops this month

Create great still lives with your smartphone - Saturday 25th January – Bradford-on-Avon

In the Winter, it’s fun to photograph indoors. Come and meet me and learn how to create beautiful images of treasured possessions indoors with your smartphone. This full day workshop concentrates on getting the most out of indoor photography with your smartphone, experimenting with lighting and receiving personal feedback. We cover editing and lunch and great cake is included! You also receive two art prints of your work. See here for more information and booking.

Create your own handmade notebooks – Sat 1st February – Bradford-on-Avon

In this half-day class, you learn how to make a simple thread sewn notebook and also learn the art of Japanese stab binding. You end our session with an A6 notebook and an A5 stab bound booklet to take home: something for you to enjoy using yourself or a perfect gift!

All tools and materials are provided. Full details and booking here.

What I’ve been up to this month

Naturally, December was busy with Christmas preparations and celebrations.

But I spent some time planning what workshops I would like to attend next year. I want to try new things. So I aim to book courses on tetrapak drypoint printing, drawing and paint making to start with.

I have also carried on with my daily image edit and my daily three-line writing goals this month. They are a very good way to build up a body of work steadily.

What I learned this month

I have been studying how to make more out of social media recently. As a result, I have learned a lot more about how to increase reach through Instagram. Expect to see some more experiments from me on there very soon! I also learned that making quick videos is a lot easier than I thought.

What are my plans for next month?

I plan to write more about my images. This helps me understand more about what I am making and why. It is also the basis for creating a body of text to go with my images.

What have I listened to this month

This month I have been revisiting the work of PJ Harvey. It is interesting to see how each album is very different to her previous work. In interview, she has said that she always wishes to push herself to create something new. I think that photographers should bear this desire in mind.

What have I visited this month

Stayed local and attended the open studios of the Bath Artist Printmakers open studios. I found this really inspirational. I got to see loads of different ways to make prints. The printmaking process also gave me new ideas about how to edit images. I will be attending a printmaking course this month.

I also visited the Taylor Wessing portrait exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery. Some of the work did not resonate with me at all. However, there were some portraits that I found very moving.

What I have listened to this month

I have been really enjoying the music of Bao Sissoko. He creates beautifully minimalistic African music – the perfect antidote to too many Christmas carols!

Upcoming workshops and events

If you want to find out more about any of my workshops to decide if they are right for you or have any questions, please hit reply to this email.

Individual creative mentoring online – I help you develop your creative vision. I have trained in brain friendly training and these sessions are designed to help you develop a practical path forward and an action plan. Each session is completely unique and tailored to your needs. See here for details.

Create great still lives with your smartphone – come and meet me in Bradford-on-Avon on 25th January and create beautiful images of treasured possessions, make stand-out product images and be inspired to enjoy creative photography inside. There will be plenty to learn here, even if you normally use a different type of camera. We cover composition, (very) simple lighting and easy editing. Full details and booking here.

Create your own handmade notebooks – Bradford-on-Avon, 1st February. In this half-day class, you learn how to make a simple thread sewn notebook and also learn the art of Japanese stab binding. You end our session with an A6 notebook and an A5 stab bound booklet to take home: something for you to enjoy using yourself or a perfect gift! All tools and materials are provided. Full details and booking here.

Smartphone photography walks - Industrial Bath with a smartphone day – come and meet me in Bath on 1st March and learn how to take impressive pictures with your smartphone. This full day workshop concentrates on getting the most out of your smartphone, visiting some interesting locations and receiving personal feedback. We cover editing and lunch and great cake is included! You also receive two art prints of your work. See here for more information and booking.

Editing and advanced editing with your smartphone online – we meet on Zoom for a half day of learning how to edit with your smartphone. I sometimes take images from my traditional camera and choose to edit them on my smartphone. Find out why. What makes these sessions different is that I cover editing vision as well as how to edit. You also receive two art prints of your edits. See here for introductory editing and here for advanced editing.

Make sure you keep in touch

You can follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Mastodon as well as Bluesky. Please also e-mail directly: I really appreciate receiving personal e-mails from you. Please share images and projects send me recommendations for reading, listening, exhibitions, blog articles and more!

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