Autumn is here

The colours of the leaves are wonderful. But the days still seem far too mild. I have been out locally, thinking about future volumes of 1Point4 Miles. I think I have a total of five volumes in my mind at the moment! Whether they will all see the light of day or not is a different matter. But that is half the fun of photography and creativity: thinking about the images that we would like to make!

What I’ve been up to this month

I feel that I have made a lot of progress this month. Firstly, I have launched my print store. If you haven’t already been, please do visit it. I have also finished the draft layout for 1Point4 Miles - Sunshine and Colour. It is with some readers for feedback. I will update you soon, but I plan to open for pre-orders later this month for a December delivery. Finally, I have started work properly on my Dead Flowers In Vases project.

What I learned this month

I seem to have moved into an action phase. It sometimes felt that I had the best of intentions but wasn’t actually getting anywhere with my plans. I have learned that sometimes the hardest part of any work is either taking the first step or, after a break, taking the next step. But that one small step can lead to some surprising momentum. I hope that you will try taking the next small step on some of your projects.

My second learning is that taking some time out not to think about work or photography is very useful. Naturally, find the right amount of spare time is hard. However, just taking some fun time to try something different has certainly helped my creative outlook recently.

What are my plans for next month?

Next month I would like to finish up 1Point4 Miles - Sunshine and Colour and have it ready to go to the printer.  I also plan to forge ahead with Dead Flowers In Vases and create some more work for this so I can think about turning this into a book, either later this year or in early 2023. Finally, I’m working on the early images for a new and rather different project.

What I’ve been writing about this month

This month’s blog is titled Is Pre-Visualisation Bad For Your Photography? I am a great fan of being open minded when I approach a subject. I like taking time to explore and to be receptive to new ideas. I’d love to hear your thoughts on what I have written.

What have I been reading and watching this month?

Two arrivals on the photo book front this month have been Darren Rose’s Heathland|Rejuvenation and Richard Earney’s The Prismatic Pond. I already have books by both of them and can thoroughly recommend these. I was particularly impressed by Darren’s use of the landscape A4 format for his book: the scale works really well, with some images being across both pages.

If you like thrillers, then you may enjoy Open Season by C J Box. It’s a murder mystery set in rural Wyoming with a game warden as the hero. I enjoyed the twists and turns of the plot and it was a great way to escape from reality for a bit!

What have I seen this month

Staying with the crime theme, my wife and I saw an excellent Korean detective and romance film: Decision To Leave. It was interesting to have a view into another country and the plot was very well orchestrated. Some may feel it could do with a little bit of tighter editing, but the film certainly gave us plenty to talk about.

Make sure you keep in touch!

You can follow me on Twitter, Instagram and Vero. But please also e-mail directly: I really enjoy the conversations I have with those of you who have contacted me. And I love to see image and projects that you are proud of. And do send me recommendations for reading, listening, exhibitions, blog articles and more!