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London is where I ran to at 18 to make a life. It's where my kids grew up and where I started a tech business in the 90s to put food on the table for them. When the business clicked and the kids were bigger and I could catch a breath London was were I learnt to be a photographer.
I lived in a leafy part of North London but started shooting in the East and West End. Places like Hackney, Shoreditch and Soho are full of noise, colour and buzz with characters and scenes to photograph on every street corner.
There are packs of photographers on those corners hunting shots, taking mediocre pictures, shaking heads and going out again to do it better and find something that really sings. I was one of them.
Some of the early shots that made the cut are in this gallery. Many thousands didn't, but when you mess up in London there's always another one round the corner. All you need is shoe leather and a thick skin.
Most of my London shots are street. I didn't lean into landscapes until later when I moved South of the river. North Londoners generally view South London as an untidy place that should be approached with caution, if at all. But I spent a few years there as penance and rather liked it.
I lived in Deptford and Greenwich, by the river. I found great street locations (Deptford, Bermondsey, Peckham, Brixton) and started making cityscapes from spots on the south bank og the river where people with metal detectors go mudlarking.
The skyline and the way light reflects off the Thames changed the way I worked.
When I left London my main requirement was to live next to water.
On Street days I walk through crowded places for a couple of hours and take a couple of hundred shots. If the light is good and there are characters about I might get 10 shots I like. On bad days I get zip. That's the gig.
Most times I pass through the scene unnoticed (a la Cartier-Bresson). Sometimes there is a fleeting connection as the subject becomes aware and wonders what I'm up to without breaking character. Either is good. The important thing is to not disrupt or create anything that is artificial.
Wide angle lenses are best. I use a 28mm prime on a full frame sensor for most of my street shots and recently added a 43mm to get a little closer.
I start with average settings. Aperture at f/8 will give good sharpness and depth of field and a shutter speed of 250/second will freeze movement at street pace. Auto ISO. Watch the histogram, i.e., open up the aperture or slow the shutter if you need more light and vice versa.
Important to always shoot in RAW format. It gives you much more freedom in the editing stage.
If you like any of the images in this gallery, send a message here. Limited edition fine art prints are available in sizes from A5 to A0.