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The ‘Old And The New’ Schools Of Thought.As previously explained on my ‘biography’ page; my roots as a 35mm SLR silver-halide photographer, have now completely evolved in line with the digital revolution. Some less informed, view the world of digital photography, or the manipulation of pixels as ‘cheating’. The reality is that all photography is ‘cheating’. In years gone by, ‘cross processing’ film was a means of altering outcome and nature of the negative, this effect was then passed onto the printed image. The use of a filter on a lens alters the effect of the light on both silver-halide and image sensor. A hand-printed darkroom print of exhibition quality was always manipulated to get the best effect. ‘Dodging’ and ‘burning’ held back light on the surface of the photographic paper, thus increasing exposure in other areas. A digital compact camera processes information internally before the image is downloaded. Photography by nature of recording a three-dimensional image as a two-dimensional one is ‘cheating’. Like any art, the beauty is in the eye of the beholder, how effective we are as artists at producing pleasing images is what it is all about. If an image goes directly from camera (film or digital) without any additional work from the photographer, that image has been manipulated many times by processes beyond our control. The end result is therefore more down to good or bad fortune, or effective automated processing than skill and judgment. Throughout the transition between silver-halide and digital, Canon cameras from the user perspective have remained totally consistent. It was a Canon 35mm film SLR that I owned at art school, and consequently Canon Digital SLRs are my tools of choice today. I only use the ultimate Canon professional lenses in my work; these are without doubt amongst the finest available at any price.  My Workflow.My images are all captured in RAW format, I then convert the files in either Aperture or Adobe Photoshop. RAW files are not manipulated by the onboard camera processor, therefore the captured image remains ‘straight’ as possible. Consequently the processing involved in producing the final printed image, is all within my control. The extent of that processing can be vast or small depending on the image I am trying to create. All of my images are at least converted to TIFF files, and adjusted for colour balance and white point within Photoshop. My surreal or montage images (combining several images into one work) are all created in Photoshop. I start with a concept, and then draw sketches outlining the piece. I then set about shooting the individual images required to build my image. At this stage it is important to maintain continuity with regard to the direction and intensity of the lighting on each individual shot. The colour temperature (ie. Time of day or type of lighting used) is less critical as this can be balanced in Photoshop. Having meticulously built my montage in layers in Photoshop, I then draw in missing shadows, reflections or highlights. The image will invariably at this stage undergo ‘dodging’ and ‘burning’ to bring extra impact to the scene. Having made test prints and carried out any alterations I see fit, I can commit the image for sale in limited edition runs. The printing is carried out using a state of the art Epson large format professional printer, onto the most effective paper for that given print. I print using only Epson K3 inks achieving light fastness of 75 years for colour and 100 years in black and white. All prints (unless stated otherwise) are onto Epson Premium Glossy or Semi-glossy resin coated papers. When an order is placed for a print, I will personally oversee the printing of that image, signing and numbering it prior to dispatch. 
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