Why I Came Back to Photography
After two decades behind the lens—including five years as a founding member, Creative Director, and in-house photographer for a now award-winning organisation—I stepped away.
A few weeks later, lockdown hit. Like many, I shifted focus. I followed my passion for healing and became a certified EFT practitioner. Later, I even qualified as Gas Safe (yes, really!).
I explored new directions—some expected, others wildly not. My cameras gathered dust. So did my rucksack.
I still took the occasional job, but photography wasn’t centre stage.
After reluctantly realising being a gas engineer wasn’t for me, I found something simpler: becoming a postie. It was outdoors, active, and gave me precious time away from a screen—making space for creative planning and reflection.
Then something shifted. I found myself showing my old portfolio to a fellow postie curious about my photography—and to my surprise, I welled up. I remembered what I loved about this work, and how much of myself had been wrapped up in it, in the best way.
Then a TikTok video (of all things) popped up—about photography, travel, and doing what you love. They’d sparked something.
I’d done this work for years. Why not return to it? On my own terms, with a fresh eye and renewed clarity.
A couple of months in, that same Postie colleague mentioned part-time was an option. So instead of walking away, I shifted, making space to rebuild my photography deliberately, and on my terms.
Thankfully, editing tools have improved. Less time glued to a screen, more time where I thrive—outdoors, in motion, doing the work I love.
This time, I want photography to take me to new places… and let me stay grounded at home too.
In recent years, I’ve lost four people I worked closely with—far too young, all to cancer. It was a powerful reminder: time is precious. Do the thing. Tell the story. Take the leap. Explore the places. And if it means getting mucky, windswept, or covered in sea spray along the way, all the better.
So I booked the coaching calls. Polished up my portfolio. Rebuilt my website. And here I am—reconnecting with what I love, and telling stories again through bright, relaxed, lifestyle-driven visuals.
Dogs. Boats. Surf schools. Airbnbs. Places with soul. People with heart. Let’s see where the road and the ocean lead…
And that Gas Safe qualification? Let’s just say I realised that carrying the responsibility of not blowing people up didn’t exactly align with my idea of joyful living. Life is too precious for that kind of daily panic, though I learned a lot of skills I’m sure will be useful, I no longer call a man to put shelves up! And as for EFT, it’s still and always be part of my life.