Recent Reflections

The other day on my way to the 214 bus stop in Kings Cross I noticed a pig in the clouds: And today after a trip to the health food shop and garden centre in Kentish Town, this head – half in the clouds and half emblazoned on a building facade: These sightings give me … Read more

Surreal Facades: Illusions and Reflections in London’s Streets

I’ve gathered together a series of photographs shot in London in the last few months that have an aspect of surrealism and illusion and that include architectural elements as part of the composition. These are not double exposures or composites but suggest layering despite being single exposure images. To me there’s something a bit Magritte-like … Read more

Street Abstracts & Illusions featuring London Buses

When walking around London with a camera it becomes inevitable that at some point a red London bus will become part of the mise-en-scène. Mise-en-scène is a French term drawn used in theatre and film-making. In cinematography it refers to the arrangement of objects and people in front of the camera; with some directors this … Read more

Illusions in Kentish Town

Last night I was adding photographs to my Lightroom Catalogue and typed in the keywords facade, illusion and reflection. I then found myself singing a phrase from Joni Mitchell’s Both Sides Now – the phrase was it’s cloud illusions I recall. Apologies to Joni if I have misconstrued her text but it was an involuntary … Read more

It’s Raining/A Hard Rain’s A-Gonna Fall

It’s been particularly wet the last few days. One of the few positives for me is that it’s a photographic opportunity to capture the landscape from a different perspective.  A flooded section of Highgate West Hill conflates submerged signage and reflected nature and to me evokes a poetic and surreal street abstract. The word STOP, seen … Read more

Colourful and Painterly Reflections

I was in Kew Gardens on a sunny day last week and took a few pictures including this quasi-Impressionist image: I decided to look back over the last few months and see what other colourful, painterly reflections I’d photographed. I remembered a series I’d shot at Hyde Park; abstract patterns reminiscent of Op art resulting … Read more

Mannequins and Street Photography – some new images

Abstract photo with mannequin head, NYC

I’ve posted several blogs in the last few years featuring images I’ve taken of mannequins. I’ve been drawn to photographing mannequins for a number of reasons. In terms of representation I like the ambiguity;  a human, yet not a human. I like the fact they can range from quasi-lifelike to grotesque and non-naturalistic. I like … Read more

Barber Signs and Imagery

The other week walking down London’s Kingsland Road in Dalston I took an illusionistic street photograph involving a barbershop window that regularly catches my eye. In the mix is a striking, monochromatic bearded profile with pronounced eyebrows as well as a beautiful, shrouded female figure with crossed hands. Rather than hipster qualities I associate his … Read more

Abstract Photography: Architecture, Skies & Illusions

The other day I went to The Barbican and walking down a side street near Moorgate I saw the sky and clouds mirrored in a glass-fronted building. Later, on examining the image I also saw a face in the centre of the image, with arched white wispy eyebrows and a round mane of hair framing … Read more

Street Photography, Illusion and Tree Goddesses

Tree goddesses are usually associated with antiquity and are represented in a variety of cultures, for example Celtic tree deities, dryads in Greek mythology and  Kodama – Japanese spirits that inhabit trees. I’ve previously drawn together some images of People in Trees featuring actual people sitting in trees. This collection is different. I’ve noticed the juxtaposition of … Read more