l.r.p.s.
Last month I was recommended to the Licentiate of the Royal Photographic Society which sounds impressive, but what does it mean?
In short, a group of first class photographers from the RPS assessment panel viewed a gallery of ten images which I submitted and all agreed that I can, indeed, take photographs.
No matter how old we are, recognition for our work is important; getting told you’re doing OK feels good which is part of the reason for applying for this award but the process of putting my gallery together was a reflective, motivating and occasionally frustrating task.
Most of these moments represent absolutely perfect calm. A couple still make my heart beat slightly faster. The work spans a period of 8 years and many thousands of miles, from just up the road near our home to the window of a light aircraft flying over the Southern Alps of New Zealand.
There are images which required the technical skill to freeze a moment of light or movement; in the midst of a blizzard on Striding Edge, it’s not easy to frame the shot; in the face of the onrushing storm, it’s hard to know whether to stay or go.
There are images which can no longer be replicated; the fishing boats on Lindisfarne are now covered in shiny black plastic as they still provide storage for the lobstermen on the island - they’re still evolving and useful, if slightly less beautiful. The Ice Cave on an Icelandic glacier began to collapse as we stood inside - my foot fell through the floor and one of my crampons sunk itself deep into my calf. A scar to go along with the unforgettable experience of standing inside a moving ice river formed over thousands of years.
There’s an image from before I got sick, a couple taken during my recovery and several taken in the years since when I’ve got fitter, stronger, wiser and better able to capture the atmosphere of a place. Probably most importantly, I’m far more philosophical about the end result - if it’s good, good, if it isn’t, try again next time.
All of this was a worthwhile reminder that photographs give us much more than nice wallpapers for our devices, they’re a record of where we’ve been and how far we’ve come. From a digital collection of 40,000 images taken on 8 different cameras in 14 different countries, I had to select just 10 to print and, as is so often the case, the journey was every bit as important as the final destination.
