Creative Nowhere Land - The Great British Break Up!

'Stratford, East London, 2019. Grey clouds, typical in Britain, loom heavily overhead, seemingly, emulating the mood of a nation. Disconnected and with no ‘real' communication with one another anymore. Confused and, honestly, a little chaotic. This is Britain in the wake, or midst, of ‘Brexit’ (the ‘Break Up’ with the European Union), and it’s hard to know where we as ‘the people’ stand. Is it together? It doesn’t really feel like it! Maybe that’s part of the problem…'

A completely different style of blog post this week. ‘The Great British Break Up’ is a selection of images and pieces of writing that I felt captured the mood, and feeling of the people around me as I wandered the streets of grey, East London with my camera. I wanted to try and create a story or narrative around the moments that I shot, and with everything going on here in the UK, a ‘Break Up’ seemed very fitting. Don’t worry though as with any break-up, it’s always hard in the beginning but gets better with time. Being the glass half full, positive attitude kind of guy I am, it’s not all doom and gloom, and if you hold out until the end, there is a little optimism and positivity to help you through the ‘Great British Break Up’!

I am not really a documentary photographer, but it’s always important to explore different subjects or genres of photography and creativity, away from the day to day of being a commercial photographer. A change of perspective as it were!

When I first picked up a camera I used to do this sort of photography all the time. I would document the moments I was observing, in whatever situation that might have been. I was always drawn to the mood and the people in the scenes. I was, and still am, an avid people watcher. What’s their story and what are they feeling at that moment when I take a shot? Most of the time, with street photography, you never find out as the subjects are often gone in an instant from the frame. That’s where a little, creative, ‘poetic license’ comes into play and it’s up to my imagination to fill in the blanks to create some form of narrative for the viewer.

I loved just wandering with my camera. It's amazing what you see and the stories that can be told in those seemingly insignificant moments in time. I hope that I haven’t depressed you too much with this blog post haha? Here’s an inspirational quote to leave you with something positive. Have a great week!