About My Photography

Now that I’ve retired I can afford to spend more time attending to my ear hair grooming regime!

I’d like to point out right from the start that I’m not, and never will be, a photographer. Masters of that particular art have received much expert tuition in the subject, gathered together some expensively impressive equipment in order to achieve their aims and, if successful, include a very happy bank manager amongst their many friends. I do not qualify on all three accounts.

I do, however, really enjoy taking photos. I’m a snapper, heart and soul, but I’ve also been told on a number of occasions that I have an eye. This is faintly worrying as eyes traditionally come in pairs and I’m a bit worried as to where the other one might have gone, but if that is the case then at least I’m content to find myself in some very illustrious company, including Peter Falk, Sammy Davis Jr., Johnny Depp (that’s a surprise) and Snake Plissken!

One of my first purchases after leaving school was a sturdy East German Praktica SLR with a range of interchangeable lenses as well as a big old flash gun punchy enough to startle badgers at several hundred yards, all carried around in a bag so substantial that if I’d fallen into deep water with it still around my neck, no police diver would have ever found me.

Old-fashioned film photography seems positively archaic nowadays, but it taught me to be economical with my photos. A single roll of 36 exposure print film had to last for an entire week’s holiday because that was all I could afford, but nothing beat the excitement of popping into Boots to collect your precious prints. In case you’re wondering, that’s Boots the chemists, not boots of the stiletto kind. The fact I actually have to clarify that point indicates how much the UK has changed in my lifetime!

The Praktica was good for a long time, but I eventually graduated to a very nice Pentax. This was a great camera, but not half as robust as the mighty Praktica and to my disappointment, it jammed terminally in front of the famous Library of Celsus at the ancient site of Ephesus in 2005. Those images were the very last traditional film prints I ever took.

Since then, several compact digital cameras have seen me through to the present day. I retired in 2019, irritating HMRC on the way by qualifying for a modest tax rebate, and used the cash to purchase my present camera, a pocket-sized Panasonic Lumix with a super big memory card, so I no longer have to limit my photography as I had to back in the day. I can now rattle off 36 exposures in a matter of seconds and not bat an eyelid, and the library on my computer now contains just under 16,000 images. Extremely modest by many standards, I’m sure, but more than ample if I’m searching for a particular photo.

Talking of computers, I’d personally like to thank the levelling tool in iPhoto. Disturbingly, almost all of my shots slope off to the right, which implies either the gravitational pull of a nearby black hole or a persistent perceptual idiosyncrasy that may require medical intervention at some time in the near future. On a more positive note, my seascapes are perfect for downhill slalom water skiing.

ABOUT FORMAT AND COPYRIGHT

I often like to present my photos in small collections with a common theme, each image with a commentary telling its own story, but I confess to being a man easily swayed by mischievous fabrication and imaginative exaggeration. I can’t help myself, and this is a lingering legacy from one of my former lives as an author of fiction. I also frequently see the funny side of life and this often comes through in many of my commentaries.

With regard to copyright, I retain full rights to all text and images, and with regard to images of people, all were very happy to have their photos taken and posed willingly. To the best of my knowledge, no photos of identifiable people appear here without their verbal permission.

ABOUT FETHIYE TIMES

During our extended stay, I became a regular contributor to Fethiye Times, an excellent online guide to life in and around the lovely town of Fethiye. Some of the collections on this website have previously appeared on Fethiye Times and in such instances that is acknowledged. If you’re interested in visiting this part of the world, either on holiday or with a view to settle here as many ex-pats have, then FT is an accurate and invaluable resource.

ABOUT MY NEED FOR TECHNICAL HELP

The technological advances of the 21st century are, thankfully, something I’m comfortably able to ignore. That said, I have recently become a Facesitter, sorry, auto-correct, I meant to say I’ve become a Facebooker, and have now also embraced the zingy delight of Instagram. If I’ve failed to mention any other new social media start-ups with vowels missing from their trendy names, then please accept my apolojz.

Setting up this website was, frankly, completely beyond my limited technical skill so I’d like to heartily thank the ever-patient Adam for his nimble mind, invaluable encouragement, expertise and generous help. He’s now my go-to man for all matters digital.