Netherlands 2016: Christmastime in Amsterdam

Sometimes you make a mistake, and sometimes that mistake is utterly avoidable. The day before this trip I got the then new iPhone 7 took a couple of shots in nice light and thought, 'this is good'. I'd taken some online comments to heart. Something along the lines of 'only 'cause you've got an expensive camera'. Rather than dismissing it, I thought I'd challenge myself and set off to Amsterdam with only the iPhone. As it turned out, I fell in love with Amsterdam that weekend and wished I'd had my X-T1 with me. The iPhone looked alright in good daylight and on a phone screen, but quality simply fell apart as soon as the light dimmed and seen on a laptop or larger. In December in a city filled with beautiful illuminations the good light fell away quickly and what was left on the sensor did not do the city justice. The next time I went, I did not make the same mistake twice.

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Indonesia 2012: Song and Dance

South Africa 2019: Robben Island

When travelling, there are places you visit not for beauty or culture, but to educate and remind yourself of our capacity for intolerable cruelty to one another - and to reaffirm why it must never be allowed to happen again. Robben Island, home to many political prisoners under the Apartheid government, is one such place.

USA 2009: RMS Queen Mary

A night in luxury aboard the RMS Queen Mary. A once proud jewel of the oceans reduced to a floating hotel. She may have been grubby and crumbling in places, but the charm and beauty remained.

Malta: Glass Works 2011

The production floor at Glass of Malta runs on skill and heat - craftsmen working glass straight from the furnace, shaping, cutting, and finishing each piece by hand.

Spain 2017: Valencia

I went to Valencia in for the conclusion of the 2017 MotoGP World Champions, but got a little time the day after the race before my evening flight home. It's a city I'm going to have to return to in order to see more of the city itself. The Museu de les Ciències is where I spent most of my time. As well as being an outstanding museum, it is a photographers paradise. Full of leading lines and abstract angles.

Egypt 2015: Luxor Temple

South Africa 2019: Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens

The last stop on my trip to South Africa, quite literally on the way to the airport. A lovely walk around a majestic landscape. As ever a little wasted on me as my knowledge of plants is very limited. I can appreciate the beauty, but know that I'll have the same deep appreciated as someone who knows the challenges of cultivating a place like this.

Estonia 2018: Tartu Cathedral

Tartu Cathedral is one of the biggest churches in Estonia and the only medieval church with two spires in the country. Its construction began in the thirteenth century and continued until the early sixteenth century. The final parts completed were its spires. The church was destroyed during the Livonian War and has not functioned as a place of worship since. Today, the University of Tartu Museum operates in the Cathedral.

UK 2024: Kew at Christmas

A walk around Kew Gardens at night, guided by Christmas Illuminations.

UK 2019: Breakfast in Brockenhurst

Two friends held their wedding at a lovely hotel near Brockenhurst in the New Forest. In the morning I had around 2 hours before my train back to Southampton Airport so I decided to walk the long way around to the station. Lovely place. Would like to take my bike up there sometime.

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