I'm not sure if its the photographer that first sees their visual style or their audience. It is something for many years I strived to achieve. Then you realise that its not something I believe you consciously do, its something which finds you. A photographers visual style is not always right in my view, and it can make peoples work look very similar after a while. I used to follow a particular landscape photographer, very well known in his field. His approach to image-making had all the same characteristics. These photographs were technically brilliant but had no soul, no narrative as such. I have had friends say to me they can recognise my pictures, in my case its because I concentrated on similar subjects and was experimenting with the same technique. This MA course is making me rethink my style (if I do indeed have one), and encouraging me to produce work I would not have ordinarily contemplated.
My commercial work was mostly in house Architectural photography. I would take images based on a tight brief, usually for client publications or the media. I had limited personal input in the photography aside from getting the exposure and focusing correct. This made the process more comfortable as the Architect running the project would direct me on the exact images he required. I did enjoy seeing my photographs in newspapers and magazines, but I did not particularly enjoy the process.
Chelsea Bridge wharf