Plane and simple

A Cessna taxiing back to parking

Someone once asked me why i took photographs. It was a difficult question to answer, and at the time i wasn't able to give a good reply. After some thought, i realised that i take photographs out of curiosity; it's a process of trying to understand what i see around me. It is also a way of expressing myself artistically. And finally, a camera is something i can psychologically hide behind, away from the world and everyone.

In some respects i am being judgemental about things i see, but most of the time i am trying to get a message, event or story across. I am a witness, storyteller and artist all rolled into one but there is also an element of luck. Sometimes i capture or miss a picture due to one thing or another which often makes me think ' was i destined to get (or not) this image?'.

Last year, i saw a brilliant image of a Catholic cardinal in full costume, engrossed in a conversation on his mobile phone, walking down an old Norfolk village street. Unfortunately i was in the car and couldn't get the shot but the resulting image, if i could have shot it, would have been superb.