Looking back over this last year, I must say it evolved somewhat differently than I had expected. After leaving my position at the Scott Sutherland School of Architecture and Built Environment towards the end of 2024, I planned to concentrate on photography and I had a few ideas of how that could go. However, I could not have imagined how well, or quite the direction that it would take.

In mid-January, I took up a position as a Technical Photographer with FTR Visuals Ltd. A company that creates the visuals for planning consent applications, primarily for green energy projects, although their remit goes well beyond that. This was a fantastic opportunity for me to stretch my technical skills, taking highly accurate 360-degree panoramic photos of open field sites all across the UK. I got to travel the length of the UK to visit various sites to carry out the photographic surveys. I also had the opportunity to delve deeper into parts of Photoshop that I had rarely explored. I must also say that the staff at FTR Visuals are a great team to work with. I learned a great deal while working with FTR Visuals, and I am grateful for the exceptional experience.

This leads into the later quarter of the year. I accepted a place on the third-year BA Photography course at Gray's School of Art, Aberdeen. When I first attended art school, back in the mid-1980s, I had considered photography as an option, but ended up taking a different route and pursuing a design model-making career. I have absolutely no regrets in making that choice, but over recent years, my love of photography has been growing, and I have had a yearning to return to this side of my creative interests. So when the opportunity to return to art school arose, I felt that I really couldn't refuse it.

Now, with the first semester out of the way, I can say with total confidence that it was absolutely the right decision. The course has been challenging and pushed me in directions that I possibly didn't expect, but it has been extremely enjoyable, and I am looking forward to the next semester, in the new year.

In between these major stages of the year, I have also managed to shoot several events, including the Architects Ball 2025, the Sports Aberdeen Chairmans Awards 2025 and the Nocturne Market.

In the coming year, I aim to keep the website a little more current with the work I am doing, and I will also endeavour to post to this blog a little more regularly.