Highton-Ridley fine art photography - images available in print and on canvas - page updated 8 March 2014

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...for the discerning lover of fine art photography



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All photos are tagged with searchable keywords, and you can also search the descriptions...

Tutorials

Sky Rescue: a video tutorial for combining two exposures, one for sky and one for ground, into one image with the best from both.

Centering a viewer's attention: A great 2-step technique for bringing a viewer's attention into the center of a photo.

Watch a video tutorial of my digital darkroom techniques for my Urban Ugliness series (see below...)

Watch...

...a video slideshow presentation of my photo essay on neglect and decay in the urban environment...

Testimonials...

'Hi Mark,
Found your photos on show at Tamar Science Park to be the most inspirational use of tone and texture that I can ever remember, they really are exceptional, congratulations on an excellent collection.' ...Colin Burt, professional photographer

 

'Fascinating photos. Great to see places you know from different angles!' ...Debbie Rees-Williams

 

'Great, striking images Mark' ...Bill Wroath, artist

 

'Fantastic images. Very graphic and moving.' ...David Williams, Redrok

 

'Mark makes you see life from a different perspective. Even inanimate objects have character.' ...Katy Thorpe, Formedia

 

'Really dramatic images - very cleverly observed and beautifully printed.' ...Joanna Swift, BusinessLink

 

'Excellent photography - some stunning images but a similar number left me cold. Personal taste I guess.' ...Norman Holmes, Kaya Gallery

 

'Great images. Would look fab on any wall in my home.' ...Paul Slater, Evening Herald Photographer

 

'Extraordinary! How beauty can be everywhere, even in a pile of junk. These pictures show the individual life at its best!' ...Thea Reade, Tamar Science Park

 

'Beautiful work, brightens up the working day having a browse around all the pictures on the walls. Keep it up!' ...Tony Williams

 

'Great pictures and tranquil settings. It proves that there is beauty in everything.' ...Claire Edgecombe, BusinessLink

 

'Outstanding photography, Mark - timeless imagery that stays in the mind.' ...Dave and Debbie

 

Mobile phone users

...please see a sample of my shots on a page designed for mobile phone users

 


Projects...

Presently

A photograph of a spiral firescape and a lost spaceI'm turning my attention and the HDR skills I've picked up in my black and white work to some colour work.

  

As part of that, I've decided to produce a photo essay in answer to "Urban Ugliness" — it's working title is "Urban Pretty".

Barbican By Night

 

HightonRidley in association with Zazzle, recognised for superb customer serviceI've been operating my Zazzle Store (US customers can use this link) for just over two years now. It's been a journey but one where I've managed to sell a reasonable number of items per week and the number is growing.

I'm really, really pleased to say that a few hundred more people around the world (600 and counting!) are now the proud owners of my art. A big "thank you" to them all. Maybe you are one? If so, really, thank you!

 

If you're not yet one of my happy customers, you can get my work on cards, and other great gear. The posters and canvases can be framed and there's a huge selection to choose from.

 
Many folks find something for their wall from among my range of Desiderata posters - maybe you will too?


Previous Projects

The BBC wrote a feature on my first photo essay here on their Devon website. As a result, they commissioned me for a 12-photo essay titled "Plymouth - Intimate glimpses of a hidden and changing character", to feature in the relaunch of the BBC Devon website in September. This in turn resulted in a two-slot radio interview, again for BBC Devon.

See the first essay as an on-site video slideshow.

 

The second can be seen either on the BBC Devon site or, set to theremin music by Gordon Charlton aka Beat Frequency, as a high definition video on YouTube.

In the first, the photos explore, as the title suggests, those urban areas (all taken in Plymouth) that are suffering from neglect, decay or dereliction or where industrial ugliness holds sway. As the project has progressed, I've come to admire the beauty in that ugliness and hope to have captured some of that in my work.
 

A little background

Plymouth is a city with centuries of naval tradition (see the MayflowerSteps site), and so a lot of the images come from around the docksides and cargo storage / processing areas there, some from the presently derelict areas of Millbay Docks and some from a disgusting creek sandwiched between Billacombe Rd and Breakwater Road.

 

a picture of cargo storage sheds at Victoria WharvesThe primary cargos brought to Plymouth are china clay, fuel oil and fertiliser, with ores and aggregates, too. Plymouth is also a fishing and leisure sailing port, so the industries around these are covered as well (boat yards, quays, moorings, abandoned and rotting hulks etc.)

 

Yachting and leisure

Of course, Plymouth is also one of the yachting and leisure boating capitals of the world. Many international races either set sail from or finish here. The upcoming waterfornt redevelopments planned or in progress are seeing a shift from commercial to leisure use - watch for an increase in berths, new marinas and waterfront villages.

 

A photo of a beuatiful old building, now derelict and likely to be demolished....Observations

One of the things that I've noticed while working on this photo essay is that many fine old buildings are featured, now derelict, that will be razed and rebuilt. At the rate it's happening, it won't be long before there's none left...

 

an image of an old courthouse And with today's approach to architecture and building design, I'm sure we will lose a lot of the character that makes and has made Plymouth what it is today. So this portfolio will also unintentionally form a historical record of those last buildings and lost spaces for future generations.

 

Planned projects

At some time in the not too distant future, where my serendipitous approach to themes and subjects runs out of steam, I intend to do some monochrome studio work on flowers and other inanimates.

  

I've long been drawn to images of, for example, orchids partially lit with the the curves and tones in black and white mimicking

  

...and once that's done, I think I want to explore the more traditional landscape photography.

 

I'm also keen to do some further work with models both in the great outdoors and in urban spaces. If that interests you then get in touch - but only locals need apply. As payment I'd provide a portfolio of the final prints, mounted and signed.


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