New President wants more people to take pictures

Darkroom techniques and the optics of microscopes and photography were part of my university course, but I’ve only really started as a keen amateur photographer on becoming a parent 26 years ago. Over that time, I’ve kept learning and developing as a photographer and have tried to get a little better along the way. I moved from film to digital in 2004.

I’m drawn to a number of photography styles that mirror my interests. I love to travel with work and on holiday so take travel and landscape shots; I’m a music fan, so photograph gigs; and I like my adopted home town, so I take pictures on the streets of Sheffield. I’ve also managed to combine work and pleasure by photographing the metals industries in Sheffield and abroad whilst working for British Steel, Special Melted Products, Sheffield Forgemasters, Metalysis and now Independent Forgings and Alloys in Hillsborough.

I’ve been fortunate to pick up some awards along the way. I was The Guild of Photographers ‘Photographer of the Year’ in the ‘Open’ class in 2012, and I won the EEF (Now Make UK) Industrial Photography Competition in 2010, 2011 & 2015.

I joined the Sheffield Photographic society in 2016, and even though I’d had some success and had been taking pictures for some time, I still quickly realised I still had a lot to learn. I really enjoy seeing other photographers’ work and having regular talks at the club from people with diverse interests definitely helps to spark inspiration. This year, our programme features portraiture, sport, landscape, urban, documentary and wildlife photographers, so there’s sure to be something of interest for everyone, and you never know, maybe a new passion to discover.

You can see my photos on my Instagram pages @steelisgrey is for general stuff whilst @steelisgrey_industrial, @steelisgrey_sheffield and @steelisgrey_mono are more focused on individuals styles.

What I’d like to do with my Presidency is look at what we might do to encourage people to take their photographs a bit more seriously and get more enjoyment from both the process of taking them and the results. We have a full programme of events and we intend to run some beginners lessons after Christmas, be more active on Instagram & Facebook, and of course show off through the features we provide to the Sheffield Telegraph