Mark Ward In Focus

Forest of Dean snapper Mark Ward’s stunning images of the River Severn and surrounding areas are instantly recognisable. SoGlos.com finds out more from the modest master of composition himself.

So tell us about yourself

My name is Mark Ward, I’m 37 and I am married with two children. Although my family originate from Nottinghamshire, I was born in Lydney and grey up in various locations throughout the Forest of Dean.

I have spent all my working life in the electricity industry which allows me to travel quite extensively around the county and surrounding areas. I don’t expect to move on from this any time soon, unless my pipe dream of earning a living from photography miraculously becomes true.

And whereabouts do you live now?

I currently abide in the picturesque Forest town of Cinderford. Okay, picturesque might be pushing it a bit, I take that back!

How and when did you first get into photography?

My interest in photography was born way, way back when I was at secondary school – they had a dark room and we used to do black and white photography as part of art classes. My dad always enjoyed taking photographs and after spotting my initial interest brought me a second-hand film SLR camera. I used this for several years specialising (in the loosest sense of the word) in macro work.

I have always been my own worst critique, and always will be, but eventually I got disheartened by the fact that so many frames were nothing but bin fodder to me, not to mention the processing costs, and I shelved the camera thinking that was it.

Then some years later along came digital and the ability to quickly review work and learn from your mistakes. Although initially the sensors only offered low resolution images it was the way forward for me. I started with a 3.1 megapixel point and shoot, then progressed to the pro-sumer type and finally onto the DSLR – and my passion for photography has since grown and grown.

What equipment do you use?

In the past I have spent silly amounts of money on a multitude of photographic accessories, many of which have barely been used and I now choose to travel light. My core kit which goes everywhere with me consists of a Nikon D200; Sigma 10-20mm (rarely separated from my camera); Sigma 18-50mm; polarising filter; tripod; radio shutter release; spare memory cards; and blower and lens cloth.

I have lost count of the amount of times when I’m out and about and people clock the old D200 and state ‘that’s a good camera, I bet it takes good pictures’. While the quality of the equipment does, of course, have a bearing on the image in technical terms, it is my opinion that the composition of an image is paramount, and the reality is that the quality of an image is created more by the eye behind the camera than the camera’s bells and whistles!

Gallery of pictures by Mark Ward

Out of the 10 photos you picked for the gallery, which is your favourite and why?

I found it quite difficult to select 10 images for this little gallery and opted to use a lot of my recent work of which ‘Evening Estuary’ is my favourite; I just love the ripples in the sand, the way the light plays off them, and the immenseness of the space.

Do you use any image editing software?

Potomatix Pro for HDR work and Photoshop CS4 for everything else.

And it’s digital all the way for you now?

Most definitely digital all the way – because of the accelerated learning curve and the greater degree of creative freedom it allows. Take HDR as an example, I know that the process was originally designed to cater for digital sensor’s inability to capture the same dynamic range as film, but it’s now used in varying degrees of excess to produce some quite different styles of work. I think my use of HDR is quite mild compared to some, although it has been said in the past that my HDR work looks a little surreal. The reality is, HDR is the Marmite of the photography world, you either love it or hate it – personally I love the depth of tone and that slightly graphical look it can achieve with the process.

How have you developed your skills over the years?

I don’t have any formal training and have learnt what I do know from books, magazines, trial and error, and from looking at other people’s work. Inspiration from others, particularly from a compositional perspective, has proved the most valuable learning tool.

If you could photograph anyone who would it be?

I don’t do people, they are just for scale or context!

What’s your favourite Gloucestershire location?

I love to be out in the countryside, the feeling of being remote, that feeling of insignificance I get when confronted with big views and open spaces – all of this gives me as much enjoyment as the photography itself. As you may have guessed when looking at the 10 shots accompanying this article, the River Severn and estuary, in particular the sands at Awre and Lydney, are very inspirational to me – so much so that I am hoping to do whole series from Goldcliff near Newport to Gloucester this year.

Do you have any tips for budding snappers?

I am no expert but here’s my two penneth; as mentioned previously composition is so important in producing successful images. This is going to seem a little contradictory but find out a little bit on compositional rules such as the rule of thirds and try and apply them when out in the field but remember, don’t get too bogged down with rules, sometimes it is better to break them!

It is all too easy to arrive at a site, be a little overwhelmed and shoot away as though operating a machine gun. When composing an image take some time, move around, try different angles, think about the whole frame not just the main focal point, look at where the focal point is placed and where other lines in the frame enter/exit. Try different depths of field, experiment and take lots of different shots of the same subject.

Review your shots; I know those little screens are not ideal but it should give you an idea what to work with and what to delete.

The time of day has a big impact on a scene. Mornings and evenings provide a more dramatic and colourful light with longer shadows adding more interest. Personally I prefer evenings as during the week work gets in the way, and on the weekend I’m just too bone idle to drag myself out of bed!

You can see more of Mark Ward’s photos on his Flickr profile, flickr.com/photos/wardy121.

SoGlos.com
16 March 2009