The best of both worlds

Thanks to two uncles who were keen amateur photographers Steve Gosling has had an interest in photography from a very early age. He remembers taking his first photograph when he was six or seven years old and his two uncles taught him everything he needed to know about processing and printing in darkrooms. Steve considered developing his love for photography through a course at college but during the mid to late sixties the courses were very much science based something which put Steve off. It wasn't the end of his photographic dream though, he started freelancing thirty years ago, initially fitting his photography around his full time job. Since then he's freelanced on a part time basis, gradually building his business up and he eventually took the leap into full time photography a few years ago.  His new book 'Lensless Landscapes' is a collection of images from his dream career.

"It's always been a dream of mine to do this and my philosophy in life is to live it to the full - you only get one shot to make something of your life. In my view its better to have tried something and fail than to regret never trying," explained Steve.

Something he is trying increasingly more is pinhole photography to the point where it accounts for 75-80% of what he shoots. He's never had an interest in technical perfection, capturing emotion and mood is far more important and that's why he always carries a pinhole camera in his bag.

"I was attracted by the unique view of the world that a pinhole camera provides. The wide angle of view, the infinite depth of field, the slight softness to the image and most importantly the long exposures that record the passing of time rather than a single moment in time."

His pinhole camera is a work of art in itself, hand made from teak and brass. He takes the camera all over the UK to capture both coastal and inland landscapes something he does because of his love for the outdoors and photography gives him an excuse to go out walking. His landscapes have featured in magazine articles and half a dozen exhibitions but due to the volume of work not all could be shown at once. So people could see his full collection Steve has made a book which will hopefully bring his long exposures to a wider audience.

"I do hope is that the viewers of my images wish that they had taken the photograph or at least have been there with me to witness what I have photographed. For me this is done by capturing more of what I feel than what I see - photographs have to contain emotion if they are to communicate with the viewer."

Steve doesn't restrict himself to pinhole photography. He's lucky to have built-up a large collections of bodies and lenses over time. He owns a Leica M film system, a Canon digital outfit (based around a 1DsMkII) and a Hasselblad V series system with a Phase One digital back. He's not a collector of cameras he has equipment that has a function, he doesn't buy for the sake of it. He enjoys the simplicity of a manual mechanical camera too: "Sometimes overly complicated equipment can get in the way of the picture making process."

When it comes to lenses he again has a variety that all serve a different purpose. For the Canon for example he has lenses ranging from 17mm to 400mm but over the years he has realised that restricting himself to fewer pieces of kit means he takes better photographs as it forces him to engage with his subject more intensely to create a successful image.

"For example, the pinhole cameras I use have just one angle of view and sure I miss some photographs as a result; but I find an awful lot more because I'm very familiar with what does and doesn't work with it."

His pinhole camera which he uses Pan F film rated at 50 ISO with can have extremely long exposure times, so having a beautiful landscape doesn't only make a great picture it also gives something for Steve to look at while he waits.

"Exposures are usually in the order of 15-30 seconds during the day. The longest exposure so far (‘Into the Light' Derwent Water) was taken at dusk and required an exposure of 40 minutes."

Steve creates images that are pleasing to the eye, he always considers the design of a picture - the use of lines, patterns and shapes in his work but he doesn't focus too much on technique. He likes to try new things and experiment to find out what works and what doesn't.

"I'd hate to get into a rut with my photography - photographing the same things in the same way all the time would bore me. Having said that, My natural inclination is to follow the 3 ‘P's to get my landscape photographs - Planning, Preparation and Persistence. So I regularly research locations using maps, books, the web etc and then plan when is the best time (of day & year) to visit a specific spot. I also think it's important to persevere and push back personal and technical boundaries. For example, I already have some ideas about how I can develop my pinhole photography and take it in a new direction."

His love for photography as a whole means Steve enjoys and likes the fact that the digital age has rejuvenated an interest in photography for many people and as a professional he can enjoy the quality, flexibility, convenience and speed of digital photography. But he does think it undermines some of the technical skills required by dumbing down the process.

"This is great if you just want to ‘point & shoot' but not if you want to take control to create rather than just take photographs. Through my workshop program I've also witnessed a laziness on behalf of some photographers - an ‘I'll sort it out later on the computer' mentality. I think to be a better photographer it's still very important to get the best image possible at the time of firing the shutter."

The internet, another modern technology is something Steve couldn't live without. All of his submissions are made digitally and most of them are made via e-mail or FTP transfer.

"Researching for new customers, keeping in touch with existing ones, invoicing etc - its all done over the internet now; it's been a radical change in the last 4 years."

He may like the internet but spending hours infront of a computer isn't something that interests Steve at all.

"I value the flexibility, power and potential of programs like Photoshop to help me achieve all the things I used to do in the darkroom but with more control and consistency but I prefer to get everything right in camera in the first place."

After all, taking pictures is what Steve likes to do. He believes you should follow your heart and photograph your passion: " Take what pleases you and don't try to please someone else."

Visit Steve Gosling's website for more details of how to purchase Lensless Landscapes.