TIn 1986, I left my hometown of Brighton, on the south coast of England, and floated down from 10,000 metres into India with a 1972 Nikon F2, some Ilford FP4 and a few rolls of infrared black & white film… Just to see. Being passionate about photography, I thought the infrared medium could perhaps unveil the secrets of this great subcontinent. The succession of images that appeared revealed India in an ancient light – I became bewitched and was never the same again. Essentially a black & white film, its emulsion’s also sensitive to light from the infrared spectrum. With a red filter placed over the lens, both visible red and infrared light are absorbed, resulting in a black & white image with a surreal dreamy dimension to it.
Twenty-two years have drifted by but I still use the same camera and film medium, and I’m still under Asia’s spell. My quest to capture the aura of mysterious worlds has led me
on to Thailand, Burma, Cambodia, Vietnam and Laos, but the strange magnetic charm India radiates continues to
draw me back.
