Dapto, November 2012.

Here I committed a mortal sin and lost the gentleman’s name, which I’d written in a (now lost) notebook. I’ll have to find him again – my memory fails me.

I am posting some of these images as I shoot. The working title is Southern Portraits, which will change. I began this series thinking about how we present ourselves to the world visually and via what means this happens (culture, religion, commerce, brands, necessity, geography, coincidence, etc). But portraits also always hint at the inner life of a person, even if the hints are false.

I’m also photographing landscapes or things in the landscape: somehow these seem relevant – at least at the moment. People from around Wollongong way will recognise some places and a couple of strange little nooks. Sometimes a place sticks in my mind, I go past it again and again, it never changes (so why photograph it?); but I obsess over it and eventually take some pictures. When the place does get altered I’m glad that I do have the photograph.

Thanks indeed to the people photographed so far .. and happy holidays!