Welcome 2026 – let’s hope you’re a better year for photography than 2025!
I don’t know abut you but photography for me is a moving target. I really don’t want to stand still, churning out the same stuff as I did in previous years. And while 2025 was somewhat of a breakout year for me, it wasn’t where I want to end up!
True, I think I took some of my best ever photos in 2025. I certainly gained a lot from playing with old CCD and LiveMOS camera gear and I very much enjoyed experimenting with old vintage lenses on newer cameras. My love of 35mm film was however put on the back burned for a second year as I embraced digital much more than I thought I would. That’s probably because of my experimenting with older cameras and very much older lenses. The biggest surprise though was experimenting with modern digital cameras combined with some of the best vintage lenses. Who knew that this could be a marriage made in heaven and just what I had been searching for.
My only major expense in 2025, and this was hardly major when compared with my friends, was the purchase of my 2nd hand Lumix S5. And while I already have a number of old lenses that I could adapt, I did purchase a number of cheap vintage lenses for use with that camera. I think that the most expensive lens I bought was the Hexanon 40mm f1.8 which from memory cost me about £60. Pretty much every other lens purchase fell into the £5 – £45 pricing bracket. I tend to buy cheap lenses with the aim of fixing them as this is as much part of the enjoyment of photography as is the taking of photographs. That being said, as I write this there is a bowl of lens parts literally a foot away that I failed miserably with.
So what next in 2026?
At the letter end of 2025 I really began to enjoy using Intentional Camera Movement (ICM) as a means to create art in photography. Turning photos into expressive art has always interested me. I think in truth that I long to be an artist but lack the necessary skills and dedication and photography gets me one step closer to that dream. Another area of interest is reflections. I find that reality reflected is just a tad more interesting than photographing the scene directly. The header image is one such example.
Another key goal for 2026 is spending more time with other photographers as well as working with the local community. In 2025 I had the pleasure of working alongside fellow photographers Alex and Stuart on a project for the Orpheus Male Choir. This project has made me want to work more closely with local community projects and I will be looking out for more opportunities in 2026.
