The biggest audience of this 2022 – 2023 season turned out at Falkirk Bowling Club on Thursday night for one of the most anticipated lectures of the year.
Born into an artistic family, Damian Shields initially worked in charcoal and oil paint before he became involved with processing and printing black & white film. That led to him studying Fine-Art Photography at Glasgow School of Art during the 1990’s. He moved on to study electronic publishing, working as a professional retoucher and graphic artist at the Herald newspaper then progressed to the Picture Desk. He is now one of the most widely published Fine Art Landscape photographers in the country artistically influenced by the dramatic colour and lighting in paintings by Caravaggio and the strong yet atmospheric forms of the Pre-Raphaelites.
Damian follows, and works with, the light. He studies weather forecasts calculating the direction of light at his chosen location during periods of several days or weeks. His aim is to photograph the soul of the landscape, recording its form and texture conveying how it responds to changing directional lighting while acknowledging its softer aesthetic.
Among Damian’s portfolio, a photograph entitled Loch Voil with an evenly lit length of reeds across the foreground and darkening upper corners caused by the light receding to, almost, a point at the far end of the waters surface with softly lit mountains in the background encapsulates so many artistic styles it’s almost impossible to describe. Dawn Rain Over Knoydart couples the drama of Caravaggio with the softer influences of the Pre-Raphaelites, an exhilarating mix while Loch Chon – Trossachs communicates the emotional impact of the landscape. In Faroe Islands Damian records hard, textured and unforgiving rocky structures in the North Atlantic Ocean but uses an extended exposure softening the surface of the sea.
Damians’ ability to anticipate how the light will affect segments of land or sea result in awe inspiring images and a wish from aspiring photographers to ditch tomorrow’s schedule of work or chores, and head for the hills. Do your own research on the photographs of Damian Shields, he will inspire and change your photography.