When I consider what I love about photography, I find that beyond the challenges of working with light, composing on the fly, the unpredictability of street photography or finding that one stand out shot in a collection of images you’ve taken during a trip out, its the gateway to other experiences that the camera facilitates.
I’d always wanted to have a role within a football club, not as a player, unfortunately I’m not blessed with the skill to be anything other than a liability when it comes to playing the game. When I first returned to the North East I started taking photographs of a local football team and within a few months I found myself on the commitee, attending games around the country and having a whole host of experiences that you can attribute to an away day game (as well as a buffet put on for the committee!)
Later, my love of wrestling had me approach a promotion as I was wanting a few images to include in a series I was working on. The next thing I know I’m attending their events and was even part of a storyline where I was attacked at ringside by the “bad guy” as he didn’t take kindly towards me photographing him after a lost match.
It was because of street photography that I found myself being welcomed into a local bar in Sunderland where I would now consider myself a regular and a new circle of friends who I would otherwise never have met if the camera I’d gone into the pub with had not started a conversation. Its also very rare to be out with your camera and not get someone asking questions. The majority of the time its people interested in what you are photographing. Fondly I remember a few years ago I had set my Box Brownie on a tripod in the high street and I was approached by someone who remarked “Oh thats an old camera, does it still work?” – quite what they thought I would be doing setting up a broken camera if it hadn’t worked, I’ll never know.
These experiences also branched into work involving photoshoots of bands and my work being exhibited, over and above my usual work.
All these experiences came as a result of the camera, I’ve made many new friends and had experiences that never would have happened, for me this is part of the reason why I love the simple act of framing an image and pressing a button.
This segways into the subject of mobile phone photography and there are countless examples of fantastic images captured with a mobile phone. The technology now has progressed so much that many will give a “traditional” camera a run for its money. Whilst the majority have a mobile phone, would a mobile phone have provided the same experiences as my trusty Canon? No, I don’t think so, whilst I would probably have achieved similar photographs with one of the new smartphones, I don’t think I’d have been given the same opportunities if I’d turned up at a football club or a wrestling event with a mobile phone.
In closing, photography and the traditional camera are not only a fantastic medium for creative expression but a key to a plethora of experiences.
Tim Wilson 
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