Finding Calm

Alan Lait

Alan is a UK landscape and outdoor photographer, based in North Yorkshire, whose images capture the mood and beauty of the landscape. His interest in photography started from a young age, inspired by the dramatic views he often encountered while climbing mountains in the Lake District, and he has since dedicated many years to refining his photographic and printing techniques. His work has been published in magazines and exhibited at the Joe Cornish Galleries, where he was a contributing photographer for many years.

alanlaitphotography.com

My first introduction to landscape photography was while climbing mountains in the Lake District and at the time, it was just a hobby and my images were a record of where I’d been, rather than something I considered a creative pursuit. As I focused more time on refining my photography skills, it became more of a passion and an invaluable balance to the daily challenges of work and sometimes of life in general.

I now find photography to be an important creative outlet and on occasions, it’s helped me pull through some dark and challenging times. For some people, it might be music or painting but for me, it’s creating images that represent the environments and places I love and feel a connection to. It’s something I do for my own enjoyment and of course, it’s always a pleasant bonus if someone else appreciates an image. Maybe they see the same thing I did when I composed it, maybe they derive their own meaning from it – either way, it’s brought a sense of enjoyment to someone else, which is a pleasant side-effect but never my original intention.

I’ve often been told that my images portray a sense of calm and maybe that’s a result of what I find rewarding in an image or what my eye is naturally drawn to. That’s not to say that all my photographs are of peaceful scenes. I also enjoy finding interesting abstracts or compositions with dark, moody skies but maybe some of my own state of mind still comes through in the resulting images.