Our Story
I was introduced to the mountains by my father at a very young age. We would regularly climb in Snowdonia together and this started a deep love of the mountains here. As I reached my teenage years I got more serious about mountaineering and progressed onto the Alpine peaks.
In 1982 I chose to follow Jesus, and this completely changed my life, my motivations and my outlook. I moved to Snowdonia to work in outdoor pursuits, at a centre that specialised in working with people with learning difficulties at a time when there was little experience or knowledge in these areas. I loved the challenges of developing new ways to help each individual get more out of life.
My interest in photography was initially just to record my mountaineering experiences. Then I got married and my parents gave us some money to buy a few useful items, and for some unknown reason I blew a part of it on my first SLR camera (a Pentax ME Super). Although I have had no photographic training, it appears that I did have some inbuilt ability to 'see' a good photograph. This came as a shock - I was the only non-artistic member of a very artistic family. I have been married since 1984 to the lovely Ali, who shares a spirit of adventure. We have three children who are pretty much grown up (or at least, they claim they are!) and who have shared many outdoor adventures with us. From a very young age they have been willing to strike a photographic pose on a mountain pinnacle at sunrise or sunset.
As my time came to an end in outdoor pursuits, I strongly felt led to try and make a go of photography as a full time job. So, Origins was started in 1993, initially with a range of 18 greetings cards. Specialising in cards and calendars allowed me to take the types of picture I would choose rather than be governed by the commissions of others. It also allowed me to regularly get out in the mountains and other wild places, whilst still being able to claim that I am at work! In the last few years I have handed the mantle of the Origins business on to others.
Since then, I have been semi-retired – but you never really get to retire from faith or from photography! I am now a church elder, and many of the members of our church have enjoyed / survived days in the mountains with me. As you will see from this site, I still love to seek out the wild places, and have a strong desire to showcase the great beauty that I believe God has gifted to us.
