My first job was working on a local newspaper in Tiverton, which I enjoyed immensely because it meant that I could work outdoors, travelling from one location to another and meeting different people with interesting stories to tell.
Shortly afterwards, I moved to Exeter’s main local paper, the Express & Echo, where I was sponsored through formal training in photojournalism at Stradbroke College in Sheffield.
One of the things I loved about working for a newspaper at the time was that I was out and about and able to see things for myself, whereas the reporters were more desk-based, doing a lot of their work over the phone.
I would get back to the office, and sometimes they would ask me what the scene was like. There is no substitute for seeing and experiencing something for yourself first-hand.
In the early days, the work varied from coverage of charity events, sports, and features, to local news stories such as fires, road accidents, and other events in people’s lives that changed them – i.e. human interest stories. Triumph over adversity, bravery, and community were big themes.
After that, I worked for a news agency covering bigger stories for the national newspapers, and then as a freelancer – mainly in food and features photography, combined with corporate work.