'Each gesture is an event—one might even say a drama—in itself' (Walter Benjamin). My picture selection considers the status and recurrence of certain gestures—head, hand and body—captured as a single, still image. Often photographed as a by-product of performance, but also devised and choreographed in the studio and in public on the street.

Portraits have the ability to live and remain with us in a beguiling two-dimensional afterlife—long after the click of the shutter. More than just a record, portraits are the result of an interaction between the photographer and the subject—both of whom contribute to the portrait's form and content.

Documentary rehearsal photographs of the process and progress of actors as they work through the creative and technical stages of performance. A fly-on-the-wall record of the intensity and joy of perfecting the craft.

Photographs from a series of character portraits of student actors and technicians from an adaptation (The myth of Dungeness) of the Greek myth, Orpheus in the underworld. For the actors, actual props from the devised production were included in the promotional photographs to illustrate details of creative influence; the technicians also used props to reveal their own individual specialism.

The camera enables us to see and engage—and shooting with the camera is a form of hunting—for pictures. The act of using the camera is itself a performance, with an accompanying sequence of body gestures determined by how the camera actually functions. Just holding or carrying the camera over-the-shoulder leads to a variety of camera-influenced postures.

The street used as a backdrop, studio and stage—brief encounters with strangers. I always try to engage and get to know something about those who catch my eye. Capturing the unexpected and spontaneous is both exciting and very rewarding.

Shop windows, mannequins and reflections photographed in Dublin, Edinburgh, France and London. Inspired by the work of the early French photographer Eugene Atget and the American Walker Evans; I use various cameras embedded in smartphones to capture the ambiguous interior/exterior world that exists within shop, through the window and on the street.

The camera has taken many forms since photography was discovered in the 1840's. Early cameras were hand-built from wood, brass, canvas and leather. With the introduction of roll-film by Kodak in the 1890's, picture-taking became popular and cameras evolved through mass production with ever-improving levels of style and technical innovation.

My extensive picture archive includes a wide range of themes and many images are available for prints and for use in other media. Exquisite, exhibition-quality archival prints of any size can be supplied. Please contact Michael for full details.