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The Journey back to Leica.

When I was 17, a photo magazine with work by Bob Carlos Clarke, Helmut Newton, and David Bailey first drew me into photography—partly because it was the only place to see semi-nude images in 1970s Catholic Ireland. I dreamed of becoming a fashion or rock photographer and saved for my first camera, a battered Fed 4 (a USSR copy of a Leica IID). I started photographing local Dublin bands and even landed one small commission in 1979 for The Lookalikes. But the reality felt like hard work and film was so expensive compared to beer, so I drifted into other hobbies while always keeping a camera nearby.

At 60, during Covid, I finally returned to photography with real focus. I was shooting wildlife with Canon R5/R6 bodies and landscapes with a Hasselblad when, in November 2020, I bought a Leica CL to try out some old M42 lenses. Five years on, I’ve owned 20 Leicas and kept six that I use for different genres and trips.

Leica slowed me down and taught me to observe light and shadow more deliberately. That inspiration pushed me to pursue formal training, and I’m now qualified with The Guild of Photographers.