Pollys Photo Blog

2012 Week One, Massive Snow Fall, Closed Roads then Sunshine …….

pollysphotoblog — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 21:18:40 +0000

2012 has begun in earnest the whole of the Alps have seen dramatic snowfalls the likes of which have not been seen since 1965, Roads have been closed, curfews have been activated in certain resorts because of the avalanche risk, Lifts have remained closed due to high winds and freezing temperatures. Only a week ago it felt like we were never going to be able to get onto the mountain to enjoy the powder but this week the sun has shone and all if forgotten.

Last Friday I had a shoot in Val d’ Isere but the journey was not so easy. The road was closed due to avalanche and although we set off to Val at 7.30 am for the usual one hour commute, we finally pulled up in town at 1.30pm after a long wait for the road to open the pictures tell the story.

Friday 6th Jan 2012

Friday 6th Jan 2012 Route to Val d'Isere

Waiting for the road to openFriday 6th Jan 2012

Friday 6th Jan 2012 Route to Val d'Isere

Keeping Myself Entertained

still waiting!

Driving into Val d' Isere in High Winds

Finally we drove up the high street I thought there was no way we’d be able to salvage anything for the shoot and wondered if any lifts would be open. Fortunately for me two chairs low down opened at two o’clock and I was able to get some great shots of the Miller family enjoying the snow. It was so so cold though.

Last week was a stark contrast to this week, The sun is shining but it is still cold enough to keep the snow in great condition. I had an amazing Pro-Shoot yesterday with Martin Hemsley Private instructor for the EFS Meribel The shots taken on one of my favorites in Courchevel Piste M. Thanks to Martin for a fun morning!You can see more shots here.

Martin in Courchevel 1850

Tagged: avalanche risk, high winds, sno, two chairs

BEAUTIFUL CHALETS, AMAZING VIEWS AND POWDER SKIING……

pollysphotoblog — Fri, 23 Dec 2011 17:24:43 +0000

I’ve had a great couple of weeks. An amazing amount of powder has fallen on Courchevel over the last two weeks. I’ve been here for a few seasons now and I have never seen it look so beautiful!

It has not stopped snowing for seven days so I’ve been lucky to be working inside. As clients put the finishing touches to their renovations I’ve been making their promotional shots and movies. All I need now is for the sun to shine next week so I can get the exteriors photographed while it looks so beautiful. I am also excited about the private shoots I have over Christmas and New Year, It is a ski photographers dream out there at the moment!

St Bon, Courchevel

Two of my favorite chalet shoots this week have been a typical French gite ‘Chalet Belle Vue‘, a cute two bed French property with the most perfect view. In the small village of St Bon, just below La Praz, Courchevel. The perfect place for a family holiday.

I have to say though the luxurious Private 1850 Chalet L’Arctique was my favorite shoot. A real challenge due to the amount of glass and mirrors but a challenge I really enjoyed. A seriously beautiful property renovated by Halo Design Interiors.

Here are a few of my favorites.

L’Arctique Courchevel 1850

I’ve been up to ski some of that powder I’ve been missing this morning, I still have a little availability next week so if you are in the three valleys and you want that Iconic powder shot or beautiful shots of your chalet exteriors, It really is a fabulous time for photography at the moment! Call me on 0033630637012

The Road Home

I hope you all have a fabulous Christmas whether you are skiing, cycling or just eating and drinking with your loved ones!! Have a fab time!!!

Best Wishes

Polly

Busy Time in the French Alps

pollysphotoblog — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 18:37:38 +0000

The last couple of weeks have been super busy with Pro shoots and Chalet Shoots. The snow has arrived all over the Alps covering it with a white winter blanket! It’s been a perfect time to grab exterior shots of chalets and also some images for Sponsors and Partners. I have some exciting new sponsors this year so watch this space for more info. But just to keep you all up to date here are a few images from Saturdays shoot with RAW Snowports and Ski Sublime for their Sponsors Salomon UK and Patagonia.

Erica skisublime.com

As you can see the conditions in Tignes France are particularly good. I am heading to Alpe d’ Huez tomorrow for a three-day shoot. We are due some snow but I hope we get some sunshine too or my jobs gonna be tough!

Mike Barker RAW Snowsports dressed by Salomon

Winter Has Arrived….???

pollysphotoblog — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 12:05:05 +0000

So winter has arrived or not?

All reports from the French Alps would have you think that there is no skiing anywhere in Europe. Well although I admit most areas are in desperate need of a big dump of snow, for me the beginning of the season could not be more perfect.
This is my favorite time of year for capturing shots of the pros for their websites and for their sponsors as the sun is low in the sky and as it is shining every day I getting load done!

I’ve been in Tignes all last week working on the glacier, conditions here are remarkable particularly as there hasn’t been any new snow for a couple of weeks. Tignes have done a remarkable job on the pistes. Most of the Glacier is open and the run down to Lavachet is superb.

I am doubly excited this season as I am armed with two new tools a Canon EOS-1D Mark IV SLR and a new lens EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS USM and they are really earning there keep. Super sharp images in both Raw and Jpeg that really can’t be compared to lower grade cameras. I’m absolutely loving both my new tools. Brilliant for shooting the Snoworks Gappies last week. The difference is remarkable no need to slow down the action so you can really capture someone in full flow. Here are a few to wet your appetite and If you need a pro-shoot for your website or for sponsors, Now is the time!! Contact me at polly@dynamicpictures.co.uk 0033630637012.

Riding the T' Bar

Lee T Demo's A Teaching Drill

Gappie, James, Demos Teaching Drill

Short Turn Practice

Gappie, Marina, Drills her Medium Turns

2010 Gappie, Dave, joins in for more training.

Gappie, Erland, Goes For a Blast

Gappie Alice Goes For A Blast

Trainer Mike Practices for Next Weeks Bolle Shoot!

Trainer, Lee, Goes for a Blast

Gappie, Adam, Goes for a Blast

Marina's Fly-By.

Nicaragua and Costa Rica Written 14th August 2011

pollysphotoblog — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 12:03:52 +0000

'Our Hotel Suite, Praying for a Dry Night!'

As I look out of the window of our wooden mountain hut in Santa Elena, Monteverde, Costa Rica all I can see is the canopy of the rain forest, a perfect view to enjoy on a long over due lazy Sunday. I landed in Nicaragua about five weeks ago and I have been on the move ever since. It’s been a long five weeks of hard work and some seriously early mornings it’s had it’s ups and downs and I have been pushed to my limits of exhaustion but it’s been a fantastic experience. I was invited by Raleigh International to travel into remote areas making some promotion pictures for the charity. I volunteered for them in India before Christmas it has been very rewarding to be invited back to work for them here in Costa Rica and Nicaragua. I had no Idea when I agreed to come how much traveling it would involve and how little time I would have at each project but I have to say there is not much of the country I haven’t seen and now I am on holiday here on the typical tourist trail I fully appreciate the unique experience you get when traveling and working in these environments for Raleigh. I have climbed volcanoes, stayed in indigenous reserves on the Caribbean Coast, trekked through the jungle and enjoyed turtle conservation projects on the beaches of the Pacific coast. I have slept on floors of old prisons on deserted Islands, in barns, farm yards, schools and strangers houses every night and day bringing a new adventure here are a few of my highlights.

My First of Many Raleigh Rations Breakfasts

Landing in Managua, Nicaragua I made the typical tourist mistake of been totally unprepared and relying on the Raleigh International guys to collect me without any problems at all. Not a wise move when landing late at night in a city known for it’s high crime levels. The Raleigh Road trip scheduled to pick me up did not arrive I waited for two hours in the airport with no communications no Spanish and not a clue of where I could stay or how to contact the Raleigh team I hadn’t even written down the telephone number of field base. Not at all like me I am usually fully prepared with a back up plan when I travel alone. As it got later and the airport began to close down for the night I realized I was going to have to come up with a plan. I was in a capital city so what do all capital cities have? A Hilton Hotel? Hoping this was the case I got into a car disguised as a taxi and said ‘Hilton Hotel Pour Favor’ in a perfect English accent. The driver said something in Spanish, I have no idea what!, I replied ‘C’ and we set off to what I hoped would be the Hilton Hotel where I could use the Wifi to contact the Raleigh field base. Fortunately for me, although the taxi driver charged me $15 for what was probably a $5 taxi ride he delivered me safely to the Hilton hotel where I happily walked through the revolving doors into a familiar land of the international five star hotel. It was to be the last time on this trip I would have that familiar feeling, I have to say it was quite a relief! I was able to collect my emails and instructions from field base and get the address of the hostel I was to stay in and further instructions. I have to say the Hilton staff were amazing they even gave me a lift to the hostel where I was collected the following morning. It wasn’t a great start to the trip but I survived with out incident.

'The Road To Quebrada Hunda'

Traveling through Nicaragua in the Land Rover I could not get over how beautiful the landscapes are and also how remote places are. There are very few tarmac roads and when it rains you can get seriously stuck in mud, even in a 4×4. The local maps make little sense and bridges have often been destroyed by the amount of rain fall, It really is quite a difficult place to travel around, but it’s never boring and every journey is an adventure. I think it is probably one of the most remote places I have worked. The people are so welcoming and friendly they would go without food to make sure you ate well and would give away their last drop of clean water. Most of the projects I visited involved a two to three hour hike though some difficult terrain to access the areas I found working in the wet season makes managing your equipment really challenging, however I have truly enjoyed the challenge.

Here are a few of my favorite pics from one of the community projects I visited Miraflor Natural Reserve Nicaragua …

Miraflor Natural Reserve

Miraflor In The Kitchen

Miraflor for Dinner

Miraflor All Caged In

Free Range

As part of their adventure volunteers with Raleigh undertake a 19 day trek across their country of choice. I joined one of the treks for the last four days which gave me the opportunity to really see some of the dramatic scenery Nicaragua has to offer. Our first night was spent sleeping in a farm yard under a tree with only my mosquito net between me and the elements I was relieved the rain stayed away as it was too hot to sleep in the tents. The rain stayed away for the four days it was so hot that carrying the 25KG on my back and my camera on my front became increasingly difficult a little rain would have been very welcome. I was so pleased to reach our final camping spot at the top of Cerro Hoya just below the creator there was a refreshing breeze I hadn’t felt for a few days. The view was simply stunning looking across the volcanoes beyond Managua Lake towards the capital, it truly made the heat and pain of the journey worthwhile. The cooler temperature thankfully enabled us to sleep in the tents. That night my friend Amy was sleeping at the edge of the tent and awoke me in a panic late in the evening screaming ‘cow cow’ at me I wondered what was going off … she grabbed my hand and pushed it against the side of the tent, there was a cow laying happily on our tent and when Amy awoke she had been snuggled up to it. We tried encouraging it to move but every time we gave it a prod I just Mooed at us … so funny! In the end we moved over to give it more room and hoped it would have the sense not to rollover and squash us!

Here are a few shots. I can really recommend the last two days of the trip we made the ascent up Cerro Negro a famous volcano you can actually snowboard down, sadly I didn’t get to board down but running down was just as much fun. We then hired a guide to carry our water via horse back to the camp site at the top of Cerro Hoya well worth the effort!

Cerro Negro, 'The Hosttest Day Of My Life'

Cerro Negro

Cerro Negro Early Morning Hike With Out Packs

Cerro Negro Sun Rise

Hike to Cerro Hoyo

View From Our Final Camp Site, Lake Managua

Just above our camp site the Crater pumps out sulpher

Our sleeping partner eyes us up ...

Costa Rica beckoned as I traveled by bus back trough Nicaragua down to central Costa Rica It was obvious to me how much more developed Costa Rica is as a country. However the projects I have been to were still far off the beaten track in the Indigenous reserves, I also spent three nights on the deserted prison Island of San Lucas in the gulf of Niclola. A truly unique experience with incredible sunsets but my favorite part of this trip was two nights on the famous Hermosa beach the turtle conservation project here really surprised me we spent our nights watching turtles lay eggs on the beaches before collecting them up and putting them safely in the hatchery away from predators and poachers. During the day we released the new hatchlings back into the ocean a really rewarding project that any one can get involved in . The beach by the way is simply incredible the black sand and crashing blue waves make the Ideal surf spot.

Playa Hermosa Near Jaco

The team placing the eggs in the Hatchary

: Releaseing the baby turtle

Almost there ...

one of many sun sets ...

The view from Isla san Lucas

I have another week in Costa Rica I intend to relax but I know I won’t be able to resist the early mornings to get those elusive beach shots, I am looking forward to photographing the surfers too, just for fun of course.

Spring 2011

pollysphotoblog — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 03:25:00 +0000

As I look out the window of the airplane and I take off into the sky for the 4th time in two months I realise I have spent more time away this year than in the UK. As a child it was always my dream to be able to travel with my work and it is something I have been working towards for years now. In reality I know it sounds amazing but it comes with a price personal relationships suffer and you miss important occasions that can’t be revisited but I have to say I love my job and as I sit here on my plane on the way to Costa Rica via a few days Nicaragua I realise the hard work is beginning to payoff. I am really excited about this trip I am producing some marketing images for a charity. I am on expedition for five weeks traveling all over the two countries visiting all the fantastic projects they have running. I will hopefully have some time to make some really nice work, I feel the last couple of months have been fast and furious and I’ve not had time to take a breath but hopefully this job will allow that. So what have I been doing since my last blog.

May started with an epic 486km cycle trip over four days with some friends traveling from the Alps to the Ardeche in France I only took up cycling a few weeks before this trip it was one of the hardest things I’ve done particularly the second day. I will never forget the grueling 147km including three mountain cols and a seriously big hill toward the end of the day it was great though and I found a new love for my bike (actually my friends bike he so kindly lent to me) & my friends who helped me so much along the way. It is the most amazing way to get to know a country, you visit places you would not ordinarily go and you really get to know the terrain. My brother wisely said ‘it helps you feel at one with your environment …. as you know how blooming steep a hill is once you’ve cycled up it!’ (or other words not so polite.) A tangible knowledge you don’t get traveling by car.

I flew back from the Ardeche in quite a hurry as I was off to Miami photographing a corporate incentive reward trip, AMAZING is the only word I can use to describe this job it was seriously hard work but so much fun. My mission was to photograph every moment of the trip and create a slide show and coffee table album as a memento for the clients as an additional reward. The delegates obviously work hard in their industry to get on such a trip but they certainly play hard to. I had the true Miami Vice experience staying in the Delano Hotel South Beach and spending a day on board a catamaran, photographing helicopter rides and speed boat races. By evening they drank cocktails by the pool and danced in the best night club in town. Miami is a seriously good destination for a holiday or a corporate group I can’t recommend it highly enough. Make sure you visit the Delano for a cocktails on a Tuesday night it’s the place to be!!

'Sails'

Miami Baby

Las Vegas Cow Boys

I had such great feed back from this trip that I was quickly booked for another one this time Las Vegas. I was so excited I had never been to Vegas and it’s definitely somewhere everyone should visit at least once. I loved Vegas for 24 hours and then I declared it a difficult place to work but it was a fab experience and the trip put on for the delegates was truly fantastic my absolute favorite part of the trip was the Helicopter ride to the Grand Canyon and also the cowboy day that sadly I only got to photograph the beginning of before I was whisked of the Gun Range to be introduced to a pink AK47 and a beautiful dog. ( I have an article coming out soon about weekends to the states Miami Verses Vegas check back for the full details)

Other exciting jobs for this month include a couple of rather raucous birthday bashes and a conference at Vodafone HQ. The launch of their One Net product that I have to say was impressive particularly for people in my industry I am looking forward to the day when I can have one bill and one number for where ever I am in the world!!.

Coffee Stop with Rapha Cycle Club

However I have a new favorite subject cycling, the scenery and the colored jerseys makes for fab pics, you only need to see the current Tour de France images to realise this. I am a new member of La Squadra Rosa the ladies faction of La Squadra Nonnas Sheffield I took part in a couple of epic rides with the girls and photographed the boys on the following days. Nonnas Giro weekend saw the Rapha Cycle club role into town. Sundays ride a hard windy 90km around the Peak District with a very good coffee stop and the super talented and delightful Rapha Team Cyclist Dean Downing who gave up his valuable day off to come and ride in his old training ground and offer some friendly advice to all those riding with him.You can view and purchase downloads from both events here.

Here are a few of my favorite shots from the last couple of months, More image will follow when I return home as I am loading this in Nicaragua and the internet is less than reliable, thanks for your paitence.

The Grand Canyon

Dean Downing Team Rapha

Vodafone HQ Conference

I look forward to the next few weeks I have no idea what to expect… Watch this space. Regards to all Polly

My Winter Ski Season 2010/11

pollysphotoblog — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 00:15:18 +0000

As the snow is rapidly melting and the European winter season is drawing to a close it is time to reflect on what for me has been the shortest of winter seasons. Due to my India expedition I didn’t arrive in the French Alps until 27th January after a lovely Christmas, my first Christmas at home with the family in several years, I was eager to get back to the snow. The season was full of promise with good snow falls in November and December but the rain that came over Christmas was not great and we knew that the spring would be tricky for touring as the snow pack would be dangerous due to the changing temperatures and a lot of early season freeze-thaw action.

Although the snow never really arrived and I have only had one powder day during the whole season, Courchevel is definitely the best place to work and to play if the snow fall is poor. The pistures have worked tirelessly to keep the area open and the piste grooming has been remarkable. I have spent a lot of time in various resorts this winter and so I know that Courchevel pistures are world beaters at their trade and thanks to them we have had a lot of great skiing days and photographs. The British press has not been a great friend to the ski industry this year as until the last couple of weeks conditions have always been good and if you know where to find it, good snow has always been on offer. I have had some great shoots from pro-riders to beginners and also some big corporate weeks with some great companies so all in all it’s been a good busy season for me. Here are a few of favorite ski and boarder shots from this winter.

Lee Townend

Emma Carrick-Anderson

Rob Sanderson - RTM

It has also been wonderful light for landscape work.

Le Dent De Villard

Snow Bunny

Some of my very best shots this winter were taken in Lutry Switzerland in January, here are a couple of examples you can see the full album and buy prints here.

Lutry, Lac Leman, Suisse

Sadly the spring touring season for me is not going to happen. It is still very dangerous out there and avalanches are frequent. It has really highlighted the need for safety gear and also more awareness from everyone on the mountain. I can not stress this enough this link is video of a skier who cuts in above another one and sets of an avalanche which eventually kills the guy below him. Mont Du Vallon Avalanche March 2011. This is a local area I often ski myself and is just one of this years many incidents. To learn more about mountain safety check out the Henry’s avalanche camps it’s a great source of knowledge and information and please if you want to ski off piste think about taking a guide, I can recommend several brilliant guides both British and French so if you’re struggling for contacts drop me an email. Fortunately spring has been super busy with Chalet shoots with everyone knowing that competition for clients is getting more fierce every year it’s increasingly important to have great promotion photographs.

I am off on a big Cycling adventure 432km over four days from the Alps to the Ardeche in aid of the Help the Heroes charity (sponsor us here). I have been training hard for this. I am back in the UK for the wedding season from Mid May via a short corporate trip to Miami USA, I am so excited about that it’s been a few years since I was last in America. Watch this space on more news about my ride and also where to go in Miami!

Incredible India

pollysphotoblog — Mon, 07 Feb 2011 14:07:08 +0000

A Temple ...

I returned from India over 5 weeks ago straight into the chaos of Heathrow airport at Christmas. As I stood in T5 trying to work out how I was going to get to Manchester, as my connecting flight was canceled, I realised the effect India had had on me … Amidst the chaos and stress I found nothing but amusement parts of India had been so hectic, in particular the vortex that is Mysore, I felt that nothing could ever stress me out again. 5 weeks on I still feel the same, OK sometimes I get worried about the future or frustrated with a situation or a colleague but on the whole I feel India has helped me realise how good life can be when you accept things to be the way they are …

Mysore Bedlam

India is a country of contradictions one day you hate it and the next you are in love with it. The chaos amazed and confused me. The country is so vibrant but even when admiring it’s beauty you are never far away from ugliness. On many occasions it’s beauty and unsightliness baffled me the litter is overwhelming and open desecration is just part of everyday life.

Whilst staying in Kerala a friend and I embarked on a conversation with a local gentleman who wants to start a program educating local people on the effects of littering on the health of the people and the land it’s self. It was during this conversation that I realised what a mammoth task it would be to re-educate an entire country. It is so baffling to me that people who are so proud of their beautiful country have no concept of how litter and desecration changes it.

Cleanliness and Godliness

Whilst working in tribal and rural villages you can not fail to see how house proud the people are. Their own environments are spotless and they spend all day sweeping the immediate exterior of their own property whether it is a small mud hut, tent or a large house. In complete contradiction to this they will quite happily leave all their rubbish on the side of the road or any other public area. After three months in India this still baffles me but this is just one example of the many contradictions that exist there. So why is it so easy to fall in love with the country?

Traffic Jam!

When I arrived everything was so alien and every sight was exciting and new. There is something hypnotic about the bedlam that unfolds before your eyes as you travel through the towns and cities. By the time I left I had become accustomed to the chaos, the cows in the middle of the road, kids playing in the gutter, women washing their clothes in the rivers, rubbish everywhere and the beautiful quality of light had all become so ordinary to me. I found it quite upsetting when I became aware I was no longer amazed. It is incredible what you see with fresh eyes and what you miss with tiered ones. I was unsure when I left the country how I’d feel about it in the future and it has taken me a while to work it out. India is an Incredible country I look forward to going back someday not because the light is so good or the scenery so beautiful but because I learned so much from the people I met their.

Trek ...

I trekked and cycled through the most beautiful state of Kerala, lived outside under the stars, had interludes with wild elephants and many local people, taught hundreds of children the importance of washing their hands, photographed the team as they built houses and toilets and helped dig hundreds of meters of elephant trench. I will take many things away from my experience not least some very good friends.

I will always carry with me the attitude of the Indian people I met. Their relentless acceptance of their own situation enables them to be happy with what they have and not wish for something better, making them far more content and happy with life than any European I have ever met. One thing that didn’t change wherever I traveled was the warmth of the people. Everyone has a smile for you and will share everything they have with you and all they desire in return is to enjoy your company for a short while.
I would like to thank those people I worked with both Indian and European that showed me how rich life can be even without riches!! Here are a few the characters I came across on my travels.

You can view a slide show of my full portfolio here.
Purchase Prints and artworks here.
You can read more about my Raleigh experience and the projects we were working on here

Time To Pray

A Smile

Lunch Time

Rest anytime anywhere

Water Girl

Time for Tea

Time for School

Work

Play

Wise

Innocent

Thank you for taking the time to view my work I hope you enjoy it!!

You can view and purchase more prints and artworks here.

Kind Regards Polly xx

4th October 2010 India Week 1

pollysphotoblog — Thu, 07 Oct 2010 13:16:34 +0000

4th October 2010 Jayapura village India…

I met my fellow Raleigh volunteer managers in Bangalore I have to say I was slightly disappointed with the airport. It was very utilitarian and we really could have been anywhere in the world. My disappointment was short lived when I got stopped at customs and taken to a back room where I was asked to pay 40% of the value of my camera equipment in tax. As you can imagine this added up to quite a sum & as I am here volunteering my skills for charity proposes I was not happy with the thought of paying this tax. It took me about ten minutes to talk myself out of it, they eventually let me go without payment. So a word of warning when traveling to India you are only allowed to bring one camera, one lens and one Laptop free everything else is subject to tax. My first lesson learned and first adventure over I surfaced in India. I boarded the bus still a little dazed and confused, we had a four hour bus journey to Raleigh Field-base in Jayapura village near Mysore Karnataka. It was the most amazing bus journey like watching a movie, every scene and description I ever read or watched about India played out before my eyes I could barely take it all in and certainly it was all too exciting to get my head around photographing any of it.

My First India Breakfast, A Dosa ... Curry in a pancake

My first Indian Breakfast was a bit of a culture shock but a week on I have come to terms with having curry for breakfast, lunch and dinner although I have not come to terms with how spicy the food is.

The Road to Fieldbase

We’ve had a week of training thats been really interesting and valuable everything from management skills, first aid and survival training. Fieldbase is in amazing rural setting definitely not on the tourist trail! We’ve trekked 21K through the most amazing scenery and took part in some great team bonding sessions. Here are my favorite images from this week if you want to see more and read more about the work we are doing check the Raleigh India Blog. Next week I am Spending sometime in Mysore City so It should be interesting!

Take Care Polly.

7am Trek Training Day

'On the way to school'

6am Field Base

Sunday 26th September 2010 On my way to India

pollysphotoblog — Mon, 04 Oct 2010 16:42:04 +0000

Sunday 26th September 2010 I arrived at Heathrow this morning after a late nights work in the studio resulting in very little sleep and a hazy journey in the car with my very patient fella Lee. I checked in as normal and went for a bite to eat, it was lunch time and I could not resist the smell of fresh Italian coffee and pasta laced with garlic and tomato. The conversation followed the normal daily chit-chat, sinking diaries and discussing the next Dynamic Pictures Project, next years bookings and skiing adventures with clients. All mundane stuff for two people for whom travel is a big part of their careers. All my equipment was packed up as if I was off to photograph another European wedding or hotel. We then said our usual quick goodbyes at the gate and I wandered off through security. As I watched some students struggle with the demands from the security guards it hit me like a Bollywood movie, (too many senses going on in one moment) this was no ordinary business trip or mini adventure to the usual European destinations to photograph the stylish, I wouldn’t be back on Tuesday morning or even the following week in fact I wouldn’t be back until Christmas and I don’t feel my goodbyes have been strong enough. I going on a life adventure that has been in the planning for about 18 months but I don’t think until that moment I had actually thought too much about it….. I don’t know how long I stood there while the

Polly at Work by Rachel Allen

shirty lady was telling me to take my belt off and eventually had to grab me my the arm to get me to move on. A whole host of feelings hit me and to my disappointment not a one of excitement entered my body. I have been so busy finishing work for clients that I was now worried I was doing the right thing 13 weeks in Southern India Volunteering for the youth education and country charity Raleigh… My job description…… My personal goal to feel I’ve contributed in improving someones life, To improve my tolerance, patience and understanding. To make some work that soaks up the atmosphere what ever in might be and ‘capture the experience’ for you to see. Most of all I want to do some good for others and for all of you that supported me in this venture. It sounds like an epic challenge, lets see if I can achieve it watch this space….. Here we go what will the morning bring who knows certainly not me……….