Foreword to “Plant Searching” articles.

I am indeed fortunate in that my interests in Wildlife Photography have always embraced the Natural World in its full range and diversity and so I never find myself short of subject matter. Whilst my earlier photographic forays tended to concentrate on Flowering Plants and Invertebrates they eventually and inevitably expanded to include the full gamut of all sectors of the Wildlife World.

My knowledge, such as it is, of Wildlife in all its many forms, and the photographing of it, has been acquired on a self taught basis. It has been garnered as the result of the experiences and opportunities that the vagaries of life have thrown my way on the basis of pure chance and is not the result of any academic qualifications or skill on my part. I had the great good fortune to grow up in Africa and studied dentistry for a brief period in South Africa – this latter scarce providing any kind of background to a life of Wildlife Photography.

After some few years spent in the post adolescent wilderness of life I acquired a Pet Shop in the Bournemouth area of the U.K. which led on to a Zoo and a Bird Garden in Dorset. I was able to indulge in a fair amount of travel to the world’s wild places in pursuit of these interests. I became an ardent giver of talks on many aspects of exotic Wildlife including my own personal hobbyhorse of the “Genetics of Captive Mutations”. This sounds perhaps grander than, in fact, it probably was since the need to acquire an understanding of the subject was thrust upon me by having to explain, and answer questions, as part of my talks content. These covered matters from as mundane as questions as to why Green Budgies can produce Blue ones whereas Blue Budgies can never produce Green ones, up to and including the inheritance of factors such as melanism and albinism in Big Cats and other captive livestock.

I also served on an advisory panel instrumental in the drawing up and approval of the I.A.T.A. standards for the transport of livestock and, in addition, enjoyed several years as Livestock Consultant to a large International Corporation and was involved in the formulation of many food products for the Pet Trade.

I am not qualified in any particular aspect of Wildlife or its photography and know only what I have chosen to learn out of personal interest or what was relevant to my occupation at any given time. The result of this seems to be that I know “a little about a lot” as opposed to “a lot about a little”. Where my experiences or findings contradict or do not conform to accepted opinion you must make up your own minds and certainly not take my words as any kind of definitive guide.

I would like to think that my writings will be taken in the spirit in which they are intended – as a hopefully helpful guide to “the man in the street” from “another man in another street”. I have tried to keep them relatively low key and not full of scientific gobbledegook nor confusing and often contradictory photographic instruction. I try neither to over simplify, nor to complicate, and would hope that my occasional use of Scientific nomenclature is such that it is comprehensible even to someone of a non-scientific background. If I have fallen short in this regard I look forward to receiving your critical or inquisitorial E mails which I promise, due to the fact that I am often out of touch with civilisation, will be answered in a totally sporadic and haphazard manner – for which I can only apologise in advance!

I hope my jottings are of interest and, on a serious note, if I can help in any way please let me know.