New Opportunities

Over the last 16 years, I have tried to run a professional photography business. To say the journey has been rocky is an understatement. There have been many highs, but sadly, even more lows. So, I have made the decision to close Michael Laing Photography as a business.

Whilst, one chapter of my life is closing, a new chapter is beginning. One that I am incredibly excited about. In 2022, I did a master’s degree in Fashion Photography, for which I received a distinction, and this year, I did my GCSE in English and Maths. Combine all these qualifications together, and it allows me to start a PGCE in Further Education.

Yes, I want to become a teacher. This was not an easy decision to make. Having various special educational needs issues makes becoming a teacher a challenge (On my dyslexia diagnosis, it even says that teaching may not be the best path). But many things have changed, over the last 20+ years, since that diagnosis. Technology, has moved on, and whilst I do have various issues with AI, when used properly it can be a great boon.

I first started working with the visual image in 1997. First in video, and then later in photography. Over that time, I have gained a huge amount of knowledge, and I believe it is time I passed on that knowledge to future generations.

Also, whilst being neurodivergent does present various challenges. It also means that I have a host of experience dealing with many different conditions. It is estimated that up to 50% of those in the arts, will have one form of neurodiversity or another. I have been in the same shoes as many who will be starting college, and I hope that I will be able to help them along on their journey.

This, website will remain up, but the focus of the site will be changing. What it will eventually become, I do not know, but I have various ideas. We will see together.

Biography

I was born and raised just outside of London in a small suburban town called Ashford, a few miles from Heathrow. As a child, I loved drawing, watching television and going to the movies. These influences shaped who I am, and looking back, the kinds of photography I enjoy today.

I am also neurodivergent, with a variety of conditions, that again has shaped much of my life. I left school, with no qualifications, but over the last 34 years, have gained a variety of qualifications. From a BTEC in Caring, to a degree in film making, and most recently a master’s degree in Fashion photography.

I have worked a wide range of jobs, including working with special needs adults. Security at a night club for 3 years, and as a court usher. But my dream was to be a film-maker, and whilst I did achieve this goal, I found something else that became my passion in life. Photography.

Over many years, I have tried and mainly failed to run a photography business, having to deal with a variety of issues, including family health, and surviving COVID 19, with barely any support, and my business has suffered.

For all the negatives, there have been some massive positives. In 2020, Michael won the converted South East Photographer of the Year, and South East Creative Photographer of the Year, with the Master Photographers Association award, and followed that up with the London and Essex Male Portrait Photo of the Year, in 2021. I also was a double finalist in the MPA International Portrait Photographer of the Year.

More recently, I did my associate qualification in portrait photography with the British Institute of Professional Photography, and the society of Wedding and Portrait Photographers.

When I am not working or studying, I still enjoy cinema, as well as music, gaming and reading science fiction and fantasy. I am also at an age, where I regularly have to go to the gym, to help keep fit.

 Artists Statement

Photography for many years has been my passion. I may not be the most talented photographer, but I certainly put the effort in to be as good as humanly possible. My work is split into two styles, normal portraiture, in particular headshots, as well as fine-art portrait photography, where I enjoy telling stories through my photography.  My work is generally detailed and technical, with the aim of taking the viewer into my imagination.

My influences stem from my childhood.  Science fiction and fantasy were always a big influence, with films like Star Wars, Time Bandits, Blade Runner, TV series like Space 1999, Star Trek and Star Wars, as well as books and Role Play games, such as The Dragonlance Chronicles, and the Fighting Fantasy books.

Cinema has also been a massive influence on the way I like to create visual stories.  I like to create characters and let the viewer use their imagination to create their own stories based on my work.

I have also been influenced by a number of the world’s leading photographers, such as Eugenio Recuenco, Frank Okenfels III, Joe Mcnally, Yousuf Karsh and Marco Grob.

Over the last few years, my work has been moving from portrait to fine-art portrait, though I have used very traditional portrait lighting, which can be seen for much of my ‘Dragons in human form project’.  My future work will be moving away from this to more natural lighting with a more cinematic style.