THE POWDERY PERFUME of purple

Lavender  - the smell of calm and relaxation. The sound of buzzing bees and the crisp click of crickets. The sight of a sea of swaying purple stretching across honey-coloured stony earth. The feeling of warmth on my back as I drink in the sight of a smell I have known since childhood.

I find it fascinating to try and photograph beyond what I see, and the lavender fields of Provence in South France offered me an opportunity to create images that embrace not just the sight but the sounds, movement and feeling of relaxation as well. It’s fascinating that whilst from a distance, the fields of purple appear soft and fluffy and perfectly uniform, as you immerse yourself among the flowers, you notice how sharp and strong and straight the stems are. Almost like fountains erupting, splaying out to purple droplets balanced delicately at the very tips. Bobbing about in the wind, enticing bees to dance in unison between their scented bubbles.

Using the ICM technique offered me an opportunity to recreate the feeling of softness, uniformity and constant movement. But you will find a couple of sharp images at the end of the album, which nod to the delicate and intricate nature of the tiny individual purple knots of each stem, which make up the sea of purple you see before you as you stand in the fragrant lavender fields of Provence.