Research Diary
A photography journal from an upbeat-pessimist — documenting beauty in overlooked places, tracing repetition, stillness, and slow collapse. Part research, part wandering, part attempt to make sense of the noise.
Tales from the Loop: Discovering a Theory
In this reflective post, I explore the concept of hypernormalisation through my photographic project, The Loop. Inspired by Alexei Yurchak’s Everything Was Forever, Until It Was No More and Cormac McCarthy’s The Road, I discuss how ritualized walking and image editing reveal shifting perceptions of urban decay, endurance, and social critique in a dystopian landscape.
Tales from the Loop: Into the Shadows
A winter night walk through Manchester’s overlooked streets marked the turning point for my new series. A cold, concrete loop near the university revealed its darker side — quiet, strange, and full of charged stillness. This was when the images turned black and white, and the project began to find its voice.
Tales from the Loop: Finding Inspiration in Restriction
What began as a simple lens test became the start of a meditative black and white photo series exploring overlooked spaces and quiet moments on the edges of Manchester. Tales from the Loop uncovers the beauty in repetition, liminality, and the act of returning.