Photographer Daniel Moncur-Sime

One of the first exhibitions to catch in 2010.

Photographer Daniel Moncur-Sime is a man who is drawn to the visual arts, whether that’s classical painting, dance or photography. His three passions have gradually fused over the years, producing a form of photography that aims to capture a sense of movement and exuberance, while drawing by the fine art training he received at Manchester University.

“When I was younger I wanted to be Rembrant or Michaelangelo,” he says. “Michaelangelo was my hero – personally I think he was the greatest artist who ever lived. But I couldn’t live up to that. Instead I’ve taken all that training and put it into my photography. I understand the fundamentals of art; I understand the principles of perspective, the golden mean… it all helps me to produce a well-composed image.”

As a fashion photographer whose work has appeared in Cosmopolitan, Vogue  Bride, the Daily Mail and Asiana ,Daniel was always drawn to models who understood how to use their bodies to create expressive images, and he has an uncanny talent for spotting this kind of potential at a casting. “There’s something about the way they hold themselves, how at ease they are with their bodies. Often it is the older models who portray this. It’s as though the self-consciousness of youth has gone, leaving behind a woman who isn’t afraid to project her personality right into the camera lens.”
Daniel picked out a number of models with these traits for his latest photography exhibition, simply entitled Move On.

In collaboration with the models, he’s managed to capture a series of extraordinary images in which the women’s half-naked bodies resemble exquisitely abstract blooms of light against  a mishmash of blurs and feathering enhanced by slow exposures and artfully timed flashes.

Daniel has always understood that the relationship between the model and the photographer is key. “As a photographer you have to trust that the model is going to understand what you want from them and give you all they’ve got, and they have to trust that you will be respectful, and only take what you need.”
Daniel has enjoyed the experimental and serendipitous nature of the series. “So much of it is down to chance. You don’t know what you’ve got until the film develops. Sometimes you find you’ve got an image of pure magic; the moment when a model looks at you with an expression of such openness and beauty while their body transforms into a whirl of motion. It’s the perfect teamwork. Without the model, I’m just a man with a camera!”

Move On will be at the Grant Bradley Gallery, Number One St Peter's Court, Bedminster Parade, Bristol BS3 4AQ from January 8-30 2010
details at www.grantbradleygallery.co.uk