Member Powered Photography: How a Crisis, a Camera, and a Community Changed Everything

A Different Kind of Recovery

In my thirties, I had a breakdown that led to depression. My recovery didn’t begin in therapy or with medication - it began through my senses. What helped most was simply walking through the streets, looking up at buildings, and noticing the details.

A New Path Through Place

I left my role as a partner in a construction firm and began a new career as a photographer of the built environment - led not by ambition, but by feeling. Photography became my lifeline. Over time, visual thinking and sensory literacy helped me understand myself. The camera gave me a way to reconnect - with history, with place, and with hope.

From Work to Calling

My work flourished. I photographed remarkable buildings, told their stories, and won awards. But the pandemic and cost of living crisis changed everything. After 20 years, commissioned work slowed down. I launched the Genius Loci Digest to keep going - sharing stories, photos, reflections, and sketches each week from my camper-van-camino in Woody.

A Community Emerges

Then something unexpected happened. A community began to form around the Digest. People not only read and responded, they joined as Members. Their support became more than financial - it became a lifeline. It made it possible to keep going.

And out of that kindness, I felt the need to give something back.

Photography, Powered by Members

So I created Member Powered Photography (MPP) - a way to offer professional photography of historic places and traditional crafts, anywhere in the UK, for free. These shoots shine a light on projects that often go unseen, from medieval churches to timber-framed guildhalls, from stained glass studios to heritage bookbinders.

10 Members = 1 Free Shoot

For every 10 new Members who join the Digest, a new MPP shoot is created - free to those who need. Others have also supported the project with single donations, which help make each shoot possible.

Stories Shared, Hope Renewed

So far, I’ve completed 10 shoots. The response has been humbling. These stories are now being shared, celebrated, and even used to help secure funding or raise awareness.

I would like to thank the Digest Members for supporting you and in turn supporting buildings like ours. They are the cheerleaders for our built heritage – large and small - and they should be applauded!