Meet our Makers - Garry Lomas Photography
Welcome back to our Meet our Makers series where we introduce you to the talented artist and makers you will find here at Hesta Scene. This month we meet Garry Lomas, resident Caldbeck photographer.
Over to you Garry...
Hi I'm Garry, I am a wildlife & landscape photographer and first picked up a camera in 2005. I was living in and around the Peak District up until 2020 and now reside in Caldbeck. I also run a large format print business.
Photography is something that I always had an interest in, but before digital photography it was too much of an expensive a hobby for me to take up. Once digital cameras came along, I saw my opportunity and jumped straight in. My first camera was a Casio compact that was just 3 megapixels.
In 2005 photography was not as popular as it is today and websites such as YouTube had only just launched. Back then there we no tutorials online and I didn’t know of any tutors, so I taught myself the basics and continued to hone my skills.
After selling my work successfully at makers markets around Manchester, Cheshire and the Peak District I launched my photography website in 2013. Then in 2015, myself and wife Sharon opened a gallery & interiors shop in Hayfield (Peak District). I also taught landscape photography and Lightroom workshops.
During this time we became business ambassadors for Visit Peak District and our gallery was a finalist in the 2018 Rural Business Awards and a nominee in the 2019 UK Interior Awards both in the "Best Independent Shop" category. We ran the gallery for five years before deciding to relocate to the Lake District in 2020.
My work is an ever growing collection. I offer my photography as high quality prints on to Hahnemuhle papers as well as stretched canvases. In addition to prints, I also produce greeting cards & calendars. I use the Canon PRO-4000 printer which can print up to 44 inches wide and uses 12 different inks.
My inspiration comes from nature & the landscapes I’m fortunate enough to live in and explore. I have always admired the work of American landscape photographer Ansel Adams and I’ve been told that my photography reminds people of his work.
It’s difficult to choose just one favourite image, but a capture that certainly is one of my favourites is from a morning in August 2021. I was walking up to Lingmoor Fell with a temperature inversion in the Langdale Valley spilling over to the valley below me where Blea Tarn is. The sun had just risen and the Langdale Pikes and Side Pike were catching the light. It was a magical moment and I was the only photographer on that fell.
One highlight of my photography career came back in 2015 when I lived in the Peak District. I appeared on Countryfile talking to Matt Baker about my Deer photography at Lyme Park. Lyme Park has been home to Red Deer for over 600 years, where these magnificent creatures roam free. I was lucky enough to live within the park for two years which gave me a fantastic opportunity to study the Deer.
For the future I shall continuing to capture the glorious Lake District landscape and wildlife, and plan to explore more of Scotland too. I also want to focus on more astrophotography, especially living so close the Dark Sky Park in Galloway Forest.
You can follow Garry's work over on Facebook and Instagram or see more of his work over on his website
You can find a selection of Garry's photographic prints, cards, Caldbeck + Lake District Calendars in stock now in our Caldbeck shop.