Looking out through the mangroves into the estuary. A yellow yacht emerges unexpectedly. A discovery. A delight.

I didn’t intend to add the boat. She just turned up.

Creating more abstract images like this one forces us to embrace the happy accident. My practice becomes more playful, relaxed and experimental. Mind you, that is the same recipe for success for all of my work.

There is a difference, probably only minute but still perceptible enough to notice. A letting go, just that little bit more.

I always tell my students that learning new genres and spending time perfecting them helps all of your work. Cross training if you like.

Devoting time to my abstract photography will inevitably help my straighter work, while having a solid foundation in composition gleaned from years of practice helps my abstract work.

Considering my love and passion for sailing as a teenager I surprise myself I don’t take more boats. I used to race 16’ skiffs with my mates at scouts. Our boat was hobbled together. A mast from here a sail set from there. We dubbed her ‘Rough and Ready’. Our pride and joy, well, because she was ours. My photography at the time often captured our playfully rediculous humour at the time. We won a few races here and there beating modern boats. My friends went on to race 18 foot skiffs on the harbour while I chased climbing cliffs and teaching environmentalism and developing healthier communities.

Windsurfers were another passion in my teenage years that flowed through for many years to come.

I do wonder why this yellow boat turns up now in my work?

Yellow Yacht. Photograph and text copyright © Len Metcalf 2020