Category Archives: Environment & Climate Change

The Carbon Footprint Of Selling Art Prints

Minimising my environmental impact on the planet has been something close to my heart since my early days, although the way I think about it has changed as we become increasingly aware of how much damage we are doing, and the ways in which we are doing it.

I now run my main commercial photography business in such a way as to reduce my carbon foot print, as well as reduce other damaging practices such as the amount of plastic used, and you can read more about it on my page about Running A Sustainable Photography Business.

Misty Trees by the River Thames.
Misty Trees. Photo by Douglas Kurn
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Good Sun, Bad Sun – Surviving The Climate Crisis

It may have turned a bit chilly here in the UK lately but it wasn’t that long ago that we were enduring a heatwave and that was when I took this photo of someone “fending off” the sun with their brolly. 

Two people use their umbrella to provide shade against the sun’s rays during the heatwave of the summer of 2022 in Selsey, West Sussex. Photo by Douglas Kurn
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The Calm Of The Morning Sun

There’s something wonderfully calming about being up and about as the sun rises over the horizon first thing in the morning, especially after the shock of the 4am alarm call! Sunrise is when nature wakes up and the sounds of the birds let you know that day is beginning and there is work to be done.

Sunrise over a coastal nature reserve. Photo by Douglas Kurn
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It’s Earth Day And That’s Worth Celebrating

Happy Earth Day 2022. Despite all the climate issues that we have to deal with on a day to day basis, the planet Earth is still a wonderful and beautiful place.

I love taking my camera out and exploring the world we live in and am always amazed at what the Earth and Mother Nature combine to deliver to us every day.

Although I shot this photo a few years ago I still remember the feeling of watching the sun come up on the remote island of Porto Santo in the North Atlantic Ocean.

Sunrise over Porto Santo beach. Photo by Douglas Kurn
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Edition 365 Awards & Exhibition

I’m super excited to announce that not one but two of my photos have been selected as part of the Edition 365 Awards, run by the British Journal Of Photography. Edition 365 is a historical award that was conceived to capture one day of every single day for a whole year starting on 11th March 2020, which was the day that the World Health Organisation (WHO) officially declared a global pandemic as a result of COVID-19.

The crescent of the moon above the chimney pots of a house. This image is from the project Lockdown:LookUp, a series of photographs created during the first national Coronavirus pandemic lockdown in England during 2020, which focusses on the environmental effect of living under the normally busy Heathrow flightpath. Photo by Douglas Kurn
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Brooklands On TV

Brooklands Museum has its own TV show called Secrets Of The Transport Museum which is on Yesterday channel and is well worth a watch (it’s on catch up at UK Play TV too). Although my series of photographs, The Spirit Of Brooklands mainly focussed on its history as a motor racing circuit, Brooklands also played a significant part in the aircraft industry being a just in time manufacturing centre for aeroplanes during World War Two.

The hangar featured in this photo is a Bellman Hangar and was designed to be a temporary fixture when it was first located on the Finishing Straight of the racing circuit, but is now a grade II listed building. I shot this just before it was moved to another area of the site to become part of the aircraft factory.

Photo of Bellman Hangar, Brooklands Museum
Bellman Hangar, Brooklands Museum
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Global Recycling Day

Today is Global Recycling Day (18th March 2021 if you’re reading this on another day) and to commemorate it I have changed my logo to that of the Global Recycling Foundation logo, just for the day (although it could be the shape of things to come – but more about that another time). Here’s a screen grab of what it looks like in case you missed it:

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Lockdown:Look Up

How did you spend the Lockdown? I spent it looking up – not in a life affirming, positive way, but quite literally looking up – at the skies above me. Living under the Heathrow flightpath this would normally result in seeing loads of planes, but with air travel severely curtailed there was so much more to see; birds, clouds, helicopters, moons, super moons, and more clouds.

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I Saw On The Seashore

I love the seaside – almost regardless of the weather, which has been just as well this summer! There’s something in the air, apart from salt and the smell of seaweed. People seem to change when they are at the seaside; they become more relaxed and develop a sense of play.

I visited several beaches on the South Coast to try and capture that sense of play. It was a tough job visiting beaches on sunny days but I had to take it on. Taking some inspiration from JS Lowry I created images where the people were small and indistinguishable but their sense of involvement with the sea was clear.

Now if I could just sell my prints for the same price as Lowry…