I miss photography, but I’m so proud of what I’ve done

MS meant I had to give up work in 2009. After that, taking photos gave me a sense of purpose. I would pop into Leeds or wherever I could drive to. My preference was candid photos – taking photos of people when they’re natural and not looking [at the camera]. I got to know people very well.

Hours behind the lens

Later, MS meant I had to give up the car and driving. So I would get the bus and stay in Leeds for hours, snapping people, buildings and architecture. I would take over 1,000 photos then sit for hours editing and weeding out what I thought was good and bad.

The world transformed

I preferred black and white photography to colour, as black and white leaves more to the imagination. But I loved taking long exposure photographs (time lapse) in colour. This gives you light trails across the picture.

Stopping has been painful

In 2023 - I noticed my arms getting weaker and weaker. I was struggling to lift up the camera and hold it. I’ve not taken a photograph for a few years now. It pains me. I can be out and about and I'll see something and think: oh that would have made a brilliant photograph - and chuffin’ MS has knackered me.

Passing the passion to my son

I used to take photos at Elland Road football stadium for a well known Leeds United Forum. When it became hard for me to hold the camera, my son Harry took this over. Since this time his love for photography has grown. He now goes all over. He's taken photos at his friend's wedding, taken photos of pop bands in Leeds. He’s now using all my equipment as well as his own camera and lens.

A showcase to be proud of

My work is on Flickr and I am immensely proud of it. When I gave up uploading photos there were just shy of 2,000 images on there. A book publisher contacted me about using an image, and people from all over the world have commented on my work.

Here's six photos I'm proud of and a bit more about them.

[We've had to crop Lee's photos to fit our web page, but you can see them in full on his Flickr page.]

1. Wheel of light

This photograph was taken at the Leeds Valentine Fair on The Headrow in 2018.

What I like about this particular image is that I’m taking this photo using a tripod so I could hold a shutter adaptor for 3 seconds. This allowed the camera to hold the light as the wheel went around, leaving this image.

When people see this image I hope they think: Wow, this is fantastic!

2. A murmuration of starlings

The starlings were taken while I was sat outside St James Hospital in Leeds. As always I was looking for things to photograph. In the evening sky I noticed thousands of starlings flying in a formation known as murmuration. I grabbed my camera and this was the result.

3. Stillness and speed

This photo was taken on a platform in Leeds Central Station.

The woman was standing perfectly still, and the train was moving. I put my camera on a slow shutter speed giving the impression of the motion of the train. If she had moved at all – then this image would have been just a blur.

4. Caravan cat

The cat was taken at Aldborough Caravan park on the East Coast. It was just sat quietly near by, so I took this nice shot.

5. A nosey dog

I was waiting for my wife in my car as she had nipped into the supermarket. I would always take my camera out with me for any potential photographic opportunity.

I noticed at this particular time a man in the passenger seat of his car. His dog was looking out of the driver window to get air, sniffing around being nosey. So I picked up the camera and took the shot.

6. My daughter and a dandelion

We were on a family holiday at Aldborough. I had started to write my memoir: 'Be Careful What You Wish For', which is about my life with MS. I remembered that as a young child we used to blow on the white dandelion head and make a wish. 

I thought that this would be very apt as a photo as it matched the meaning of the book. Plus it starred my daughter!

You can see all of Lee’s photos on his Flickr page