available light

Morning everyone, it’s Tom here. I thought I’d pop in today to share with you some of the odd but interesting things I’ve been doing recently with paper and light. As many of you know, I REALLY like paper! I’ve previously waxed lyrical about the properties of papers and how they fundamentally inform the final…

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light by the sea

“the times of dreamy quietude, when beholding the tranquil beauty and brilliancy of the ocean’s skin” Herman Melville, Moby Dick Hello everyone, it’s Tom here. In today’s post I’m excited to tell you more about my latest body of work, which also comprises my first solo exhibition – Light by the Sea. (Otter Ferry) Like…

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Away to Berneray

Hello! Tom here. Kate and I spent all of last week away in Berneray and North Uist, where I’ve been working on a new photographic project (more of which later). Late spring and early summer is a truly beautiful time of year in the Outer Hebrides, and we feel very lucky to be able to…

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Thursday I got nothing

Hello everyone, it’s Tom here. I’m dropping by to tell you all about my latest photographic project – Thursday I got nothing: a collection of images inspired by George Mackay Brown’s poem, Beachcomber. Together, these images ask the question, as photographers, if we look closely, do we ever get nothing? George Mackay Brown was one…

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Ootlier 2: Range

Hello – this is Tom today rather than Kate – I’m here to tell you about Ootlier 2, which has just been published today. I enjoy many different kinds of photography, and my Ootlier zines give me the opportunity to explore my ideas and practice in different ways. Last year you may remember that I…

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Circannuam

Many of you will know how much I love the old, twisted oak tree that grows by Loch Lomond at Milarrochy Bay: indeed, I love it so much we named our new yarn after it! Over the past year, Tom has been photographing the tree from exactly the same position, in all seasons and all…

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Elizabeth’s hands

We’ve just heard that one of Tom’s photographs has been shortlisted in this year’s EEF Manufacturing Photo Competition! The theme of the competition this year is “Made by Britain, Loved by the World” and surely few manufactured products speak better to that theme than Shetland wool? A fibre raised and processed in a particular locale;…

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Ootlier 2018 Calendar

The turn of October is generally the moment when all of the projects we have been working on throughout the year really start to come together. This year seems to be a particularly busy one: KDD Originals have just been released; our new yarn is in the final stages of scouring and skeining (hurrah); I’m…

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A short film from Malin Head

Good morning! I thought you might like to see a short film Tom shot at Malin Head last week. I really hope you like it! One of our hopes for this year’s club was to be able to introduce you to the Scottish landscape which inspired my collection – and with that aim Tom has…

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in progress

1. I’m now over half way through writing my new book. I’ve been enjoying the project immensely. Being able to just explore ideas and try out different ways of putting things across feels like a complete luxury. I genuinely love writing (which is probably the key to being any sort of writer, I think) and…

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aurora

There was a really magnificent aurora here last night – I thought you might like to see it. Tom took this time lapse out by Loch Lomond – there’s 78 minutes compressed into 13 seconds. Thanks so much for your responses to my last post, especially the reading suggestions, which have been very helpful. A…

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Ootlier

A few of you have enquired, in the past, about Tom’s photographs, and the possibility of having them printed. I’m pleased to say that Tom has now set up an online gallery where you can view and purchase high-quality prints of many of the images he’s taken. In the gallery you’ll find several of the…

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Shetland Oo: making a book

Hello – it’s Tom here – for a change. Kate is busy working on her Islay project, and I’m taking a break today from shipping out orders. I wanted to say thanks so much for your interest in our Shetland Oo book. Apart from being my first major project as a photographer, Oo is the…

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