05/19/2013– “Photography must find poetry in reality by connecting what can...

“When I spread the map of the world out in front of me, the last place on earth seemed like a good place to start. New Zealand was as far away as you could get from the British Isles without actually leaving the planet and I thought that I might travel home, across Asia, for six months, or perhaps longer, if I liked travelling. I did not return for seven years.”

Nicholas Sumner, a photographer whose work has been published in 29 books, has written a travel book with a photographic slant that recounts a seven-year journey across Asia. He developed his photography technique while working as a fashion photographer’s assistant, but later found that his knowledge of the subject was more of a hindrance than a help. He had to re-learn everything – not just his photographic method, but also the approach to the people that he found himself among – and it is this inner journey that intertwines with the outer journey, the main narrative theme of Available Light. The book is not about photographic process, but photographic outlook.

While on his travels, Nicholas experienced moments that were terrifying and sublime, hilarious and tragic. He was twice threatened with firearms and twice arrested; he was abandoned in a blizzard on the Tibetan Plateau in the middle of the night, miles from shelter and without adequate clothing. He trekked through the jungles of Borneo and the mountains of the great Himalaya; he encountered deserts both spiritual and physical. Available Light documents all these experiences and much more.

“Travelling and photography are pursuits of the curious; both are driven by observation, they complement and sometimes conflict with one another and a clearer understanding of one can give a clearer understanding of the other. I can’t pretend to be the first person to have visited many of the places through which I passed but by seeing them ‘through the lens’ I think I can bring a new perception of them,” says Nicholas, behind his motivation to write Available Light.

‘Absorbing and vividly rendered’ - Caroline Sanderson, The Bookseller

Nicholas Sumner is a professional photographer. He was born in Ghana and grew up in Nigeria and England. This book recounts a seven-year journey across Asia in pursuit of beautiful photographs. He now lives in Canada with his two children. His stock photography is represented by National Geographic Images.

Published 1st July 2012 (paperback) 1st August 2012 (hardback)
ISBN: 9781780881577 (paperback) 9781780883779 (hardback)
Price: £9.95 (paperback) £19.95 (hardback)