Blind photographer fuels his bike passion in charity quest
ABLIND photographer with a passion for motorbike racing is selling signed shots to raise funds for charity.
Chris Swinton, of Conway Drive, Hazel Grove, suffers from diabetic retinopathy, meaning he has been gradually losing his sight for years.
The father of two twin boys, Cassian and Dexter, has Type 1 diabetes and underwent years of treatment at Stepping Hill Hospital before being referred to the Royal Manchester Eye Hospital, where he had surgery and laser treatment, however his sight could not be saved.
Despite now being completely blind in one eye, with just 15 per cent sight in the other, Chris has picked up a camera for the first time and now uses it to capture the excitement of motorcycle racing – a talent which he is now employing to raise charity funds.
The 46-year-old, who also suffers from fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syn- drome and nerve damage, which causes him severe pain, has been a fan of bike racing since he was a child and his dad took him to watch Barry Sheene compete at Oulton Park in Cheshire.
“The sights, smells and everything that went with it totally blew me away and so began my real passion in life,” he said. “As my eyesight continued to get progressively worse, I began to wonder how long it was worth attending events just to smell them. And then, sat in the doctor’s office, the idea formed there and then.”
In 2015, at the Isle of Man TT races, Chris proposed to his future wife Kerry, and since then they have covered as many events as ‘time, pain and the boys allow’.
Bikers have got behind Chris – ‘the blind photographer’, as he calls himself – and several wear his logo on their bikes or helmets. Chris said: “That, to me, means the world. They are my heroes and they are accepting me into the racing family.”
Now Chris has launched a business, Chris Swinton 2W’s Blind Photography, and will be raising funds for two charities by selling some of his shots signed by famous riders.
He has already secured the support of Hazel Grove’s Ben Luxton and says ‘the sky’s the limit’ on what he can raise for Stockport charity for the blind and deaf, Walthew House, and the Billy Redmayne Memorial Fund, set up in memory of a soldier and motorcycle rider who suffered brain injuries in an accident in Scarborough and died aged 25.
“So far the response has been unreal, with TT winners, British champions, race winners at national and international level all getting behind what we are trying to do,” Chris said.
“My wonderful wife and soulmate Kerry has sat in so many fields in the wind and rain while I do my thing. There is no way I could continue to do this without her support, she really is one in a million.”
To see Chris’ photographs, visit www.CS2WsBlindPhoto.co.uk and access the charity shots gallery.