Dominic’s story
This former interior designer, DJ and photo competition ‘name’ shares his experiences
Dominic Beaven is an accomplished ‘all-rounder’ with a particular knack for portraiture and architecture – indeed, his images regularly score highly in our annual APOY competition, and he was a finalist in the British Photography Awards 2020. Yet he’s faced, and continues to face, a range of physical and mental health challenges – anxiety, depression and chronic back problems, for example. Fortunately, photography is a big help. ‘It goes back to my childhood,’ Dominic explains. ‘I loved art and studied it at college, and when I used to draw I’d be in my own little world.’
Splendid isolation
‘At first I did sports photography, then the northern lights etc, and it was just a hobby. Then I realised I could totally lose myself in what I was photographing – I’d be up early doing macro for example, totally on my own and losing myself in the moment. It’s the same with landscape and cityscapes – I like being on my own and totally escaping everything else. Focusing on the moment helps me relax and this carries on into the editing stage, sitting in front of the computer. Whatever genre I am trying, and I try a lot, I escape into the image totally.’ Despite describing himself as an introvert, Dominic still takes great people shots, particularly of models. ‘Even me saying I am an introvert sounds crazy, as I was a club DJ for 15 years! But even then I was in my own little world. As for working with models, it helps massively to pay for a good model who knows what they are doing. That makes life a lot easier as you don’t have to micro-manage. I am very relaxed, we get the music on… again I get lost in the moment.’
Far from the crowds
Working in more crowded environments remains a challenge, however. ‘I go to UK Shooters events for example and there can be up to 30 photographers crowding around one model – though they normally have at least eight models.’ For the future, Dominic hopes to specialise more in fine art photography. ‘My advice to anyone facing mental health challenges is to enjoy yourself, don’t be too hard on yourself and find the genres you feel the most comfortable with.’