Lea Tippett
Lea Tippett is a landscape photographer and Sigma ambassador based in the South West of the UK. He has much experience photographing this part of the world as well as travelling further afield to many places including Scotland, Ireland, and Wales. Find out more at www.leatippett.com and follow on Instagram @lea.tippett and Facebook @Lea Tippett Landscape Photographer. Throughout 2022 Lea is running a range of Sigma Masterclass workshops. Find out more at bit.ly/3LGbOCC
LEA TIPPETT started his photographic journey in the early days of digital and has since grown with the technology and medium. Trying his hand at whatever came his way to begin, Lea found he was no good at taking portraits but was pulled towards the landscape genre and nature.
It was from there his practice evolved. ‘I’m very fortunate as I’ve been an ambassador for Sigma for over ten years now,’ Lea tells us. ‘I’ve always stuck with the Sigma cameras and lenses as well.’
Currently Lea shoots on a Sigma fp and fp L camera bodies, and has in his bag a range of Sigma lenses including his number one choice for his landscapes, a Sigma Art 1424mm f/2.8 DG DN. ‘It’s a lovely lens,’ he tells us. ‘It’s nice and bright and sharp at the corners as well…. But obviously I cut off the corners anyway!’ he laughs.
For Lea he likes to compose and shoot his square images in camera. ‘I do this rather than processing, purely because I can,’ he says. ‘It’s
more convenient as I can see what I’ve got on screen rather than having to chop and change the image around after.’
To hunt for the ideal composition before Lea even gets his camera out, he uses a square plastic window. ‘I’m a bit of an old fuddy-duddy!’ he laughs. ‘I cut myself a little plastic square window, which I take around with me. People must look at me and think what the hell’s that guy doing?’ he laughs again. ‘In all seriousness though, it’s easy because you can take the square in your camera bag, pop it out and place it in front of you, and see straight away how an image will work. I also use my iPhone to do this, which I’ve set to square.’
For Lea, his journey to shoot square was something he tried simply because he was inspired to do so. ‘Some of my favourite photographers shoot that way,’ he says. ‘Photographers like Bruce Percy in particular. I’ve got a lot of time for his work. His work is like poetry – it’s more than just a photograph.’ As for his own practice, Lea finds the square format to be more compositionally forgiving. ‘As far as where you place the subject, you don’t necessarily have to work to the rules,’ he reveals.
‘The rules are far more relaxed. I also find square images have more of an artistic appeal, and this retro look, which is something I like.’ Lea also finds it appealing that his square landscape scenes separates him in
what is a highly competitive industry. ‘A few years back, I realised my photography was similar to everybody else. I was taking images 3:2, which is fine, but I wanted my work to be set away from the norm.
‘I wanted to develop and be known for my own look. I’m not saying I’m the only one who shoots square – far from it – just that fewer people tend to, which is another appeal for me.’