_{Dr Peter Enevoldson}

One job that really sticks in my mind from last year was the commission to work in Nepal documenting the charitable work of David Jennings and his company, UAP Ltd. Simply put it was a great experience; one I will never forget, and the people I met on my travels have really made a lasting impact on me.

Lady luck shone down on me again recently when I was approached by Richard Lynch, Head of Marketing & Communications, at The Walton Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery NHS Trust, a specialist neurosciences hospital in Liverpool. I originally met Richard through my work with David Jennings, and he told me how much he liked my photographs, especially my portraiture work.

Inspired, in part, by my hands and feet gallery, Richard decided he'd like to capture a set of memorable images of the hospital's patients, volunteers, fundraisers and the extraordinary people who work there. Richard wanted me to capture not just their faces, but also their hands too.

My brief was to capture the head and hands of the 50 people who agreed to be photographed. The images were to be used as the main focus for the Walton Centre's important Annual Report and Accounts document, and also for the hospital's web site, newsletters and campaign marketing materials.

In addition, the finished job would give the Trust a comprehensive library of stock images to use for years to come. There is also some discussion about a touring exhibition, a calendar and the production of a huge banner on the façade of the hospital using one of the images taken.

I made it clear to Richard that this would be a dream job for me, and gave a great deal of thought into the appropriate creative style and treatment for the job. I also decided to employ a photographic assistant to help me, so I asked photographer Don Tonge to help me out. Don's input proved invaluable.

The photography sessions ran like clockwork, and the models were a real pleasure to work with. I have rarely met such an interesting and intelligent bunch of people in my life. I actually spent more time in post-production than on image capture, but I am delighted with the finished job, and would not change one thing about the assignment.

Richard, helped by his personal assistant, Pat Toole, managed a well-organised and disciplined timetable, which gave me 45 minutes with each model, enough time to build a good rapport and capture the shots I'd visualised. Richard was a great client to work for; he trusted me to deliver the goods and left me to get on with the job!

I was a little apprehensive about working with so many well-qualified and specialist medical people, but I needn't have worried. Everyone who took part, took part willingly and more than did their bit to ensure the shoot went well. I was subsequently given an additional day to produce images of surgeons performing brain surgery on a patient in theatre; a truly amazing experience.

The finished gallery of all the images from my work with the Walton Centre can be viewed here.

Jeff Banks

Jeff Banks called in to Horwich last week and I got the opportunity to capture his portrait. He had a meeting with Trevor Crookell of Acorn textiles, an importer of textiles from China. I decided to ask if Mr Banks if he would give me a few minutes to capture his portrait.

I was both surprised and delighted when he knocked on my studio door an hour or so later and presented himself to be photographed. With only several minutes to work with Jeff, I had set up my lights and double checked my kit in anticipation of this opportunity. My routine prior to capturing portraits is to spend a little time chatting with my subject, a luxury I could not enjoy on this occasion.

I was however very pleased with the results. Jeff Banks' career in design spans several decades, and his portfolio is truly impressive. Jeff is best known for the television programme "The Clothes Show". Apparently, Michael Grade approached Jeff in 1987, and after reaching viewing figures of three million the program was moved from an afternoon slot to prime time Wednesday evening.

With co presenter Selena Scott, Jeff made over 300 shows in twenty six countries. At that time it was the only terrestrial broadcast television show on the subject of fashion in the world. Jeff was also instrumental in the success of Vivvian Westwood, lending her priming funds to launch her fashion business, and acting as guarantor for her banking facilities. Jeff also negotiated Vivvienne's first lucrative licence in Japan, taking no financial reward or equity. Jeff simply felt it was essential that this British designer should become an established figure in the fashion world.

Jeff's own portfolio is extensive and impressive. His web site is beautifully designed, and the content is truly fascinating. The suits on the "Jeff Banks Bespoke" pages are quite breathtaking. No doubt Jeff has been photographed by top photographers on many occasions; he was a true pro in front of camera. Having met the guy for only a few minutes, I can see why his career has been such a huge success.

http://www.jeffbanks.co.uk/jeffbanks.html

_{Jeff Banks}

_Sanjhana

It's now six months since my trip to Nepal, and in the last month I have sent over a thousand prints to my guide Vijay to distribute to the people I photographed during my time there. The best of the images are now for sale with stock agency Alamy. I intend to return to Nepal at the end of 2008, to photograph once again "the people of Nepal". I'm also planning a working visit to Tibet, but on reflection maybe I should try somwhere else, given the political turmoil there right now.

Whilst working in Kavre, I was on more than one occasion overwhelmed with the sheer numbers of people who wanted their photograph taken. Often with only a few seconds to spend with each subject, I had little time to engage with the people, and just had to work on auto-pilot.

Having spent many hours editing images, you really get to know the faces of your subjects, even if you don't specifically remember the moment you took the picture. One face that made me feel very sad was a girl who suffered from Strabismus which you may know as deviating or cross eyes. This touched a chord with me as my nephew Dean suffered from the same condition as a young boy. Dean's Strabismus was treated with a simple operation at the age of three of four. I decided to try to help, and asked my guides to try to find the girl's family and find out more about them.

This was straightforward enough as my guide and friend Vijay, and engineer Guna, are from Kavre, although they now live in Kathmandu. It was really great to get email informing me that Sanu, my film producer, had traveled to Kavre and has now met with the family. The girl is called Samjhana Pradhan and she has five brothers and sisters. The family is very poor, relying on agriculture to survive, and her father sometimes works as a porter. The typical income of the Nepalese is £150 per year, and life is very basic. Needless to say there was not a hope that Sanjhanas eye would be treated like my nephews and it's for that reason I decided to help.

Sanjhana travelled with Sanu to Kathmandu to see an eye doctor and to discuss treatments and the cost. I found someone willing to pay for the operation the cost being only £150, a small sum to us but a year's income for the Nepalese. I am expecting news from Nepal soon and I keep my fingers crossed that the operation is successful. I do intend visiting Kavre later this year to visit my friends and my guide's home. I really want to meet with Sanjhana again and I hope that when we meet, her eye will be fixed just like my nephew's was 15 years ago. Time will tell...