Mission Statement
Good photography is all about creating pleasing images rather than just taking pictures, and this is what makes a professional photographer stand out from an amateur snap-shooter.
I (David Butcher) am a 64 year old male full-time professional freelance Photographer and Videographer, based in Winchester (Hampshire, England), but prepared to travel anywhere in the world to capture your required images.
When my Grandfather heard that I was about to be born (waaaaay back in 1957), he purchased a camera (a Kodak Box Brownie Flash III) to capture some memories of his first grandson growing up. Although I have never seen any of the photographs that he took, he gave this camera to me on my 8th birthday. I became incredibly frustrated with this “toy”, not because it only took 8 black/ white photographs on an expensive 620 roll film, but because it had a fixed shutter speed, fixed aperture and fixed focus (through a single piece of plastic for a lens), so the resultant images were poor quality (under- or over-exposed, blurred with camera shake and / or out of focus). I struggled for years to get some half-acceptable photographs from this heap of sh*t (which I still have today, although I only keep it for sentimental reasons !!)
A few years later, I was finally was old enough to get my first part-time job (delivering newspapers), shortly after which I bought my first 35mm compact semi-automatic rangefinder camera (a Ricoh 500G) for the princely sum of GBP 30 from a recently opened photographic shop called Jessops in Leicester, England in 1972. Finally, I could capture nice sharp correctly-exposed colour images …. I quickly fell in love with photography, and decided to make this my career !!
After being spurred on by winning many competitions in the local Camera Club, I stepped up from this modest little camera to my first (secondhand) 35mm SLR camera (a Konica Autoreflex T with Hexanon 57mm f1.4, 28mm and 200mm prime lenses and Sunpack GT26 flashgun) for the horrific sum of GBP 200 in 1974. This equipment opened up so many new possibilities, the bug had really bitten me now, and that was the start of my passion and addiction with photography.
Many years later, I was employed by British Forces Broadcasting Services (later SSVC TV) in West Germany (1985 to 1989), where as part of a four man team, we produced a 50 minute television programme every week for and about the British Military Forces at work and play called “Scene Here”. My photographic and videographic skills were much appreciated in my role as a TV News Cameraman, and the additional duties of Lighting and Sound Engineer on location, plus editing the tapes & maintaining all of the equipment whilst back at base, added to the enjoyment of “work”. The only downside of the job was that, because of both tight deadlines and the activities that we needed to cover, we used helicopters (courtesy of the Army Air Corps) much like anyone else uses buses, taxis or cars – which sounds very glamorous, but not for someone like me with a fear of heights (and dying – helicopters are not reknowned for being the safest form of transport)
In 2011, after 33 years working in the Broadcasting industry with several managerial roles behind me, I finally decided to take the plunge and follow my dreams, so I resigned to start up my own business as a full-time freelance Photographer and moved to Dubai, which is a Photographer’s paradise !!! After 5,5 years in the sunshine, we decided to move back to England in August 2016, but not before I met the love of my life and we got married (twice, once in Dubai and again in the Philippines !!!).
After owning a large number of various Canon SLR cameras (35 mm analogue film and APS-C digital) between 1981 and 2007, I then moved across to Nikon (but not because I believe that Nikon is better, since it is the eye behind the camera that makes the difference). I currently use a Nikon D750 (with a Nikon D600 as backup) plus a large selection of appropriate lenses and accessories for stills photography, plus a Sony NEX-VG10 camcorder (and the Nikon D750 as backup) with a large selection of appropriate lenses and accessories for videography.
I reckognise that despite over 57 years of taking photographs, there are always new things to learn, so continual training to improve my skills is essential. To this end, I am an active member of the BPPA (British Professional Photographers Associates), the SWPP (Society of Wedding & Portrait Photographers) and the SITTP (Society of International Travel & Tourism Photographers) and regularly attend their training sessions, plus numerous Webinars on-line.
Aside from my wife and photography, my other interests include Creamer (our ginger foster-fail Arabian Mau cat, rescued from the hot streets of Dubai), listening to music (I love my Bose 901 active loudspeakers, especially when the volume is cranked up), my fleet of cars (currently up to 9 runners, plus a garden ornament and a second project in the garage) plus watching historic motor-racing.
So, if you are anywhere in the Hampshire / Dorset / Berkshire / Wiltshire / Surrey area of England (or indeed anywhere else in the world) and need a dedicated and experienced professional Photographer to cover your event (corporate or private, including parties, weddings and baptisms), or you need good quality images to help market and sell your product or yourself, please do not hesitate to contact me for a very competitive quotation.
Finally, please take the time to read a few Frequently-Asked-Question pages that I have put on this site.
FAQ 1 lists 20 questions that you should ask any Photographer before you book them to cover your wedding (with my answers).
FAQ 2 lists my answers to a number of questions often asked by the Bride or Groom.
Why “Pendragon Photography” ?
- Pendragon is the surname of King Arthur, who was based in Winchester (when it was the capital city of England), and his legendary 12th century Round Table is still located in Winchester Castle.
- Excalibur (or Caliburn) is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes attributed with magical powers.
There are two stories about how Arthur came to own Excalibur ….
- In Robert de Boron’s “Merlin”, Arthur obtained the British throne by pulling a sword from a stone, since this act could not be performed except by “the true king,” meaning the divinely appointed king or true heir of Uther Pendragon. This sword is thought by many to be the famous “Excalibur”, and this version also appears in the 1938 Arthurian novel “The Sword in the Stone” by British author T. H. White, and the Disney adaptation. They both quote the line from Thomas Malory in the 15th century; “Whoso Pulleth Out This Sword of this Stone and Anvil, is Rightwise King Born of all England”.
- The sword “Excalibur” (meaning cut-steel) was given to Arthur by the Lady of the Lake sometime after he began to reign. When Mordred stole Clarent (a sword of peace meant for knighting and ceremonies as opposed to battle) and mortally wounded Arthur with it, Arthur ordered Griflet to throw Excalibur back into the enchanted lake. After two failed attempts (as he felt such a great sword should not be thrown away), he finally complied with the wounded King’s request, and a hand emerged from the lake to catch it.
What has all of this got to do with me ? Very little, except that I grew up in Winchester (and live just 5 miles to the south now), plus I own a rare “Excalibur” stretched limousine (a neo-classic bodyshell built by a company called Excalibur in Wisconsin, USA on a 1986 Lincoln Town Car 72 inch platform, which also has near-magical powers in its abilities to consume large amounts of petrol and bring smiles to people’s faces), and both Arthur and David are Welsh names – hence my tentative links to King Arthur Pendragon and his Excalibur.
