There are a few places in the world that are famous for the quality of their light, places where colonies of artists grow up, inspired by something special in the air. Literally. I once saw a documentary that explained what it is, scientifically, about the atmosphere and geography of St. Ives, Cornwall, that has made it such a magnet for artists. A northern exposure, huge, bright beaches that act as reflectors, constantly changing weather and very clean, damp air. It reminds me of another place where the light is legendary: Iceland, where the light shifts before you can twitch your shutter finger and where whole worlds of colour and form appear and disappear in seconds.

Then there are the places with much drier, clearer air. New Mexico, and Antibes. Deep blues and penetrating shafts of light that create strong forms from surface and shadow and let you compose as effectively with shape or colour as you can with more conventional matter.

Like many photographers, I am constantly attracted to these places and constantly met with the desire to come up with work that transcends any particular subject and speaks directly to the quality of light itself. Mere figurative representation of the scene risks a rapid descent into 'pretty' at best, through cliché, to banal. But the risk is worth taking from time to time, because an everyday subject can sometimes be transformed by lovely light into something far more interesting.

No wonder these places have encouraged so many traditional media artists to explore the abstract: it's the light itself which is interesting, rather than any particular thing on which it falls. Failing, as I constantly do, to catch it, is one of life's most frustrating and compelling challenges.

St. Ives, Cornwall

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St. Ives, Cornwall

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St. Ives, Cornwall

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Vik, Iceland

Black Beach at Vik

Antibes, France

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Antibes, France

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Santa Fe, New Mexico

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And then sometimes you get home and find that the most dramatic light is right on your doorstep:

The South Downs, England

Wildbrooks Storm