Ray Galea Photography
ABOUT
As a young boy, I would ogle at images in National Geographic magazine and probe a British-made Six-20 Kodak classic folding camera used by my father in the 1950s.
In my 20s, I began to evaluate the potential of using a workable camera, and was struck with the thought about essential photographic parametres such as aperture, shutter speed, sensitivity and lens technology.
At 30, I received a recommendation letter from the director of Audio Visual Department at Royal Prince Alfred Hospital to commence studies at the Sydney Institute of Photography specifically to pursue a career in Scientific Photography.
Throughout my diverse career, my imagery defies classification into various genres of photography. I embrace the belief that the most vital thing after my camera skills are the glass elements in a lens which help add more creative control to my work, and that the beauty of a lens is not entirely how well it handles focus, but rather how well it handles from in-focus to blur.
Time reveals incremental changes in attitudes and technology. Photography more than any other art evolves with technology. Nowadays I use the Nikon mirrorless Z system which draws on more than a century of experience in camera and optical manufacturing.
Since 2006 I have contributed to abstract photography as documented in Photo Review magazine. I get close to nature to capture evocative abstractions in which I call Watercolours.
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My signature art is taken to a level where fresh and salt water, in some of its infinite variety, characterises its properties when in contact with natural substances.
Experimenting the analysis of the effects of colour in nature, I believe that colour offers a unique way to release a mundane object from the bonds of realism to create abstract beauty. The collection of unique images cuts beyond the myriad of answers which build on personal feelings.
On occasions I often set out to a nearby national park or beach with a particular image in mind for my Watercolour collection, but return with something totally different because of water movement and variance in light.