Gathering Time

Gathering Time brings together several years of my woodland photography and reflects the way I experience these places: quietly, slowly and with a sense of awe for their complexity.

My fascination with trees has always been about more than their appearance. Woodland has given me somewhere to slow down, to think, and at times simply to escape into the restorative benefits of nature close to home. Over the years that connection has become inseparable from the photographs I make.

The images in Gathering Time explore the character, relationships and atmosphere I find among trees — from moments of stillness and intimacy to the fleeting combinations of light, weather and season that can completely transform a familiar place. Rather than simply documenting woodland, I try to communicate something of how it feels to be there.

This book is a collection of those experiences: photographs made patiently over six years, shaped by repeated visits, changing conditions and an ever-deepening appreciation for the sanctuary and inspiration that woodland continues to provide.

“Gathering Time is the perfect title for a book comprised of the best of the best of Simon’s hours, months & years spent amongst trees and nature. What I love is that there’s nothing superficial about this, from the production quality and feel of the book to the perfectionist compositions and beautiful rendering. A book I will revisit many times.” – Colin Bell

“The depth of the work, in both the literal sense of its multi-dimensionality, and his attention to light, atmosphere, air, textures of the bark, colours of the leaves, is uniquely transportative and deeply sensitive.” – Lucy Jones