A Year to reflect on

As 2025 draws to a close, it's impossible not to acknowledge the many hardships and uncertainties that have rippled across the world. These are, undeniably, complex times—an era marked by turbulence and challenge at every turn. To overlook this broader reality as a photographer feels not only naïve but perilously disconnected from the world we document. Our images cannot exist in a vacuum; they are shaped by, and help to shape, the environment in which we live.

Social media, once a beacon of possibility, now often serves as a breeding ground for division and, at its worst, open hostility. Sharing photographs on these platforms can feel fraught, raising uncomfortable questions about the purpose and impact of our work. Is it truly meaningful to add beauty or insight to a space overrun with noise, or are we merely playing into a cycle of fleeting validation? The hope for a more principled, universally embraced alternative seems a distant dream, but it's a hope worth holding onto.

It's telling that today, a mere ninety seconds of content—regardless of its depth or craft—can captivate an audience in ways that a thoughtfully curated blog or portfolio rarely does. This hunger for instant gratification has been carefully fostered over decades, with our collective attention spans whittled away by the endless glow of our screens. While it's an understandable evolution, it remains a sobering truth for anyone who values the slow burn of genuine engagement over the quick fix of a like or a scroll.

As we move forward, perhaps the true challenge is to find ways to reconnect—with our art, with our audiences, and, most importantly, with the world beyond our devices. In facing the realities of our time, we may yet discover a deeper purpose in both the images we create and the stories we choose to tell.

As 2026 approaches, I hope I can find ways to achieve my goals. This past year has been immensely fulfilling for me, though not without its difficulties—including a lung virus that seriously affected me in April, followed by an unforgettable trip to Japan in November. I'll be putting together a separate blog to showcase the many photos I was fortunate enough to take. My joint exhibition with Caroline Evans at Snape Maltings was a great success with many sales and visitors. It is so rewarding to print for exhibition and curate a thought provoking gallery Throughout the year, I've continued photographing both nearby and in distant places, and I aim to keep this up in 2026. However, significant changes are on the horizon, so stay tuned for updates. Please take a look at some new images from this year, taken in Norfolk, Prague, Ireland, Suffolk, Lanzarote , Scotland, and of course, Japan. Finally I hope you manage to look read and look beyond 90 seconds! Thank you

Ruth Grindrod

Ireland-my vision,my approach