I've spent most of my photographic life working alone.

Long walks, early mornings, chasing news, no one to consult, no one to wait for. Just the city, the light, and whatever decision I made or didn't make in the next half second.

But every so often, I work alongside another photographer — a workshop, a subscriber, a friend with a camera — and I'm reminded that something different happens then. Not better. Not worse. Different.

Working alone sharpens your instinct. You stop explaining yourself, even internally. You just see and decide.

Working with someone else slows you down in a useful way. You notice what they notice. You catch yourself walking past frames you would have ignored, because their attention falls somewhere yours doesn't.

I think a serious practice probably needs both.

The solitude to find your own eye.

And the company, occasionally, to remember it isn't the only one.