EVERY Monday we profile a member of The Northern Echo Camera Club and publish their favourite images. This week it's the turn of Jules Ratcliff

The Northern Echo:

A Moment to Myself taken at Beamish

Who or what inspired you?
I NEEDED a hobby that I could do on my own. I had been into photography as a teenager and then let it slide as I became an adult. Then one day I found myself aged 46 working a shift pattern with lots of time off during the week when everyone else was at work. So I bought a DSLR and became hooked on the hobby and the endless opportunity to learn and improve at it.

Your first camera?
A BIG old Zenith TTL SLR and I remember having a little Pentax Auto 110 (I thought I was James Bond).

What do you most enjoy photographing?
I ALWAYS get drawn back to photographing people. We’re all interested in what other people are doing I think. If an image can freeze a moment and tell a story or create an emotion then that’s what I want.

Favourite picture?
PROBABLY the black and white of the carousel at Beamish. I usually photograph any carousel whenever I see one. Colour, movement, people, a great combination. It won my first ever photographic competition.

Your go-to kit at the moment?
NIKON D750 and 16-35 f4.
Advice for budding photographers?
TAKE your time and enjoy learning. Photography isn’t just a solo hobby, join a club, make new friends. 
Check your images. I’ve taken so many shots I thought were great and then realised they’re soft or there’s a road sign coming out of someone’s head.