My Autobiography

WEST WYCOMBE, 2016.

Ryan grew up in High Wycombe, Buckinghamshire, between the urban and rural landscape of the Chiltern Hills. Since the age of 16 he has been creating photographs of the world and the people he meets. College sparked his love for experimenting with analogue equipment and processes so much that he ventured off on his own to document the migrant crisis at Calais' border, all on black and white film and printed the images to exhibit for an end of year show.

Progressing through his life always with a camera by his side, whether at the top of a Snowdon or on the ground documenting the lives that make up the local HipHop culture, he is attentively making the best photographs he can. Graduating with a first class honours Degree in photojournalism and documentary photography in 2019. He currently continuing to develop his theoretical writing, refining further his printing techniques and quality of output towards individual handmade prints and books.

Education

90 Credit Diploma In Photography. Amersham & Wycombe College. 2014-2016 - Winner of Student Photography Award.
BA Hons Degree In Documentary Photography and Photojournalism. 2016-2019.
MA In Photography- University of Gloucestershire 2019- 2021.
Full time Photographic Technician - Film Developer, Darkroom Printer and Large Format Fine Art Printer. 2021 Till Current Day. - The Darkroom UK LTD.

Exhibitions and Publications

2022. Museum of Gloucester - Open talk on public and event photography; The symbiotic elationship between photographer and music artist.
2022. BBC Radio Gloucestershire - John Smith Evening Show. https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/p0bk5npy
2019. Gardens Gallery, Cheltenham: Landscape Photographs of High Wycombe.
2019. Fable and Folk online publication. https://www.fableandfolk.co.uk/cheltenham-hiphop-ryan-free-2019
2019. The South West Collective Publication. thesouthwestcollective.co.uk/portfolio/ryan-free-high-culture/
2016. Winner - Student photography award - Amersham College. For my project on The Calais Migrant Crisis.

Books

L'auberge Des Migrants
My trip to the Jungle, Calais with no on-location photography experience I geared up into the unknown and found the warehouse that managed the whole crisis. 2016.

Perpetual Motion
Black and white documentary photographs of a Hip-Hop collective in Cheltenham. 2018.

Eye Of The Storm
Five year Documentation of Hip-Hop within Cheltenham, UK. 2022.

Wedding and bookings

I am available for Weddings, Festivals, Gigs, Band shoots, individual portrait shoots, family/ group shoots, videography, dance videos.

Being a Photojournalist I have been trained to work fast and accurately and along side the journalistic approach I am also capable of being able to create a project with you. The documentary side to my practice meas that I have the patients and the vision of helping create long terms based projects, such as books, exhibitions, public talks documentaries etc.

It is your ideas I am interested in. For a shoot if you have an idea, a vision, it is my aim to try and get as close as possible to what is in your head and bring it into reality. That way you are happy and we are all actively creating something new and meaningful.

Interested in creating something together? Unsure about something? Or simple want to ask me something photography related then give me a message, always motivated to listen.