FMIPP 2018 – Duncan Cauchi

Statement of Intent:

Maltese Islands in long exposure

Throughout the course of my life I have always been enthralled with the beauty and vastness of nature as I always felt serene while in the presence of a beautiful landscape. In the process of photographing such locations I end up disconnected from the fast-moving, tech-driven lifestyle I normally lead.

The journey throughout this panel took me to various grand locations around the world but finally I arrived to the conclusion that it was a far greater challenge to produce a panel that depicts the Maltese Islands and in the process debunk the myth that it is not possible to shoot great seascapes or landscapes in Malta.

The Maltese archipelago consists of 122square miles, 40% of which is covered with buildings and architecture and its population is of 440,000 people. All this makes it more difficult to find remote or overlooked places, in which one can photograph an interesting seascape in a unique way.

My main challenge in this project was how I could capture what I visualised in my mind without producing an ordinary tourist image. It took me more than five years to develop and improve this long exposure technique, where I managed to succeed in taking exposures which range from two to fifteen minutes depending on the weather and cloud conditions. This ultimately contributed to the dreamscape and artistic feel of the image which when combined with the monochrome processing and soft cotton printing, it really brought out what I envisioned for this panel.

This proved to be a very interesting challenge but rewarding nonetheless. I would like to invite the viewers to enjoy and appreciate my take on the Maltese seascapes in long exposure.