Interview with Mark Brereton

Mark Brereton is a professional photographer in Staffordshire County, England who is also an avid street photographer.

Staffordshire is located in central England near Liverpool and Manchester and it’s made up mostly of small towns and suburbs. Unlike large bustling cities like London there is little street life and pedestrian traffic.

This can be a challenge for street photographers who live in areas like this and Mark is no different. But he has a passion for the people in the history of the region. And this passion has caused him to begin a personal project of documenting life, activities and architecture of the area.

Because Mark’s work requires him to travel throughout the region, he keeps a small camera with him at all times. He makes a point of setting aside time in each town he visits to walk the streets and make photographs of the local community.

To share the images Mark created a simple blog on WordPress.com called Stafforshire Street Photography. Over a very short period of time the blog has taken on a life of its own among local residents and businesses. It’s created a real buzz among the residents who visit the site often to catch glimpses of themselves and those they know.

We often overlook the familar as photographic subjects forgetting that others may find them fascinating. Mark has accepted this as a challange and opportunity give the rest of us view of what it’s like in his world. We can all learn from this.

Since launching Street Photography Magazine a few months ago I’ve seen many similar projects grow out of the imagination in the personal interest of the photographer. Mark’s project is an excellent example of something that anyone can do. Particularly if you have a feeling that there’s nothing to shoot. There’s nothing like a personal project to spark your imagination and passion.