Way back in 2009, before I had even begun to offer workshops and tours, I left my IT career behind me. Due to the credit crash of 2008, I was out of work, and decided to head off to India for a month’s worth of photography. I took my dad with me.

One of the most beautiful places I got to see in India was the Taj Mahal. I had not expected to be as overwhelmed as I was by its beauty. Looking back, I think I was emotional because of the contrast between the poverty I had seen on the streets and the majesty and elegance of the Taj Mahal gardens. After weeks of travelling around Rajasthan, the Taj Mahal was a welcome relief from the intensity of India.

View fullsize
View fullsize
View fullsize
View fullsize
View fullsize
View fullsize

Smog ridden, and with constant heartburn due to the air pollution, I made some images on my Mamiya 7II camera. I was never really satisfied with them, even though I had felt the experience of being in the Taj Mahal gardens had given me memories I shall never forget.

The Taj Mahal gardens were peaceful, despite there being more than a thousand people there with me at 6am.

The colour of the marble was muted, subdued due to the poor visibility. I photographed the gardens and the temple, but did not know how to edit the work when I came home. I was out of my depth, and for many years had parked the images away, assuming them to be failures.

It is only this past month that I have chosen to revisit the original film negatives. The catalyst for this was my good friend and client Sirous. He spent some time with me talking about street photography. I ended up coming home to around seven nice street photography books that Sirous and the rest of my group had discussed.

Inspired to go back to my time in India due to the recent discussions about street photography (of which I love, but don’t do all that often at all), I had a look once more at my images from my time at the Taj Mahal.

Sixteen years later, I looked at the work and felt that I knew what was required to edit them.

It was an interesting exercise for me to do. To go back to older work and re-edit it. I could not escape the feeling that I was reconnecting with who I was back in 2009. I was also acutely aware of how limited my skills were back in 2009. I felt as though who I was back then, was sitting alongside me, watching me as I re-interpreted the work.

The Taj has an ethereal quality to its marble. It glows. And it seems to glow much more beautifully in the smog, which unfortunately is slowly eating it. The smog as far as I understand is acidic and causing great damage to the monument.

I wondered, after completing the new edits, about who I was back in 2009. About my time with my dad who accompanied me on this trip. Time has passed. My father no longer here, himself a memory as much as the Taj Mahal is a memory. I could not help but revisit my younger self and enjoy the time with my dad once again.

I have always said that going back to rework images is to be avoided. I would much prefer to keep moving forward, and to not look back. It comes pretty much from a fear of getting stuck in a perfectionists hell of not being able to move forward. Besides, we never truly ever finish anything. Where we leave it, is more a testament to who we were at the time of our editing.

I was wrong though. Being able to revisit older work, when the time is right, can allow us to complete something that was perhaps out of reach of our abilities at the time.

I know this little re-edit session gave me so much. I got to spend time with my dad again. Time with my younger self. Time to remember a lifetime trip. Time to explore how far I’ve changed as a photographer, and also perhaps how much I have stayed the same.

And an understanding that old images can sometimes offer us something new.