The creative community in Aberystwyth sits at the centre of this piece, which moved from commissioned event coverage into wider conversations around media, industry, and opportunity in West Wales.

What began as a straightforward photography brief soon opened into something wider. Over the course of the week, the work moved from documenting the Menter Awards to taking part in conversations about creative practice, visibility, and the realities of building a career in media here in Aberystwyth.

Seen together, those moments offered a broader perspective on the work itself. Not just the images or the outcomes, but the wider context they sit within: the local creative community, the exchange of experience, and the role that conversation plays alongside production..

The Menter Awards
The week began with photography coverage at the Menter Awards, where the role was to document the event and create a body of images that could reflect both the atmosphere of the evening and the people at the centre of it.

Live events always carry a particular challenge. There is no second attempt, no opportunity to stop and reset a room, no chance to ask a moment to happen again. The work depends on instinct, attentiveness, and the ability to read the rhythm of a space as it unfolds. What matters is not only capturing the obvious moments on stage, but also recognising the quieter interactions that give an event its texture: expressions, reactions, conversations, gestures, and the details that hold the evening together.

The aim was not simply to produce a visual record of attendance, but to create photographs that preserved something of the occasion itself. Good event coverage should not only show what happened. It should carry an atmosphere. It should allow someone who was not there to understand, at least in part, what the room felt like.

Speaking with Third-Year Film Students at Aberystwyth University

That same thread carried into a panel with third-year film students at Aberystwyth University. Speaking in that setting brought a different kind of responsibility. Students at that stage are close enough to the industry for it to feel real, but still far enough from it for many of its realities to remain abstract. What felt most important, then, was honesty.

The starting point was simple enough: a brief introduction, a thank you to the department, and an acknowledgement that it was the first time I had spoken in that kind of setting. From there, the conversation moved into my own path into the industry. My career began from a lifelong interest in photography, but the point where that passion became a profession came in 2021 while living in Dubai. Three days after buying my first camera, I walked into my first photography job. That moment matters in hindsight not because it was glamorous, but because it set everything else in motion.

From there, I spoke about Thrtyfive, the creative agency I run here in Aberystwyth, and the type of work it has grown into. Much of that work is commercial and B2B-focused, involving brands, local businesses, government-funded organisations, and non-profit charities. Alongside that, there is also B2C work — portraits, sports events, and projects where the service is delivered directly to the individual client rather than the business.

That distinction mattered, because it helped explain what creative work often looks like in practice. At its best, visual content helps businesses and organisations move forward. Sometimes that means helping them sell a product or service. Sometimes it strengthens their marketing and advertising. Other times it supports recruitment, improves how professional they appear online, or helps them tell a clearer, more authentic brand story.

Building Work in West Wales
One of the more important points in the panel was that local productions in West Wales can absolutely meet the same standard as work produced in larger cities when the right people, intent, and level of care are behind them.

To ground that in something real, I spoke about a project at the Arts Centre involving Luke Rees Inspires, the keynote speaker at an event for a Welsh housing association. He had mentioned my name to the organisation beforehand, which led to being brought in to cover the full event and also film and photograph his keynote in particular. What stood out in that example was not simply the job itself, but how it came about: through reputation, trust, and word of mouth.

That is something the industry teaches quickly, particularly in places like West Wales. Technical skill matters. The ability to use a camera well, understand light, compose a frame, and deliver professionally is essential. But that is only half of it. The other half is who you are off camera — how you communicate, how you treat people, how you carry yourself on set, and whether others genuinely want to work with you again once the job is done.

That point often matters more than people expect. Creative work is not sustained on talent alone. It is sustained on trust.

Students, Collaboration, and Opportunity
The conversation also turned to the opportunities that already exist around students before graduation, if they are willing to engage with them early. I mentioned that I had recently started bringing contractors in to support a growing workload, including third-year student Jacob Hall. It was a genuinely positive experience, and a reminder that enthusiasm, attitude, and readiness to get involved can make a real impression very quickly.

What stood out about that example was how simple the first step had been. Jacob had done something small but important: he followed the work, paid attention, reached out, and showed enthusiasm. That may sound obvious, but it is often exactly how opportunities begin. Not through a grand entrance, but through consistency, curiosity, and a willingness to connect before the degree is over.

That was one of the clearest messages to the students in the room. Networking does not have to mean formal industry events or forced self-promotion. Sometimes it begins with something as simple as following someone’s work, starting a conversation, or showing that you care enough to get involved. Those smaller gestures often say more than people realise.

Returning Home with a Different Perspective
The closing part of the talk brought things back to something more personal. In 2021, I moved to Dubai because, at the time, I genuinely did not believe there were many opportunities in Aberystwyth for young people. Dubai gave me a starting point. It pushed me, challenged me, and showed me what can happen when you put yourself in unfamiliar environments and force yourself to grow.

What has been more interesting, though, is coming back home. The town itself did not change. I did. The difference was not necessarily geography, but perspective. Returning with more experience, more confidence, and a stronger understanding of what I could offer made it possible to build something here in a place I once could not wait to leave.

That shift carried an important lesson: opportunities are not always tied to the place itself. Often, they are built through the skills you develop, the relationships you nurture, and the confidence you gain by stepping outside your comfort zone long enough to return with a different view of what is possible.

Why It Matters
What tied the week together was not only the sequence of events, but the reminder that creative work is rarely limited to the deliverables alone. It also lives in the discussions around it, the examples that get shared, and the way experience can be passed on in useful ways to others coming behind you.

The photography at the Menter Awards was the clearest example of commissioned work during that period. But set alongside the podcast feature and the university panel, it became part of something broader: a reflection on how creative practice grows through participation as much as production.

In places like Aberystwyth and the wider West Wales region, those overlaps matter. They help make the industry feel more visible, more accessible, and more connected. They create momentum. They reinforce that meaningful creative work can happen here, not as a compromise, but at a genuinely high level when the right people and intentions are in place.

Staying Part of the Conversation
There is a particular value in weeks where commissioned work, public conversation, and industry engagement all sit close together. They remind you that building a creative practice is not only about what is produced, but about remaining connected to the wider conversation around the work and contributing back to the community that surrounds it.

Whether through event coverage, commercial visual work, speaking with students, or simply staying involved in the spaces where ideas are shared, it all forms part of the same wider practice: building meaningful work, building trust, and helping shape a stronger creative culture in West Wales.

If you are looking for event coverage photography and media in Aberystwyth, commercial visual content, or creative support for a live production, get in touch to discuss the brief.

Find out more about Over The Falls Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/2huOBIIFIXCK7yKMdg4utd

Find out more about Menter Awards: https://menter-aberystwyth.org.uk/

Find out more about: https://www.aber.ac.uk/en/library/digital-education/networks-and-events