Climber Magazine

PHOTOGRAPHIC ICON
First of all my thoughts go out to the family and many friends of
John Cleare, one of climbing’s iconic photographers, who recently
died aged 88. John started a style of photography in the 1960s that
is now pretty much the norm by abseiling alongside the climber to
get a birds-eye view of them and the climbs they were undertaking.
This was fi rst seen in the much sought-after Rock Climbers in Action
in Snowdonia, published in 1966. He went on to capture many iconic
images of the great climbers of the time and produced beautifully
illustrated books. Fellow photographer and ex-Deputy Editor of
Climber, Ian Smith writes a tribute in this issue and shares his
thoughts on John.
During my photography journey, John offered great words of encouragement, crucial advice and praise – he liked my photographic style and would often comment on this when we spoke, to keep up the good work and inspire like he did. This meant a lot. He was also a keen supporter of the magazine, allowing me to use his images for a much smaller fee than he would command elsewhere. He may be physically gone but he leaves behind a vast legacy and body of work that will still inspire generations to come and what more can a photographer ask? All I can add is thanks John and the next time I’m hanging alongside a climber with shutter release finger poised, I’ll give you a wry smile.
During the summer my ever-supportive wife and I ventured to north
Pembroke and, during a hike around St David’s Head, climbing photography was in my thoughts. I’d always been curious about the climbing potential there and under the guise of having a nice walk, I knew fullwell that I had a hidden agenda and, by luck, (really?) I ended up at Craig Coetan with an eye on getting a few photographs for an Easy Climbs article. It just so happened that members of the Wrekin Mountaineering Club were climbing there (they told me beforehand).
Be safe
David