Mike Ford (Mike Ford Photography)

Mike Ford. Advertising, Commercial, PR Photographer also shoots "Street Photography"

Bought up in Yorkshire. Mike moved to London in the 70's.

Mike spent five years as assistant to celebrated fashion photographer Robert Belton, who formed a great influence in Mike's life.

In 1976 Mike joined a daily newspaper as a NUJ press photographer, shooting both press and commercial work. The experience helped form his interest in capturing the image as quickly and as easily as possible and without 'fuss'. It was years later that this pattern of working became part of the important way he gathers his images today.


Mike in his own admission 'knows little about cameras', ask Mike about F stops and ISO's and his eyes glaze over, ask him about one of his images in particular and he will tell you in fasinating detail the 'story' of how that image unfolded.

Mike's hero was Henri Cartier-Bresson, and one of the best quotes Mike remembers from Henri was "I take an image and think of it only for a few seconds, then I move on to hunt the next image." Mike's thoughts are very similar, "if I have to 'plan' an image too much, I loose the fluid feel that I feel gives my pictures an edge... I hunt the image, see it, take it and move on....

The images Mike makes are individual by design. He has a technique that is most unusual in that not many people take a picture without even looking through the viewfinder. Many of his shots are created in seconds and taken by him using the camera in a very unusual way. The camera is often held very low to the floor or held very high up above his head, not looking through the camera viewfinder at all but by just pointing the camera towards the subject miceal has spotted. The image of his 'subject' is then checked in the back of his digital screen or on his laptop on location and if it's a pleasing image miceal moves on to find his next subject. Back at his studio Mike continues his work on an image with special processing and fine-tuning that all go to make his images that little bit special.


Mike likes to describe his works as 'Miceal's Eyes' and again quotes his hero Cartier-Bresson "The camera became the extension of my eye," he wrote, "and I have never been separated from it since I found it. I prowled the streets all day, feeling very strung up and ready to pounce, determined to 'trap' life —to preserve life in the act of living. Above all, I craved to seize, in the confines of one single photograph, the whole essence of some situation that was in the process of unrolling itself before my eyes"

Mike BIOG

Born in Birmingham 1950

Rotherham College of Arts Graphic's Design and Photography
(YCFE, Distinction)

NUJ press training at Wolverhampton (Passed Distinction)

Mike's first exhibition in the United States was held at the Geras Tousignant Gallery on Pacific Avenue, San Francisco. His images formed part of a Group Show by local and international artists. A collector of photographic work, TV actor Kathy Garver, bought the first image of Mike's that sold during that show, an image named 'The Kiss'.

For the second time in two years Mike's images were again added to an exhibition at Spectrum in San Francisco. Access Institute in San Francisco marked the sixth anniversary of its annual art auction and fundraiser, Spectrum, with an exciting collaboration: California College of the Arts (CCA) has joined Access Institute this year to co-present Spectrum 6. These works was also previewed at the Geras-Tousignant Gallery.

During 2008 Mike has continued to create his latest collection to be shown in 2009 and at the same time enjoyed success with galleries near to his home in the South of France.

2009 also sees Mike complete his first taste of Television Documentary film making, shooting on location in Australia and the UK. Mike and his partner in 'Jackdor Films' hope that the television documentary called “Jack and Doreen's Story” will be shown on television worldwide during 2010.

In 2010, Mike has a planned exhibition in London and Southern Australia following his fantastically successful first exhibition in Dubai in April 2009.
He has also formed a collection of his well-known 'Mannequin' images and these are to be published in a book.