12 months in the making
Based on the WH Auden quote that ‘A culture is no better than its woods’, the concept of ‘One Year One Photograph‘ was straight forward; visit a selection of locations once a month for a calendar year and then overlay these 12 images to produce one final work per location. What I did not appreciate was the discipline required; namely the discipline to make time every month and the discipline to visit the locations no matter what the weather. While I should have blocked out my diary every month and allocated set dates, life simply got ahead of me. Knowing I would have circa 30 days to capture the images I would often prioritise events and leave the photography until late in the month.
And as for the weather; who can predict the British weather? Suffice it to say that it was important to be prepared for all eventualities every time I walked out the door; from warm to wet weather gear, from sunglasses to water. Additionally I did not grasp quite how difficult it is to take exactly the same image multiple times; trying to find the exact spot on the ground, checking the focal length of the lens, the height and angle of the camera. In more than one location my markers either changed due to the passing of time and a shift in the season or would disappear completely due to man made changes in the terrain.
The Three Sisters, Cleeve Hill
This post describes and shows the 12 months of the project at the location of the Three Sisters (also known as The Twins) on Cleeve Hill. At 330 metres above sea level or 1,083 feet, Cleeve Hill is the highest point in Gloucestershire and is also the highest peak of the Cotswold Hills. The location of the Sisters commands a clear view to the west, over Cheltenham and the racecourse.
0818 hours
7th Sept 2023
I kicked the project off on a sunny September day, having already completed a recce of all the locations the previous month.


0918 hours
10th Oct 2023
This month was perfect for the project with dramatic change from the month before; after a sunny Sept, Oct was so overcast the view from Cleeve Hill, of Cheltenham and the racecourse, was completely obscured.
1257 hours
16th Nov 2023
November saw another dramatic change with the Three Sisters losing their leaves.

Cold winter months
Discipline; the project required the discipline to continue during the British winter.
1046 hours
18th Dec 2023

1118 hours
23rd Jan 2024

1036 hours
13th Feb 2024

1113 hours
18th Mar 2024

A spring in my step
1037 hours
18th Apr 2024
1038 hours
20th May 2024


1050 hours
06th Jun 2024
1014 hours
02nd Jul 2024


0952 hours
22nd Aug 2024

Post Production
How the twelve months of the Three Sisters are overlaid to create the final work.
andybarnham
I am a portrait photographer based in Cheltenham, UK. Born in Hong Kong to a Chinese mum and British dad, I had an international upbringing while I educated in the UK. I started photography as a hobby while serving as an officer in the British Army.
After my service I turned this passion into a career and became immersed in London's sartorial scene. I am now focusing my camera on portraiture and using this eye for detail which was refined over ten years. As a former Royal Artillery officer it is only fitting I shoot with a Canon camera.