Cameras come in dozens of different sizes, shapes and formats these days. From the humblest mobile cameraphone to a large format Tachihara 4×5" which can only be used with a tripod. In my life I have used multiple Canons, a Minolta, a Ricoh (euuughhh) and now I shoot with Nikon. Ultimately it doesn't matter what you shoot with so long as you are shooting. If you are out taking photographs then most likely you are improving & honing your skills. I continually find that interesting things are happening on the streets around me in Prague or wherever else I may happen to be.

If you can find the time to shoot something every day all the better. But how can you go about doing that in your busy every day life? The best tip I know is simply this; always carry a camera with you! Never leave home without it as those American Express ads used to say. Of course 95% of the time it may just be that if you are carrying a mobile phone it has a camera and so you are set – especially if your phone is one of those iPhone 4s with some superb camera technology packed under the hood. I have a less sophisticated cameraphone but I am still incredibly proud of the picture I took of two late night tram passengers here in Prague who happened to be on the same carriage as me. It is a picture that demands attention and whilst it has severe technical deficiencies – light, harsh reflections, over-exposure etc – it is storytelling through photography which has to be our loftiest ambition as photographers… amateur or professional. We look at this shot and wonder to ourselves; who are these people? Why is he on top of her when surely it would be more chivalrous to be the other way around? Are they drunk or just tired … or both? What about the box of chocolates? Did he give it to her earlier in the evening? Will the chocs even make it home or will they spill onto the floor without them even noticing? One thing seems for sure; this is a young couple in love and they've just had a great evening out. If I hadn't had my cameraphone with me that night then the moment would have been lost to the world.

One of my favourite aphorisms is that 'a lot of photography is just being there'. Its a twist on that old "right place, right time" idea. I was fascinated reading legendary sports photographer Neil Leifer's comments about his iconic shot of Muhammad Ali standing over defeated rival Sonny Liston from their 1965 Lewiston, Maine bout. Leifer said of that shot; 'Part of being a great photographer is being lucky enough to be in the right spot at the right time like I was, but a more important part is not missing when you're in that spot. I got very lucky at the Ali-Liston fight, but what I'm proudest of is that I didn't miss'. Now clearly a professional sports photographer isn't ever going to show up to a gig without his kit but the bigger point is this; if you don't have a camera with you, you won't even have the opportunity to miss. So try to make sure that, even if its just a cameraphone, you're always packing! 

Recently I was directed to the website of the Prague Daily Monitor and, specifically, their Photo Galleries segment. I was impressed with the quality of the work on display and, most particularly, the work of a Prague-based Canadian Photographer, Paul Pacey. I liked Paul's impressionistic style so much I looked him up on facebook – as one does – and be-friended him. I then sent him a note telling him I absolutely had to meet with him to talk about his work and life as a foreign photographer in Prague.

And so it was that last week we had the chance to spend an hour together just round the corner from Paul's studio in the centre of town. I discovered that Paul is the same age as me but has been a professional photographer for most of his career and, after a successful first life as a fashion photographer in Canada he decided that he was becoming exactly the kind of photographer he hated, so he upped sticks to Prague to reinvent himself.

I was particularly interested in Paul's idea that he come here and would, metaphorically, go back to photography school. Learning everything again from scratch. This reminded me of the idea that Picasso took to late in his life when he started to paint in an increasingly child-like way. I was specifically thinking of Picasso's famous quote that; "at 15 I painted like Velazquez, and it took me 80 years to learn to paint like a child". Whilst Paul's Prague Impressions are far away from being child-like – the craft in them is evident on any viewing – I love the way they are so very far away from the kind of fashion work that he did in his past. It was a delight to meet Paul; he was engaging, enthusiastic and really is living the dream. Like most of us he came to Prague by design but stayed by accident and I hope that, so long as he is here, we can meet up regularly and talk about photography, art and life as a snapper in a foreign city.