Hi, I’m James Cole and welcome to my site, Here is a little bit about me and why this site exists. Thanks for stopping by.

I have always had a creative mind. Creative writing at school was the only subject I excelled at. My early days saw me gravitate toward the lens. I recall, as a child, using my parents’ instant 35mm film camera to photograph toy dinosaurs in a way to make them look like the giant beasts they once were. I’d take time and effort to set up shots, angles and trickery to capture the image I wanted rather than just clicking a moment.

This was the birth of my career in visual effects which eventually began in my 20s. The next twenty years I would dedicate to filmmaking. Feature films, commercials, music videos, short films… Mostly as an editor, sometimes the director, always looking for ways to express that creative need within.

It was while working in visual effects that I learned tools like Photoshop and After Effects and in 2004 I purchased my first digital camera, a Canon EOS 300D, originally to capture elements I needed to use in my VFX work; textures, backgrounds, etc. From this moment on, a camera was never far away and my love for still photography grew until it eventually replaced filmmaking altogether.

This led me to some epic road trips to capture that one amazing photo, while other times I might see something that would tantalise my interest in the backyard. There is no one subject or niche that inspires me. The act of taking the photo and processing it into something beautiful whatever the subject is what ignites my spark.
However, ticking away in the back of my mind was another form of expression desperate to burst into the foreground. One that for years I repressed, lacking the confidence to pursue. This was my love for music. I had tinkered with it here and there throughout my life but never allowing it a focus. Until now. In 2022 I made the decision that it was indeed the time to allow this creative beast out into the wilds. With it comes an amalgamation of every creative skill I’ve learned and I’ve never felt so free.

I set up this website to share my creative work with the world. Most of my photos are available for licensing through stock photography sites and my art and design work are available as prints or on various products. My writing is all free to read here on this site and my filmmaking work that I hold the rights to is viewable through my Youtube channel. And my music will be available at all the usual spots.

My work covers subjects from the darkest corners misery and depression in my soul, to the anger and rage at the injustices of the world, to the highest light of wisdom and inspiration. Or, how I like to put it, from black to white and the shade in-between.

I hope you enjoy my work and find something that you connect with.

Wishing you a brilliant day,