Community news

Talented photographer at Gloucestershire house builder celebrates published book

- 30 Oct 18

A nature lover who works at a Gloucestershire house builder has captured his passion for the county in a new photography book which has hit the shelves.

Aleks Gjika, a Bovis Homes employee, has his favourite snaps of the county published in his collection ‘Gloucestershire in Photographs’.

The dad-of-two, from Huntley, travelled across the county throughout the seasons to get the best shots, which have been published by a Stroud-based publisher.

Aleks, who moved to the UK in 1999 after growing up in Albania, said: “My ambition with the book was to show Gloucestershire in all its glory. It’s a stunning landscape with beautiful lighting, villages and towns.

“I wanted to do justice to what I could see with my camera and represent as many parts of Gloucestershire as possible.

“The carpets of flowers you see in the county are what stand out for me, they’re just extraordinary. Their impact is exceptionally beautiful. I remember when I first saw bluebells, I was in awe.”

Aleks, who moved to Greece in 1990, developed an interest in photography when he bought an Olympus camera at a flea market in Crete. A mechanic, he admired how the camera was put together and soon tested it out on the Greek landscape.

After progressing his skills by learning through books and pictures online, he joined Cheltenham Camera Club in 2009 and currently uses a Canon EOS 5D Mark II with several different lenses depending on the shot.

Aleks, a web developer at Bovis Homes, added the house builder had been a huge supporter of his 128-page book, which involved him travelling to his favourite landscapes on weekends, particularly at dawn and sunset.

The project came about after Aleks’ photos were favoured from a selection by Amberley Publishing and he was then asked to form a collection, which could be turned into a book.

He said: “I have always been a great nature lover. In Albania, I spent a huge amount of time in the mountains, countryside and by the river and developed a really strong bond with the elements. Back then there would be one photographer in a town and you could not buy a camera in the shops.

“It was November when I first arrived in Gloucester. I was surprised by the bad weather; it was cold and gloomy.

“But soon after, I was on a hillside and it was a sunny day and I was completely taken by surprise. The greenery, the rolling hills, the River Severn, forests and the low-lying mist, were stunning.

“Bovis Homes has been very enthusiastic and encouraged me to follow my passion. I will take pictures of Gloucestershire for the rest of my life.”

Bovis Homes colleagues have been purchasing the book, which was celebrated at the house builder’s location at Coopers Edge in Gloucester.

Chris Campbell, PR Officer at Bovis Homes, said: “We’re all tremendously proud of Aleks’ achievement. What better way to showcase the beauty of a county we all love to live and work in than to capture it in a stunning collection.”

Aleks, who formerly worked in marketing at the Museum of Gloucester, is accredited by the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain and the French Federation of Photographic Arts.

Gloucestershire in Photographs is available to buy online or in county stores including WHSmith, Waterstones, Amazon.co.uk, or visit www.amberley-books.com.