Hackney Downs School was so derelict and empty that I remember feeling quite overwhelmed at first; it was great that others could see its potential. Working there was great. Small teams, basically completing as many tasks as possible until we were knackered. There were also some early mornings getting the college lorry from Rochester to London with Kevin Liggett, not sure how I managed that as a student. The private view was a blur, though not wholly for the obvious reasons; it was a relief that we'd hit the deadline and had produced something massive.

My work involved some long-exposure medium-format and 35mm shots from our cars. I don't remember too much about taking them, but I do remember the hours in the colour darkroom getting them right. For some reason I decided to mask the paper, which meant having to get everything lined up just right, and there were a few points where I really regretted that decision.

Watching the In Motion films made me smile a lot. The Men in Motion night was such a laugh, possibly my favourite night at the Student Union. It literally took balls for the guys to do it. The night at Rochester Castle was great too; we had no idea about health and safety, and yet somehow we managed to get a load of scaffolding up in no time. The other thing that strikes me about the films is the amount of time they must have taken to edit. I don't think people would realise it these days. It's also making me feel quite old that it's all in SD.

I applied for the BA Photography course because my college tutor impressed on us its reputation, and he wasn't wrong. From my first day in the halls of residence to my last day leaving Rochester, it was such a laugh. I remember some long walks up the hill to the college, and that, together with the stairs up to the top, meant that I've never been as fit. I went to Rochester a few months ago and a lot of the old pub haunts remained; it brought back so many memories. It was sad to see Kent Institute of Art and Design (KIAD) closed and boarded up, very similar to how Hackney Downs School was. Keith Hartle was a fantastic first-year tutor, very welcoming and incredibly knowledgeable. I'm sure I've forgotten people, but the encouragement, assistance, intensity and laughs with Phil Gomm, Emily Hick, Kevin, Caroline Scott and Ori Gersht really made it for me. There were some proper friendships made too; although Rochester didn't have a huge student vibe, we definitely made the best of it.

I worked at the Corbis photo agency for seven years, which was hugely rewarding and allowed me to travel all over the planet, something I'll encourage my daughter to do at some point. I live with her and my wife in sunny Essex. When I left Corbis I moved away from the industry, but I still have a keenness for photography, very much on an amateur level. I probably take one shot in the time it takes my daughter to take twenty; in my mind it's still worth getting the shot right.