Clive Grylls attended Loughborough University (UK), and graduated with a BA Hons Degree in Drama: Second Class, Upper Division.
In 1995, he studied at the London College of Printing in London and was awarded a Post Graduate Diploma in photojournalism.
"As a kid I'd always wanted to travel but it wasn't until my mid-twenties that I decided to do something about it," says Clive.
"At the time I was a young actor and director in England, going no where, and trying to get my first, big break in television or films. So I just left everything and decided to go on a year long trip to America, eventually hitch hiking my way through the country.
"To survive the dangers of hitch hiking you need to be independent and objective. What the trip taught me most though was how much I enjoyed isolation and the chances it allowed me to observe. It is these qualities that are essential for a photojournalist.
"Although I rarely turn down assignments, what I really like to do is to find my own story ideas and get them commissioned. I specialise in finding original material, on subjects or places that have not been recorded before, or at least not from the angle that I am presenting them from.
"On a commission, say to Africa, after completion, I will always stay longer to talk to the local people who enable me to find or research other story ideas. This brings me on to what I feel is another prerequisite of good photojournalism. People must trust you, and you must, where ever possible, have feedback with them after the story has been published.
"So what makes a good story? In essence, conflict. Whether it is conflict between people, between man and his environment or human-animal conflict, or all of them, which is often the case. For this reason my specialist subjects are the environment, wildlife, travel and culture and human interest stories.
"I often produce word and picture stories as a complete package which is unusual for a photojournalist who normally only provides the images for a story. The idea being that if there are separate people working on the words and images then the story will be some how more objective. I am not a 'control freak', but as these stories are normally my own, documenting in both mediums allows pulling all the disparate themes of the story together, very much as if I were directing a film. Here my degree in drama is a god send.
"So when I'm working on a story, do I take the images first or do I concentrate first on the interviews and descriptive writing? I always take most of the images first using this experience and what I've seen to enhance the interviews and the words that come later, which more often or not are written up when I return home."
Clive Grylls has published photographs or stories, or both as a package, for the following UK publications: the Guardian, the Independent on Sunday, the Daily Express, the Evening Standard, the Observer, Focus Magazine, Geographical magazine, Travel Africa magazine, BBC Wildlife magazine, the New Statesman magazine as well as numerous worldwide publications.
If you are interested in employing Clive for professional work, please contact him here.
