The all encompassing environment of nature moves one towards stillness and inner peace. I have deliberately obscured the location as I wanted the film to create a sense of the universality of nature. This scene could be anywhere. I used no edits. I just allowed each clip to flow into the next to create a sense of the atmosphere on the journey.

Mesmerism is a short film capturing a moment in kayaking when suddenly I am breathtakingly embraced in a way only nature in its epicness can. Scott’s Creek entrance from Middle Harbour, Sydney is disguised and not easily found. Yet every time I enter this place - the silence, gentleness of the flow of the water, the light filtering through the trees - creates a sense of entering an ancient place that can only be described as mesmeric.

MIke O’Connor, Editor, Australian Photography Magazine, went on a very early morning journey with me to experience my creative practice firsthand. The conversation that evolved whilst we were kayaking in Middle Harbour, Sydney, Australia enabled me to expand on the philosophy behind my artwork and how that informs my artmaking.

I have known Ralph for 40 years now and been a keen follower of his journey into photography since its inception. This is, in fact, the second catalogue essay I have written on his work. But Ralph’s images of Dubai are profoundly different to his images of Sydney. In these shimmering reflections of Dubai arising from the depths of its own ingenuity, Ralph seems to have reinvented himself as an alchemist – transforming all that he sees into pure gold