About Rol

Born and brought up in London, Rol followed his early years of planning boarding school escapes, by studying at what was then, London’s ‘Hornsey College of Art’. Later, with graphics up his sleeve and a lens in his hand, he received commissions from the ‘BBC’, the ‘Royal Shakespeare Company’, the ‘Design Council’, the ‘V&A Museum’, the ‘British Tourist Authority’ and lectured at ‘Central Saint Martins School of Art’ bla, bla, bla. And now with his other love of skiing (he’s a retired ski coach) he is naturally a lover of snow, fireside fleurie, mountain hot chocolate as well as rampant Rodins and Truffaut. When he’s not strolling through Latin cultures and glimpsing the ghosts of Fellini, Caruso and Caravaggio, he may be hosting or just researching Italian photography workshop weeks. Back home he’s likely to be investigating London and Suffolk photo workshop locations or planning travel shoots. Recently he has been invited to become a ‘Getty Images Photographer’. Right now he’s just completed photographing, designing and writing a 272 page coffee table hardback: ‘London, as you’ve never seen it before’. The book has over 700 images + captions and he’s currently seeking a publisher for it. And if curious, you may see the first 4 of 24 chapters, that are viewable through his ‘Linkedin’ profile ‘Roland Blunk’. His choice of camera is a Nikon Z9.

Rol has been commissioned amongst others by:
Action Aid
Arista Records
The Arts Council
The BBC
The British Council
The British Tourist Authority
The Crafts Council
The Design Council
Eversheds Solicitors
The Guardian
Haymarket Media Group
Her Majesty’s Stationery Office
The Institute of Chartered Accountants
The Institute of Contemporary Arts
Island Records
The Longman Publishing Company
The Manchester City Art Galleries
The National Portrait Gallery
The Opera Babes
The Royal Shakespeare Company
The Scottish Development Agency
Sotogrande’ Spain
The V&A Museum

Appointments and accolades
Rol has lectured in design and art direction at major art schools in Great Britain including ‘Central Saint Martins’ London. His work has been shown in the international graphic publication ‘Graphis’, The ‘Designers & Art Directors’ Annual and ‘Modern Publicity’. He was elected to ‘Fellowship’ status of the ‘Chartered Society of Designers’ in the late 80’s, (although not currently a member). Recently he has been invited to become a ‘Getty Images Photographer’ and he has been a member of the Chelsea Arts Club since 1985.

Sporting accomplishments
In 2002 he qualified as a ‘Snowsport England’ ski coach (level 4). Having caught the skiing bug as a 14 year old lad, whilst on a school trip to Switzerland, he won the Swiss Bronze medal. This was very much a beginner’s ‘pat on the back’, but he was hooked. Between 1997 and 2010 he worked several weeks a season in both Austria and Italy, as an Alpine ski guide and was qualified by the ‘Internationaler Verband of Snowsport Instructors’ (IVSI) licence.

Equipment
Nikon Z9 Camera

Long Nikon lens
Model AF-S 70-200/2.8G ED VR II

Medium Nikon lens
Model AF-S 24-70mm 1:2.8 ED

Short Nikon lens
Model AF-S 14-24 2.8 G ED

Portrait lens
Sigma Art prime lens 85mm f/1.4 DG

Reserve camera
Nikon D4

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my friend from Italy, Mario Tartaglia, for his excellent assistance and skills, in initiating this Roland Blunk, Suffolk photography website. And friend Adam Barnes for his continuing work on the ‘financial’ sections. I have learnt so much from both Mario and Adam, that I now build, write and design this site myself. I also handle the Search Engine Optimisation, which is why my site flies high for Google searches. Fellow Suffolk photography exponent and good friend Andrew Florides for his help, advice and mentoring over the past 20+ years. Rol Blunk