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Sgt Ian Houlding

My name is Sergeant Ian Houlding and I am an Army Photographer with the Royal Logistic Corps.

I am 33 years old and come from Chatham, Kent. Currently I am working in Media Operations at Horse Guards, London, and I've been an Army Photographer for four years.

My job involves producing photographs to accompany newsworthy stories about the Army. At the moment my remit is to do this for the Army Units within the M25, and these range from hometown stories to ceremonial events.

I enjoy the variety this job offers. Each day can be quite different and the range of tasks can be staggering.  Another aspect, particular to this post, is the location. Since arriving in London a year ago I've shot inside Buckingham Palace, St James's Palace and the Tower of London and had very good access to other London attractions.

I wanted to become an Army Photographer because the thought of being able to do my hobby as a job appealed very much. Army Photographers are in a unique position because they get to see and experience the wide range of jobs the Army has to offer and see the Army in action. I've learned so much more about the Army during the last four years, more than the previous 10 years before I transferred.

I have been fortunate to photograph a very diverse range of assignments. Since being in London I've photographed senior Royals on numerous occasions, the highlights being the 500th Anniversary of the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms who are The Queen's personal body guards, and The Queen's presentation of Colours to the Irish Guards.  The access I had at both of these events was unbelievable and it's those sorts of jobs that bring home how good the job of an Army Photographer is.

I spent time in Kenya with the Royal Engineers where I photographed bridge reparations and school constructions which were interesting tasks and also good experiences.

I deployed in 2008 with 16 Air Assault Brigade to Afghanistan and spent six months moving around Helmand capturing the Army at work.  It was a really interesting time and a real eye opener, seeing many of the different trades in the Army doing the jobs they'd trained for.

Other assignments I've covered include bomb disposal training, military participation in equestrian events at Olympia, Beating Retreat, exercises in Kenya, Jordan, Belize and Benbecula, Trooping the Colour, the State Opening of Parliament, and numerous Royal visits in both the UK and Afghanistan.

There are many assignments which stick out in my mind for various reasons, but the most memorable was at St James's Palace, London, with the Honourable Corps of Gentlemen at Arms. They were formed in 1509 by Henry VIII and were celebrating their 500th Anniversary at which The Queen presented them with a ribband which accompanies their Standard. 

The event was fairly small and held in quite a small courtyard, but the Gentlemen at Arms are steeped in so much history that it seemed like such a larger event.  The Bands of the Irish Guards and Coldstream Guards were present and played music which had been played at similar events during the last 500 years.  And of course there was the usual pomp and ceremony which these types of event attract. 

With royal events there are quite limiting restrictions on your movements, but during this event I had quite a bit of freedom and was able to get very close to not only The Queen, but all aspects of the ceremony. All in all it was a very memorable day and one which I was honoured to be asked to photograph and record.