Sean Malyon took an interest in photography at an age when most of us were still happy playing with action figures. By the time he was 14, he was already busy snapping away with his first SLR, a Practica MTL 5. Whilst working as a journalist with a golf magazine, Sean's first images were published and it was then that he truly indulged himself in his commitment to photography. In 1997 he left his job to travel through Asia and Australia with his camera always at hand.

It wasn't long until Sean realised his talent for photography was that of professional standards and he managed to sell many of the pictures from his travels through photo libraries. When he returned to the UK, he moved to Bristol and started photographing the people around him, from local shopkeepers to chefs in restaurants - basically anyone he found to be interesting.

Now Sean's clients include BBC Magazines, Waitrose, John Lewis and he has just done a project for Prince Charles' charity, The Prince's Trust. In spite of his commercial success, Sean still allows time to focus on matters that are close to his heart, stating that he "still undertakes personal projects with a social element".

Recently he completed a project on small independent shopkeepers trying to stay in business despite the pressure of supermarkets. At present, he is concentrating on his upcoming project which will document the lives of people in a typical English village trying to preserve their identity as a nearby town encroaches on their livelihood and threatens to engulf them.

Sean's work reflects both his dedication to photography and to the people who are the subject of his images. DigitalRev commends Sean for his talent to capture people from a uniquely intimate perspective and for his desire to assist others who share a passion for photography. By providing us with his Top Tips for Photographing People we can all experiment with new techniques and expand our photographic potential.