Committee

Darrin picked his first camera up at the age of 8, an Ilford Sportsman, and rapidly moved into medium format when he was given a Kodak Reflex TLR camera using 620 film and hasn’t stopped acquiring cameras since. Darrin moved into Medical Illustration after a career in insurance and started work at the Royal Berkshire Hospital bright and early on a Monday morning feeling the worse for wear after celebrating the night before, the first job of the day, assisting in a full post mortem!

Lionel Williams was the manager with a sense of humour then and a real inspiration to his future career whilst undertaking his BTEC in Medical and Scientific imaging. This led to a permanent post in 1996 with Queen Marys University Hospital at Roehampton in London and the introduction to the world of severe burns and reconstructive plastic surgery along with amputee limb fitting and a multitude of other disciplines. During his time there he became interested in microscopy and started collecting microscopes too! Sadly the wonderful world inhabited by those that worked at Queen Marys was to come to an end and the hospital was remodelled, no more lunch times in the Italian sunken garden or summer fetes and the amputees five a side football.

Next stop in 1999 was The Royal London Hospital in the melting pot of Whitechapel. Yet another hospital with a huge history. Darrin has now worked there in excess of 20 years and is currently the Head of Department. Early on he undertook his BSc in Digital and Photographic Imaging Science at the University of Westminster and then his MSc in Digital Colour Imaging at the University of the Arts (then London College of Printing) developing a device that can spectrally characterise a digital image capture device in a single exposure using 36 narrow band filters, all accomplished on the kitchen table. This was presented at IS&T European Conference in 2008. It was also at this time that he was sitting on the BIPP Medical Committee whereupon he also joined the RPS and the Medical group, Imaging Science group and Analogue group. Currently his day to day work revolves around ophthalmology and the remodelling of the department to cope with new ways of working in the modern digital age. He still maintains a keen interest in colour science and its associated reproduction.

Outside of work the kitchen table still has a major role to play in his day to day life, often with a mechanical camera in pieces being serviced and brought back to life, or bicycle parts being cleaned and serviced for another outing around the glorious Surrey Hills, he also enjoys being out on the water in his Kayak and organising an annual kayak marathon race. 

He lives with his long suffering wife, two English Springer Spaniels and a cat, his son has escaped to University!

He attended the Polytechnic of Central London (now University of Westminister) majoring in Scientific Photography and Technology. He trained at Charing Cross Hospital Medical School, London.  He acquired his Medical Photography Qualifications through the British Institute of Professional Photography. In 1982 he was headhunted to establish the first centralised department of Medical Illustration at the Medical University of Southern Africa (now Sefako Makgatho Health Sciences University), where he worked for 35 years. His career involved working in Medical, Scientific and Forensic Imaging spanning almost 43 years until he retired in 2016. 

He is an active member of the following societies: RPS, BIPP, IMI, MPA, RMS, BCA,  OPS and the  BKSTS (now IMIS). He is also an Accredited Senior Imaging Scientist.

He has 12 Fellowships which include two Honorary and the Invited Fellowships. In addition, he has a Fellowship of the Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.  He has received many honours and recognitions including the BMJ Award for “Kirlian Photography in Medicine”, the Technical Award and Medal for developing a technique “Comprehensive Gait Recording in Parkinson’s Disease Patients” both awarded by The RPS Medical Group. In 2010 he was awarded The Royal Photographic Society’s Member’s Award and Honorary Life Membership.

He has presented and published several papers. He has been a member of The RPS for more than 40 years. 

All my professional life I have worked in Medical and Scientific Imaging and have over 50 years of experience. I trained at St Mary’s Hospital Medical School, London and studied Scientific Photography at the Polytechnic of Central London (now University of Westminster). After working at Guy’s Hospital Medical School, London in 1971, I established and headed the Department of Medical Illustration at the University of Zambia (School of Medicine) for 18 years. I also served as an Honorary Consultant to the National Council for Scientific Research, Zambia. Besides my academic qualifications, I am an Accredited Senior Imaging Scientist (ASIS), Emeritus Fellow Bio-Communications Association, I hold six Fellowships in Medical, Scientific, Biological Photography and Microscopy and have been awarded two Honorary Fellowships. I am the principal author of the book ‘A Colour Atlas of AIDS in the Tropics’ which won the RPS Medical Group Lancet Award in 1990. I have also presented and published several papers.

I have been a member of the RPS for more than 50 years, with keen interest in medical and scientific imaging. I am a member of the Science Committee and Chairman of the Imaging Scientist Qualifications Board. In 2011 I curated and established The Society’s very first International Images for Science Exhibition. In 2013 I was Awarded the Fenton Medal and Honorary Life Membership of The Society. In April 2021 the President of the RPS presented me with a President and Council Commendation award for my meritorious service to the Royal Photographic Society- it is the first such award to be made to a UK member.

In 2016 I was appointed an Honorary Professor at the University of Nottingham and in 2019 I was appointed Honorary Professor at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research, Chandigarh, India.