John Spies

I was born in Sydney, but have spent the last 30 plus years as a resident in Thailand. My home for the past 25 years has been Cave Lodge (cavelodge.com for more pics and info), a guest house I built in a Shan village near the Burmese border in the far northwestern corner of Thailand.This once-remote mountainous region is home to many ethnic minorities, called ‘hilltribes’, the infamous opium growers of the Golden Triangle. My backyard consists of rugged limestone landscapes pocketed with hundreds of extraordinary caves,
disappearing streams and small villages. The hilltribes and their environment triggered my original interest in photography, and over the decades I have had many excellent opportunities and plenty of inspiration to pursue my interest. I have tried to capture traditional scenes and lifestyles along with the wild places and wild times I have survived. Some members may recognise a few images from old copies of Australian Geo. Many of the photographs that I am uploading on Red Bubble were taken in the 1970s and 80s and are of historical significance. Incidentally, Red Bubble is the first internet site that I have uploaded my images to. I hope you enjoy them.

One of my most popular images.

One of my favourite Thai caves.

This image of a hilltribe man seeing his photograph for the first time is another favourite of mine.

Featured photographs:




CALENDARS: I have created a few calendars, but I would be delighted to create a CUSTOM MADE CALENDAR just for you. Just bubblemail me a list of 13 of my images that you would like on a calendar, select one for the cover, or for every month if you like, and I will create it, then, if you like it, it is all yours for my usual meagre mark up of 40%. If you don’t want it then I might delete it, or maybe someone else would like your selection.

Here is one I have added to my collection. It is Tribal Women. Please check out my other calendars.