Ralph has lived all of his life near Burton upon Trent, Staffordshire, England, and has been a keen photographer since he was a small boy.

He has been a member of his local camera club, the Burton on Trent Photographic Society, for over 40 years. Upon first joining, he was advised to learn the craft of darkroom printing and has since

 gone from strength to strength. Ralph is a prolific photographer whose first love is landscape photography, though he captures a great variety of subject matter. He was initially reluctant to transition to digital capture and printing, only making the change when infrared film was discontinued and fewer exhibitions accepted slides.

Ralph has achieved the highest standard of accreditation from the Photographic Alliance of Great Britain (PAGB) with a Master distinction (MPAGB), and he holds both EFIAP and BPE5 honours. He remains an active club member and is currently serving his third term as President of the Burton on Trent Photographic Society, where he has also run the members' annual exhibition for over 20 years. In 1995, he was elected to the organising council of the Midland Counties Photographic Federation (MCPF). By 2001, he became joint chairman of "MidPhot"—the MCPF’s annual club exhibition—alongside his wife, Lu, a position he still holds today. Ralph previously took on the role of MCPF President for a two-year term starting in June 2012.Over the years, Ralph has won numerous accolades, including a medal at the London Salon in 2017. His work was also featured in the inaugural Masters of Print book published by the PAGB in 2017. In 2019, Ralph was elected as a member of the London Salon. In June 2025, he began his second term as President of the MCPF.