In 1967 John had begun work as a freelance advertising photographer specialising in fashion. This work gradually broadened into large scale location work and travel accounts. Much of his work is in Asia and includes many years at Angkor Wat and Kashgar, on the Silk Road. John's work is characterised by strong formal composition but with a didactic, and wider, contextual viewpoint. He holds a master’s degree in architecture from RMIT University and is an Honorary Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects. John was Creative Director, with Ivan Rijavec, of Now + When for the Australian Pavilion at the 12th Venice Architecture Biennale. John Gollings operates from a collaborative design, photography and 3D rendering studio in Melbourne, Australia.