"I think when everybody hears the name Cuba, the very first thing they do is think of an enormous amount of really sincere affection, for the country but of course for its people. I heard them described recently as indomitable, and I think that’s probably what they are. They withstood an enormous amount of instability over the years, and when you arrive in Cuba, as I have a few times now, I am so aware of that graciousness and genuine wholehearted affection without any questions being asked. But I was here photographing. I took myself to Cienfuegos, it’s a little further south from Havana, and I found these three trees, and of course the very first thing I began thinking was ‘I must photograph them, but I need a little bit of animation in there’. There were a number of activities, there were other cars, and actually there were other cyclists. But I just knew that the one I needed hadn’t yet materialised. So it took a little while, waiting, and I was worried about the sky and I found the shadows were absolutely wonderful from the palm trees, and there was quite a bit of wind. It was almost a photojournalistic image. And all of a sudden I saw a cyclist come, and I thought ‘he is not going to look at me, but I need him to’, so I raised the camera to my eye, as one does, and at that precise moment his head turned, and he was in mid pedal, if that’s the right word, and it was completely correct, I just felt that it was correct. With photography, I think everybody will know who loves photography, there is that marvellous moment when you have an inner confirmation that what you have just made in the form of a photograph will, rather like a beautiful melody, will work. I just felt it worked. His head turned, I hope not because he was feeling invaded, but it was just precisely the right moment. And that was a very, very exciting moment indeed. And that was way back in 2003, so 17 years ago, I enjoyed that lovely moment of my cyclist arriving, bicycling along the promenade in Cienfuegos. I do hope you like him."  Charlie Waite