Brooks Williams

Diamond Days

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Photography, Video AND artwork for Brooks Williams’ recent album “Diamond Days”

I’ve worked with American singer/songwriter Brooks Williams on various projects over the years - solo shoots, collaborations with other musicians (Rab Noakes, Boo Hewerdine), as well as behind-the-scenes stuff and it’s always a pleasure. Last summer Brooks was in Wales at Martin Levan’s Red Kite Studio recording his new album “Diamond Days” and I was invited to film and photograph the sessions.

It was my first time in Wales and while the 8-hour, 3-train journey from Glasgow was rather stressful, it was worth it in the end. Set in the deepest Welsh valleys, Red Kite Studio was a dream space to photograph in and the hospitality of everyone involved made the whole experience a highlight of 2023 for me. See below for the photos, music videos as well as album artwork (I was responsible for that too).

GEAR PHOTO:
Nikon D850
Nikkor 85mm f1.4
Nikkor 35mm f1.8
Tiffen Black Pro-mist 1/4 Filters

GEAR VIDEO:
Sony A7III
Sony 35mm f1.8
Sony 85mm f1.8
DJI RS 2
Tiffen Black Pro-mist 1/4 Filters

Best of 2023

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2023 summary

So yes, I have been slacking a bit when it comes to this blog. The last few months of 2023 were really busy with work and travel and something had to give. Overall, last year was good when it came to work. I was involved in some interesting projects - travelled with Gareth Williams to the Scottish Highlands to photograph the cover for his “Songs from the Last Page” release; was in Wales with Brooks Williams photographing and filming the recording process for his just-released album “Diamond Days”; shot a short fashion film for Studio Floor and helped Horse with her successful Kickstarter campaign for the new record “The Road Less Travelled” among others. I also started doing regular personal projects where I take a day each month to collaborate with interesting people and shoot just for the fun and creativity of it. It allows me to try things, experiment, and perhaps fail a bit.

Anyway, I’m back and kicking off 2024 with some of my favourite images from the past year. Enjoy!

ALBUMS OF 2023
The Love Invention Alison Goldfrapp
Fuse Everything But The Girl
That! Feels Good! Jessie Ware
The Age of Pleasure Janelle Monáe
Mid Air Romy
Hit Parade Róisín Murphy
Volcano Jungle
Jaguar II Victoria Monét
Sundown Eddie Chacon
The Returner Allison Russell

SONGS OF 2023
Freak Me Now Jessie Ware
You Knew Róisín Murphy
Lipstick Lover Janelle Monáe
Miley Cyrus Flowers
Houdini Dua Lipa
Rush Troye Sivan
Nothing Left To Lose Everything But The Girl
Demons Allison Russell
Water Tyla

Best of 2022 + Interview

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2022 Summary

This has been a rather strange year. When I sat down to compile my favourite images from the past 12 months, I felt quite dispirited when it comes to my work - nothing major, just slightly blah. And then it turned out I struggled to whittle down my selection to only 12 photos, it would appear I’ve actually done more interesting work than I gave myself credit for. Perhaps it’s just winter blues.

The main event of 2022 when it comes to my work was undoubtedly the Women At COP26 exhibition. It was quite an undertaking, a huge learning curve and something I’m very proud of. While its run at Trongate 103 finished at the end of October, it has now found a new home at Skypark in Finnieston where it will officially launch in January (albeit in a slightly abridged version). So there’s something to look forward to in the New Year, never a bad thing.

INTERVIEW - THE BRAW & THE BRAVE PODCAST

In other news, I was recently interviewed for The Braw & The Brave, Lisa Kennedy’s award-winning podcast about creative people and their passions. If you fancy listening to me talk about my work, discussing imposter syndrome and how I take my porridge in the morning among other earth-shattering revelations, click here to listen on Apple Podcasts or stream below via Soundcloud:

Anyway, back to 2022 summary - here’s my favourite dozen. Enjoy and let me know what you think:

And here’s what I’ve been obsessed with musically in 2022:

ALBUMS OF 2022
Renaissance Beyoncé
Yours Aye Jill Jackson
Motomami Rosalía
Dawn FM The Weeknd
Midnights Taylor Swift
Dirt Femme Tove Lo
Gemini Rights Steve Lacy
Angels & Queen Part 1 Gabriels
Blue Lawns The Great Yawn
Prism Say She She

SONGS OF 2022
Bad Habits Steve Lacy
Anti-Hero Taylor Swift
Baby Chicken Jill Jackson
Cosy Beyoncé
No One Dies From Love Tove Lo
Hung Up On Tokischa Madonna & Tokischa
Leaving Horse
Better Man Say She She
As It Was Harry Styles
Holy Hell Eddie Chacon

Remembering Rab Noakes

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Rab Noakes 1947 - 2022

It’s truly surreal and heartbreaking to write a heading like this. Only a few weeks ago I was in a recording studio with Rab where he was working on a new album with Brooks Williams. He was in great form, cracking jokes, and his voice sounded great. And yet here we are. I got a message from a friend on Friday asking whether I’d heard the news about Rab. I did not and my heart sank.

I met Rab Noakes through Jill Jackson, his close friend and a frequent collaborator, who enrolled me to take some promotional images for their upcoming tour. Rab and I got on very well, he liked the images and would get me to photograph him for his following projects with Barbara Dickson, Brooks Williams as well as solo. I loved taking pictures of him, he was one the most impeccably dressed men I’ve ever encountered and his charisma and charm were a joy to capture. While we didn’t always see eye to eye (Rab thought ABBA was nothing special and Ella Fitzgerald was overrated - gasp!) we always had a great time together and he was incredibly supportive of my work, kept recommending me to other artists and attended my exhibitions.

I leave you with some of my favourite images I took of Rab throughout the years.

He’s greatly missed.

Brooks Williams

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I met Brooks Williams in November 2018 when I was photographing him and Rab Noakes for their joint tour. We got on very well and when Brooks was finishing work on his latest solo album “Work My Claim” last summer, he got in touch asking me to shoot the album promo. The photos were taken in a back alley in Finnieston as well as Kyoti Recording Studio. Have a look:

GEAR
Nikon D850
Nikkor 85mm f1.4
Nikkor 50mm f1.4
Neewer 120cm Octabox
Profoto A1
Profoto Air Remote TTL-N for Nikon