Govanhill Baths Editorial

Govanhill Baths is an Edwardian public bathhouse which opened in Glasgow in 1917 and earlier this year students from West College of Scotland took it over for a one-day fashion photography workshop organised by photographer and lecturer Lauren Stirling. Govanhill Baths is such an amazing space - I photographed a musical there a few years ago (I know, how random!) and always wanted to come back and use it for something more editorial. I'd given a couple of photography talks at West College of Scotland on behalf of Bridge 2 Business in the past and was more than happy to come along to the workshop to give my 2 cents as well as take some photos of my own, especially once I've learned where it was taking place. Thanks to Lauren Stirling for the invitation and West College of Scotland students for help and donuts!

Models: Jack McQueen & Erin Charters (both from Model Team)
Hair & Make Up: Caroline Stewart
Headpieces & Vintage Wedding Dress: Kitsch Me Vintage

St. Peter's Seminary

I love shooting outdoors, am always looking for new, unusual or in any way exciting places to use as a setting and it rarely gets more exciting than the ruins of St. Peter's Seminary in Cardross. I'd read about it online and one day in the summer of 2011, singer Jill Jackson (ex Speedway), her assistant and myself went onto an exploratory trip which eventually turned into an impromptu photoshoot. We found the place to be creepy as hell, we bumped into a couple of Japanese tourists bizarrely (you won't find these ruins in your travel book, trust me) but more importantly it also turned out to be an endless photo opportunity. I've been back several times since then, most recently in May with a shoot for Channel 4, and while the place is getting more and more difficult to access it never fails to deliver and despite my numerous visits I still feel there's more to see there. Here are some images from shoots I've had there over the years:

Jill Jackson

Jil Jackson

Scott Charles

Scott Charles

Patricia Panther

Patricia Panther

Channel 4

Channel 4

Sean Kennedy

Sean Kennedy is an up and coming Scottish singer-songwriter with whom I did a shoot last summer (you can read about it here). The results of that first session ended up on the cover of his debut EP "Love Don't Live Here" (as seen here) and I was looking forward to working with him again. This time it was an indoors shoot and we used Contrast Studio in Glasgow's city centre. Since the studio we used had plenty of natural light and it was a beautiful, late spring evening (something you don't get in Glasgow that often) we decided to split the shoot into 2 sections - one for shots with available light only and another using studio lighting. Huge thanks to Laurabelle, my light assistant supreme.

Horse

Ugh... It's been way too long since I've written anything but trust me, it's not for the lack of trying. It's March already and I don't even know what happened to February, let alone January. 2013 started off with a bang and it just keeps going. OK, I admit I have no clue what that's supposed to mean but it's late, I'm tired and my brain is fried so bear with me. I guess what I'm trying to say is that I've been extremely busy and thus neither had the time nor the energy to write anything. Some people blog all the time and make it seem effortless. Well, I'm not one of those people. There are quite a few different projects I would like to let you know about but this time I'm just going to mention a very special live event I was asked to photograph. Horse McDonald played the legendary Barrowlands in Glasgow last night accompanied by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra (conducted by Sally Herbert). The gig was flawless, electric and it was an absolute honour to have the opportunity to work alongside such talented people:

As it happens, it wasn't the first time I worked with Horse. Last year we went with her band to Strachur to take some promotional images for the new album Home. It was a horrible day, most of the shoot was outdoors and it was raining but I somehow remember it very fondly and, more importantly, we managed to get some decent shots in the end:

One of the main reasons the Strachur shoot is remembered so fondly by all involved is the hospitality with which we were received. The very talented Jacqueline Orr (whose paining is used on the cover of Horse's new album) was our host for the day and not only did she hold an umbrella over us when needed but also treated everyone to the most speculator feast - leg of lamb, champagne, wine, dessert, cheese, the works! This should be the rider for my photoshoots from now on: it's either lamb or I keep the lens cap on - blame Jacqueline! ;-)

So that's that, first post of the year. Don't know if I should feel celebratory or embarrassed that it took me so long but here we are. Happy 2013 to all of you.