Tristan Cameron Harper

I've been meaning to do this post for ages but keeping this blog up to date is clearly not high on my agenda (despite the "UPDATE BLOG" scribbles on my notice board as well as notifications on my iPhone...)! Anyways.... Towards the end of last year, I had the pleasure of working with model/ice hockey player Tristan Harper. I rarely do TFP shoots so I'm quite careful about which projects I choose to get involved with under this banner. This one seemed like an interesting opportunity however as I didn't have photos of such bearded, tattooed and slightly rough around the edges guys in my portfolio. Tristan turned out to be an absolute gentleman and a total pleasure to work with. Results below:

After shoot selfie with Tristan.

The Scullery Bar & Kitchen

The Scullery is one of those places which despite having been open for only a few months already feels like a staple of Finnieston life. Maybe it's just because I visit it so frequently - it's practically on my door step, I'm in love with the decor and it doesn't hurt that their food is really good. I was first asked to photograph their interiors early summer last year when it was all still work in progress. I've since been back to capture the restaurant in its full, finished glory. Have a look at some of the before and after shots below and make sure to stop by if you happen to be in Finnieston area.

The Scullery Bar & Kitchen
10 Claremont Street
Glasgow G3 7HA

2015 Kick Off

Happy New Year to the 3 people who will read this, I'll take quality over quantity anytime though so I'm not complaining. 2014 was a hell of a ride for me on every level and I'm emotionally exhausted - family festivities over the Christmas period knocked out whatever energy I may have had left and now I'm flat on the floor trying to resuscitate myself (if you didn't know me you might think I've got a flare for drama and exaggeration...). So what now? Well, like in AA, I'm going to take it one step at a time - start with finishing this blog entry for example and then put my business cap on. Speaking of which, can anybody lend me one? I can take a pretty picture once in a while but I'm totally hopeless at the enterprise side of things. I guess if there's one resolution for 2015 it would be to strengthen the business side of what I do. Actually, it's not so much a resolution - it's more of a necessity really cause boy's gotta eat. And this boy likes to eat well! So I'll drink to that and leave you with a collage of some of my favourite shots from 2014:

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

Old Hollywood

I've always been obsessed with portraits from the Golden Age of Hollywood, especially the ones taken before World War II broke. I remember cutting out those Dietrich head shots by Don English or numerous publicity stills taken by George Hurrell from newspapers and magazines whenever there was an article on stars or films from that era. Sure, more often than not they were the results of painful sittings with subjects who were contractually obliged to have their shots taken by this or that particular photographer whether they approved of them or not and the end results were retouched to within an inch of their life (I find it funny when people go on about Photoshopping these days as if retouching was the digital age's invention) but when you look at those images today you cannot deny the fact that they are timeless. They will never age and they also seem to have a certain air of melancholy about them. I think my preoccupation with that particular style of photography can be seen in my work at times - the shadows, rich blacks, the drama, use of wide apertures, etc. It's not necessarily something I do consciously  - it just happens to be the kind of aesthetic I'm drawn to. I've always wanted however, to do a shoot that would directly pay homage to that era and this summer I was finally given an opportunity to do so.

I've written previously about the amazing Christine Bovill and her Piaf show at last year's Fringe Festival in Edinburgh and this July I was asked to take some publicity shots specifically to promote her Piaf performances - perfect opportunity to indulge my vintage Hollywood glamour obsession. The super-talented Caroline Stewart was in charge of hair and make up and here's a sample of what we managed to create:

At some point during the session I asked Christine to sing a song in order to get a few performance-like shots. After a few spine-tingling verses sung A capella in French, Caroline was reduced to tears. If you've not been as lucky and haven't had the chance to hear Miss Bovill live I urge you to do so immediately - she currently has a residency at Swing on Hope Street in Glasgow and you can see her perform live with The Shiverin' Sheiks every Thursday. Oh, it's free too!

I'm leaving you with a couple of images of a more dressed-down version of Christine take that same day: