Blog
Beyond the Headshot
Not all my portrait assignments are for editorial or corporate clients. From time to time, individuals commission me as photographer to help build their own professional identity: a strong profile picture will support their social media presence and PR goals. The traditional industry term of what’s required might be a headshot, but I approach a profile picture as a portrait. For me it is an opportunity to make an image that represents various aspects of who my subject is and what they do – not simply a shot of of their head. Here’s how…
Defender of Planet Earth
The man whose portrait I took recently in Nice is on a mission to save the world. From his South of France observatory, Dr Patrick Michel is part of an international team working to protect Planet Earth from being obliterated by an asteroid.
3 Rugby Legends
As the world pauses, and half the planet is confined with Covid19, international sports matches are a distant memory. Many photographers are struggling with inactivity; for athletes I can imagine staying isolated indoors is especially tough. In recent months, just before the Iockdown, I made portraits of three stars in a single sport: rugby.
Arles Exhibition
Every summer, I head to Les Rencontres d’Arles. Arguably the world’s most prestigious photography festival, Arles is a great chance for me to see a range of new, contemporary photography and catch up with friends and clients. Many travel much further than I, from the French Riviera, to come to this event in the South of France – photographers and photo editors alike. This year was special: not only was it the event’s 50th birthday, but I was among the photographers with work on show.
Egyptian Electronica
Did you know that the world’s first electronic music remix was produced in the 1940s by a Cairo composer? I certainly didn’t, and the opportunity to discover new worlds is one of the things I love most about being an editorial photographer. Egypt is home to a strong musical tradition, and it is not just about belly dancing, folk music or Middle Eastern pop. A vibrant underground dance music scene is growing fast, and I flew from Nice to Cairo on assignment for Aramco World magazine this summer to photograph its rising stars.
Making of a Cover Portrait
A roasting summer sun. An eye-popping colour palette. An opera singer diva. A ticking clock. This cover portrait shoot in Aix-en-Provence was a feisty one.
The assignment was for Finland’s number one women’s magazine, Kotiliesi. I’d been chosen as photographer to take the portrait of world-famous Finnish opera singer Karita Mattila during her South of France tour. In 2001, the New York Times pronounced the soprano “the best singer of the year” and, nearly 20 years later, she doesn’t seem to have lost it. Karita’s performance at the Aix Festival was being applauded by international press as a “late-career renaissance”.
Toddler TV Hero
You may not have heard of Keith Chapman, but the chances are that you’ve come across his creations. Known and loved by millions worldwide (admittedly, many of them under 5 years old), the characters from Chapman’s TV series have become international cultural icons in their own right. Yes, Bob the Builder and Paw Patrol are among the best known children’s animated TV shows of all time, and the man I was sent to photograph by German weekly business magazine Wirtschaftswoche, invented them both.
Mission to the Moon
I had a trip planned last weekend, but as soon I got a call about this Saturday night assignment, I knew that I would move mountains to make it possible. It had it all: creativity, a giant laser, a middle of the night rendez-vous, an international space artist and a first of its kind event worldwide. How could a photographer possibly refuse? It would doubtless be the closest I’d ever get to space travel.
Monaco Grand Prix
Monaco Grand Prix: the name alone conjures images of champagne, speedy cars, big money and dashing, daring drivers. This May, under the bright French Riviera sunshine, I captured all this and more, on an unusual and privileged event photographer commission. However, most of the exclusive photos that I took behind the scenes of the race can never be shown.
Construction Portraits
Not all the environmental portraits I take are set under the blue skies and palm trees of a quintessential French Riviera. France’s number one construction trade magazine, Paris-based ‘Le Moniteur du BTP’, regularly sends me as assignment photographer to take pictures of the industry’s regional leading lights in & around Nice, Grasse and Cannes. Instead of setting these portraits in recognisable South of France locations, I generally shoot them in factories and on building sites.