The Flashback series for the Guardian Saturday Magazine continues, and here are four of the latest shoots that have been published. My shoots replicate images of celebrities from their younger days.
Here we have JLS, Sadie Frost with her mum Mary, AJ and Curtis Pritchard and Vick Hope with her mum Ade
Shot for Guardian Saturday Magazine
The Guardian Weekend Magazine has just had a redesign and relaunched under the new name Guardian Saturday Magazine. With the new redesign they have introduced the weekly feature ‘Flashback’. This weekly feature is about celebrities contributing a picture from the old days and they tell a story about that picture and that time in their lives. I have been been commissioned to do most of these shoots and so far it’s been very challenging but also really fun. Here are the first 4 shoots in the series that I have been involved in, with the help of Andie Redman who is responsible for the props and set:
Sophie Elis Bextor and mum Janet Ellis
Pepsi and Shirley
Sindhu Vee and her dad
Jamie Lang
Shot for The Guardian Saturday Magazine
It’s not every day you get an invite to Elton’s fairytale mansion. Of course, the invite would have been a little more special had it been an invite for lunch, but I’ll settle for an invite to photograph Elton in his place. It is however really unfortunate that we are in Covid times, as the restrictions on where we could shoot meant we were could only shoot outside. I can only imagine how dazzling the inside of his house would be.
Elton is helping promote the artist John Grant, so the shoot was of the two together. Not much time and restricted to one setup, but we managed to get a backdrop up, battle the summer breeze and plow through the summer heat. Admittedly my face mask at the end bore proof of the heat and the rush to get it all done in the allocated time.
It was a shoot with tinted sunglasses, Gucci outfits and Talk-Talk T-shirts, Rolex watch and Doctor Martin boots.
Elton was friendly and professional. He knew what was expected of him. John was genuinely humble, kind and lovely to work with. Next time I hope to get to shoot them individually. Not just one frame on a 10X8 analogue camera (which I managed to squeeze in) - but two whole shoots with them individually. But as I started off saying - with Elton you take what you can get.
Shot for the Observer New Review
You do not have to be around in the 80’s to know Tiffany - but it helps. I remember her biggest hit very well, as it was a big hitter just as I was in my most impressionable age. Well - she’s back! Or, has she always been back but just not on my radar?
This shoot took place at a rehearsing studio in Brighton where she was rehearsing with her band prior to a UK tour.
Shot for Observer New Review
Slowthai is the kind of subject that is a real treat to shoot. Maybe not at first glance, but as soon as you have him in front of the camera you realise his ability to give you his all. He brings both humour and attitude to the images. He is Rap, punk and rock at the same time. Short hair and expressive eyes. He’s a bit like how I would have expected Johnny Rotten to be 40 years ago, but I’d hazard a guess that Slowthai is more approachable and friendly.
Before this shoot I took some time to catch up on Slowthai’s music videos. It was evident that he put a lot of emphasis on imagery and humour. When I got access to his studio, a warehouse/storage unit style building in Northampton, we saw many of the props that were used in his videos. As this was to promote Slowthai’s new album, we steered away from this, and found an empty shell of a room a little further down the hall. Dusty, shelves half destroyed, old sofa and chairs and some doors off the hinges, I immediately fell in love with the location. We started the shoot here before continuing onto an estate-style square with boarded up shops not far away from the studio.
Such a fun guy to work with - and his music and music videos, his creative talent and strong political voice is all to be respected.
Shot for Observer New Review
I met Hannah for the first time, over Skype in the end of the first lockdown in 2020. Hannah had agreed to take part in my personal project Rear View Window, photographing people in isolation due to Covid, from around the world. I instantly warmed to Hannah. She has one of those personanilities that instantly makes you feel welcome, even if she is 500 miles away in the north of Ireland, and not there in front of me in person. We spoke a little about her great work as a musician and radio host, before I directed her around her house in Belfast. Her house was like a musician’s dream - filled with sound proof rooms, mixing tables, microphones , piano, harp and other instruments. The view was of the Irish sea. What’s not to like?!
It was such a surprise to get a message from Hannah a few months later saying that the Observer were going to do a feature on her and she’d asked her PR to suggest me to take the portrait for the feature.
A week later, Hannah was in London for a 48 hour trip, to record with an orchestra. One day was set aside for the shoot, but unfortunately London was in total lockdown, and the weather forecast was 100% rain. Oh!!!
Hannah and I talked, I suggested a few places where we might find some cover, but that were not very relevant to Hannah or her work. Hannah eventually suggested that we could get access to a music shop in North London called Audio Gold. Talk about a perfect venue! It had the retro recording equipment from the same period that Hannah sampled on her new album Fir Wave. As Hannah explains:
“The specialist library label KPM, gave me permission to reinterpret the original music of the celebrated 1972 KPM 1000 series: Electrosonic, the music of Delia Derbyshire and the Radiophonic Workshop.”
I turned up to the shop an hour before Hannah. The place was filled with second hand record players, amplifiers, speakers, vinyls and anything else you can imagine that has to do with music. It is a treasure trove for all music enthusiasts. A place where all your dreams come true, and the people who work there have the knowledge and are friendly enough to care. It was a perfect fit for Hannah. Not only is Hannah someone who is knowledgable about all instruments and how to combine them with technology, but her passion for all things ‘sound’ fits right in with the ethos of the shop. (And I managed to buy myself a vinyl of the live album Live at Carnegie Hall - Bill Withers - I love it!)
Hannah seemed like a good friend from the first word we spoke, remotely over Zoom. We’ve kept in touch since - and although we have only spoken a few times, it feels like I’ve known her for ages. Some people just make you feel at ease when you speak to them, and Hannah is just one of those people. Apart from the good news that Hannah has released the album Fir Wave - she is now also back on the air waves with her radio show Night Tracks - a show that gives that nice comforting feeling.
Shot for Observer New Review
Our radio DJs have been saviours for many of us people during lockdown. This shoot with Lauren Laverne was shot in true Covid lockdown fashion; outside and socially distanced. Just outside the BBC Radio broadcast building in Central London, we waited, ready to photograph Lauren as she finished her breakfast show for BBC6 Music. It was requested that I took some shots of her with the iconic BBC entrance behind her, but when I looked across the street, I saw a building site that made for a much more interesting image. Especially in contrast with Lauren’s flowery dress.
Shot for Observer New Review
Anoushka Shankar is not only the daughter of the world’s best known Sitar player but she is also an incredibly talented Sitar player herself. There was an incredibly calm aura about Anoushka as well as being friendly, fun and kind. Am I right in saying that the feeling of calm goes hand in hand with the image of Sitar?! Although I think that’s the case, the complexity of playing an instrument like the Sitar should surely make one wired, and not calm. The sitar, is hugely personal, often custom made, and has an almost religious aura about it. I had a blanket for this shoot and had to stand above Anoushka to photograph her. To be able to be on the blanket where Anoushka was playing the sitar, I had to take shoes off. Not to preserve the state of my blanket, but because I was on the blanket with the Sitar. A respectful way to treat such a complex instrument.
This shoot was for the Observer Food Monthly so an element of food needed to be included. As well as turning lettuce leafs into a pattern that would correspond with the pattern of my blanket, I also made a Sitar out of a Squash and had the lettuce leaves on Anoushka’s shoulders, almost like the base of some angel wings.
Shot for OFM
Sheku is a Cellist who won the 2016 BBC Young Musician award. Young and funky looking guy with a Cello! A nice, gentle man, who has enjoyed a lot of fame since 2016, most noticeably for playing at Prince Harry and Meghan Markle’s wedding.
This shoot was for OFM magazine and therefore included food. I thought of putting fruit and veg as notes on a piece of paper that he could play. Maybe the music play out loud is not the most appropriate, but it was the first that came to hand when I searched online.
Shot for Observer Food Monthly
Liz Bonnin is one of the best known faces of the natural world. For those of you who are not familiar with Liz’s work, she at the forefront in the battle against plastic and reports on issues effecting the natural world. She’s a natural history presenter, biochemist, wild animal biologist, has presented Top of the Pops, and started her career by being a backing vocalist for the band The Pale. Yep - on paper that is the same as saying “living the dream”. Not only has she done all the jobs I would have loved to do (apart from my current job of being a photographer, which is pretty epic,) but she is genuinely lovely to work with.
As if she hadn’t done enough epic things already - on the shoot Liz was excited about working on the Planet Earth Live in Concert - a live show at the O2 arena. And what a show that will be when the Corona virus is finally under wraps and we are all allowed out on big events again. At the moment that looks to be spring 2022.
Shot for Saga Magazine
It still surprises me that some people have not yet heard about James Acaster. I have, in the last couple of months introduced this comedy genius to at least 10 people, and that is without going from door to door selling him like a Jehovah. He is in my eyes one of the funniest guys around, with his non offensive, quirky, off the wall stand up shows, his nonsensical presence at panel shows, creative humour at it’s best, and dare I say - literary comedy genius. (I am of course only saying this as I have shot his two book covers and hope to have the book go down in history as literary milestone).
Reading James’ Wikipedia, especially the section under Music Career, reads like a part of James’ comedy, and probably is. James has turned his real life happenings into comedy gold and first came to my consciousness as a guest on the Josh Widdicombe show, where he told stories of incidents in his life. This later also became his first book, ‘Classic Scrapes’. For that first book cover, James brought in a lettuce head, something he used to get sent to him by fans relating to something he had mentioned on his podcast. This latter book cover went all out and created a window space for James. This was to give a nod to Leonard Cohen’s last album cover. And in this book - ‘Perfect Sound Whatever’ - James talks of unfortunate incidents in his life and the power of musical a tool of comfort.
Lastly, James is just a brilliant guy to work with. Chilled, funny, genuine and quirky - a perfect mix. You just can’t imagine him not being everyone’s best friend.
Shot for Headline Publishing
