About

For twenty years I was a freelance photojournalist. I began my career with the fall of the Berlin Wall and ended that part of it in Iraq during the Second Gulf War.

I fell into Unit Stills work quite by chance. A brilliant filmmaker, who had seen my work in the Sunday Times Magazine, asked me if I would like to document his process during the making of his latest film. Initially I declined but, being a persuasive character, he offered me lunch and a tour of the sets they had at Pinewood Studios. I was curious and, not having ever been on a film-set before, happily took myself across London for a meeting. After a pleasant hour or so I was given a tour of the stages. On H-Stage there sat an original, full-size, Boeing-757, resplendent in United Airlines livery, sat up high on a giant hydraulic gimbal. At that moment I needed no more persuasion and ever since I’ve found the passion, madness and organised-chaos of filmmaking, addictive.

My skill as a photojournalist has been directly transferable to the film-set environment. Being discreet, managing pressure, keeping a positive energy, while continuing to make great imagery for the filmmakers, is a skill hard won through many trips to areas of conflict and disaster that have sadly afflicted mankind over the last three decades.

I’ve also learned a lot working with directors as diverse as Steven Spielberg, Kathryn Bigelow, JJ. Abrams, Paul Greengrass, Ron Howard, Justin Kurzel, Garth Davis, Gareth Edwards, Sam Mendez, Rian Johnson, David Yates and Gil Kenan. These individuals have given me a solid foundation in understanding what is generally required from a stills photographer and a work ethic that I hope would match theirs.

I’m not particularly driven by names or big studio films: I’m more than happy to lend my skills to smaller productions. My thrill is working with a cast and crew who have an enthusiasm for bringing a project to life and I’m just as content to be working on a romantic comedy as I am a gritty war theme. What I bring to every film-set is a trained eye with which to seek out unique moments that present themselves, without interrupting the flow of the day.