FPA Member Profile

What came first, football or photography?
“Football. I had a football before I had a camera. I always wanted to be a footballer, and I always had a camera in my hand when I was a kid. Then when I was 14 I worked out I could enjoy both by being a football photographer, and I couldn’t see myself doing anything else. Lawrence Lustig (former Daily Star sports photographer) was a family friend, and I met him when I was about ten and he was covering Premier League football. I was in awe that you could go to Premier League football as a photographer. “

Who did you look up to when you were young, and who has helped you most with your development?
“I looked up to Kent Gavin – massively. My mum had his books on royal photography, and when he gave me a lift home when I was on work experience she almost wanted to have her photo taken with him.

When I was younger I looked up to lots of photographers and tried to take something from each of them. “

Favourite ground to work at and why?
“The old Highbury. Not because that is was photographically amazing, but when you look back there was such a good atmosphere, and it made nice pictures because you were low down.

Stadiums now are much the same. Favourite stadium today is Old Trafford, because there is something about going there that makes nice pictures. You seem to get nice sunsets in the north-west.”

Do you have favourite memory or anecdote from your time as a football photographer?
“When I was just starting at the Sunday People and still on trial, I got a last minute phone call to go and photograph Aldershot Town because the photographer going to the game had broken down.

I lived nowhere near Aldershot, and said I could only get there by the 60th minute, at best. I got there in the 75th minute, set my cameras up and the guy scored at the other end and ran back up the pitch towards me and fell on his knees. I sent the photo in and the office said I should go home, as they were going to publish that picture and no other.”

Favourite footballer to work with and why?
“Curtis Davis, who is an unbelievably nice guy. I knew him from when I was growing up when we played for rival school teams. I played for a good team, he played for a better one.

He gave me lots of his time when I did a shoot with him, and he has just qualified to be a journalist. I am able to replay the favour he has done me by getting him work experience.”

Canon, Nikon or Sony?
“Started with Canon, got a great deal with Nikon, never looked back.”

First match photographed?
“Leyton Orient v Blackpool.”

If you weren’t a photographer what would you be?
“Running a lovely restaurant in Spain when I retire.”

Best advice for youngsters?
“It’s tough to make a good living out of this industry, but if you are good enough and try hard enough you will. And learn from a genuinely good football photographer, take time to look and learn how they work, why they work that way and put your own mark on it.

There are too many filters on instagram and too much rubbish, and there are a lot of good photographers out there to learn from. It use to be that we would learn from being exposed to great photography when we were printing in darkrooms, scanning, filing football transparencies etc.

That no longer happens, so find the great photographers and learn from them.”

Biggest lesson learnt?
“Don’t put the bleach in before the dev! Coventry’s last goal in the Premier League, and I put bleach fixed in before developer and ruined Andy Budd’s film! My punishment was to run the films back from the match to the office at half time instead of processing them there.”