How did you get started?
I picked up a Kodak Instamatic when I was about 10 years old and kept going. I made the decision to make photography my life soon after leaving school and I knew that outdoor sports photography was going to be my main direction. I moved to the Lake District when I was just 17 years old to make sure I was in a mountain environment and then spent every waking moment trying to get a break.
So what was your first job in photography?
I wrote to every photographer in the phone book and eventually landed a job as an assistant in a high street studio. Two years later I had my basic grounding in professional photography; I did weddings and portraits and commercial stuff, studio pack shots, mini lab d&p work, you name it.
You worked as a press photographer didn't you?
I got lucky - a news photo agency opened up in my town and I walked in and demanded to be given a job! They said yes and I spent the next few years shooting news photos for the national press. I got a front cover on the Guardian once and I worked all over the place including abroad. It was a good experience and taught me a lot about how photography tells a story. Unfortunately it all came to an end with the newspaper industry cutting costs, moving out of Fleet Street, going digital and putting a lot of photographers out of work, including me, so I spent a year as an expedition photographer in Patagonia which really set me up to start my life as a full time outdoor photographer.
When did you set up Mountain Sport Photography?
I got back from Patagonia in early 1990 and had no choice but to start up on my own. I arrived back with no home, job or money so I had nothing to loose.
Who are your main clients?
I've worked for many of the well known names in the outdoor industry doing photo-shoots, brochure work, studio shots and commercial work. These days I shoot a lot for agencies like the Lake District National Park Authority and the tourist board, but I still shoot commercial assignments for the outdoor trade and I provide a lot of stock imagery through various libraries including my own. I also shoot assignments and stock for the outdoor media and magazines and increasingly provide images for on-line applications too.
Do you ever work on large scale photo projects?
Yes, actually that's one area that I've done a lot with in recent years. I've got a lot of experience working on photography projects to do with promotion and regeneration. I did a six month project raising awareness of water sports and water recreation in the North West, another on developing tourism awareness in Cumbria and I worked with a project to highlight the North West Coastal Path access trail. I really like these projects because of the scope to develop the story and get under the skin of the subject - it's more photo-jounalistic than commercial and I respond to that.
Have you published any books?
I have, actually. I turned a few of my big photo projects into books because they had so many great images that really worked together. I've done book on Cumbria, and two others are in production (Cumbria Coast and Lancashire Coast) plus I did I book on the Isle of Wight sailing regatta at Cowes Week which I really enjoyed doing - I'd like to do more books like that, just documenting great sports events and how it feels to be part of that.
Tell us about your recent projects
The biggest development recently has been in teaching and workshops. I've been the visiting lecturer in photography at Kendal College in the Lake District for nearly eight years now and I've always offered photography workshops on my website (which are pretty popular). So I decided to set up a training organisation - NASOP. The National Academy for Sport & Outdoor Photography is all about giving outdoor sport and action photography in the UK a platform and an outlet for outdoor photography enthusiasts to learn and develop their creativity. Have a look at the NASOP website at www.nasop.co.uk for more information.
You have an events photography business as well don't you?
I started doing more and more event photography, particularly with marathons, triathlons and adventure races. I was covering these events for a number of magazines anyway and it seemed a natural progression to start doing event photos for the competitors to buy on-line. This is a really common model now but I wanted to offer a better product. I'm a professional sports photographer and my focus is on shooting the most dynamic, creative action pictures rather than machine gunning every competitor, so my aim is for Mountain Sport Events to be one of the best providers of really top class photos of whatever event we go to. Mountain Sport Events is at www.mountainsportevents.com