I’m a photographer and filmmaker who gets it sorted. I’ve always felt that what I do is like making a jigsaw puzzle. I start off with a jumble of different pieces - casting, locations, props, equipment, the shoot, lighting, editing - and I bring each element together until I arrive at the perfect image. Unlike jigsaw puzzles, however, it’s something I genuinely love doing.
No brief is the same, and there’s always an element of the unexpected in every project. People especially become amazingly unpredictable in front of the lens. But years of experience have taught me how to get the best out of any situation. In fact, it’s where my name comes from – whatever the creative process turns up, I always get it sorted.
I grew up in a small town in Suffolk. Everyone I knew left school to work in a factory or a shop. I chose a camera shop. I started taking photographs as a hobby, and also worked part-time as a cinema projectionist in my run-down local cinema. (The sound system was so poor that it used to pick up passing minicab radio, which produced some exciting mid-film overdubs from Barry the controller.)
I learned my trade at Staffordshire University, and then moved to London to assist Lord Snowdon for several years before working freelance for some of my photography heroes, including the incredible David La Chapelle.
When I’m not working I’m usually watching films (Star Wars, Wizard of Oz, Book Smart or anything by Kubrick or Cameron) running marathons (eleven so far) or dreaming of one day going into space.
