Untitled Document

I was born in 1961 in north London and for as long as I can remember I have had an interest in imagery. I can’t remember where or when I first became interested in photography but I can remember the first photograph I took that I was really pleased with, when I was 18 I started work in a photographic studio and retail outlet. After working there for a short while and getting myself a decent camera kit I started taking my photography seriously and not long after that I got my first commission, a friends wedding.

Over the next 7 years I stayed working in the retail side of the business and at the same time doing private work, mostly weddings and portraits but a few articles for magazines, mainly custom bike shows because I was really into the custom bike scene at the time.

At the end of 1986 I started working for myself specialising in wedding and portrait work but after 18 months I gave up doing photography full time because I just wasn’t enjoying what I was doing. So from the end of 1988 until July 92 I was working full time and doing photography as a part time business.

In July 92 something happened that was going to change everything. I was working as a boat builder, a job that I had been doing for about 2 years. I was on my bike riding home from work when a car pulled out on me on a crossroads, resulting in me being in hospital for a month with a smashed up right leg followed by nearly a year on crutches.

During this time I went to the first Tattoo convention in Gt Yarmouth, more commonly known as Art Attack. While I was there I was looking through the photographs the artists were using to advertise themselves and to be honest they were crap. It was just after this that I had the idea of supplying good quality photographs both to artists and to collectors. I’ve been into tattoos for years having my first when I was seventeen, so in a way it was joining two things I felt and still feel passionate about.

When Skin Deep the UK’s leading tattoo mag started they did a feature on me in the very first issue and I’ve been doing work for them ever since, through various staff and management changes, in fact I’m the only person still doing work for Skin Deep who was there in the begining.