Dang ! ..

I know I've just come back from a week in Dubai but, to be honest, with the weather we're having here in England right now -  and the dismal state of the country - I could do with re-packing my bags and buggering off to .. oh, anywhere!

I heard a phrase the other day which, now I know it, keeps popping up all over the place. Pathetic Fallacy. In other words, all this rain and cold weather is directly connected to the downcast mood of the country. Certainly feels like it and, ok, it is just a coincidence, but if this was a film then this is exactly the sh*tty weather you'd set as the backdrop to the country going down the pan ..

Anyway, let's not be gloomy ........... !!! ...

Thoughts of warmer climes led me back to my travel shots from years gone by and here's one of my faves. A road sign in Sri Lanka that should read 'Danger' .. only some driver had smacked off half the wording to leave it reading 'Dang'! You gotta laugh ..
 

Nutty ..

I'm skipping right along from England's disastrous dismissal from the Euros last night (That's football, for those of you lucky people living on another continent) and looking ahead to my great  summer of Wedding Photography ..

To be honest, my year's been a bit hit and miss for bookings so far but, come next week, I pile into the season proper with a long stream of dates in the diary. I've got such a variety of Weddings to come, too. In fact, my very next one will see me afloat on the Manchester Ship Canal as the Wedding party sails from Ordsall Hall in Salford to their reception at the Imperial War Museum North. The week after that I'll be photographing a Wedding in a tepee and then I've got, amongst others, dates at Crewe Hall, Didsbury House and Styal Lodge to look forward to. I had a meeting with my 'Crewe Hall bride' last week and her Mum confessed to me that they booked me because I was "nutty" ..

I do like that ..  

Stexit? ..

In or out, remain or leave? Well folks, it's been a tough decision and I've thought about it long and hard but now, this Monday morning, I can tell you I've decided to leave ..

Oh, sorry .. not the EU, I'm talking about my studio. This week marks the third anniversary of its opening and, to mark the occasion ... I'm shutting it down ..

Yes, tears all round but reality must be faced up to and the cold hard fact is this ..
it just hasn't worked! Quite simply, not enough people have come along to be photographed and it sits there empty, day after soul-destroying day ..

However, all is not lost and, in true EU style, I am about to renegotiate my position and will have some good news by this time next week. I already have a new plan in place meaning I'll still be able to offer studio photography and I'll be able to offer more 'location' photography to the good people of the North West. So it's onwards and upwards and, like a certain other story that's knocking about, I've taken control of my borders and opened up my markets ..   

Let's hear it for Stexit .. 

Oh, sh*t ..

I voted In .. and now we're Out. I feel decidedly queasy this morning.

Cameron's already announced his resignation and the pound has plummeted ..

God help me I hope I'm wrong but, right now, this shot from my archive perfectly sums up

my view of the UK's future ..

Ali ..

It's taken me a while but I thought I'd dig this out to show you. It's the autograph of Muhammad Ali, which he gave me when I photographed him once for a PR client. (Actually, now I think about it, it was Max Clifford, but let's not go there now, eh?) It was written in shaky Parkinson's inflicted handwriting on May 30th 1992. Sad to think he's now gone but, like a lot of illnesses, you have to admit it was on the cards. Alas, the recent sudden death of my pal wasn't anything anyone was expecting, and I'm still so shocked to think I'll never see him again ..

Anyway, I'm not going to get all maudlin' on you but "Life's too short" is an expression I'm hearing more and more so .. shut up and get on with it, Martin!

Born again ..

  

Your Blog must be integrated into your web-site. This is what I read and so this is what is going to happen from now on. From this day on my blog is going to be here. How it'll pan out is anyone's guess but, as my blog is 'the ramblings of a professional photographer', then what better way to kick off than with .. a picture of said photographer!
This was shot at the Festival of Power and Speed at Cheshire's Cholmondeley Castle just over a week ago. I was there on Press Day to photograph for a PR client and I'm no petrol-head but what an exciting day it was ..

Anyway, there ya go .. a picture with a car to drive my web-site forward. Yes, new site but the jokes don't get any better ..

For Dad, and for David ..

Here's my Dad, messing about with my old Zenith EM, circa 1977. Father's Day has become a rather sad affair since he died just before it in 2009, but today was made even sadder with the news that a friend of mine, a proud Dad himself, lost his fight for life after a serious illness. If your old man's still knocking about then go and hug him right now. Hug him, buy him a pint, tease him about his crappy taste in shirts .. just love him whilst you still can ..

For Dad, and for David .. 

Coming home ..

Football's coming home, and so is Tim Peake! Well, one out of two ain't bad! Welcome home, Major Tim, and congratulations on one hell of a fascinating mission. Now there's somebody whose autograph I'd ask for ..

.. which is more than can be said for the lads in the England football team. I know they scraped a win on Thursday but man, they play such an uninspiring game. I've learnt a lot though, watching the Euros over the past week. First of all, I now know it's very important to say that a team plays "on the front foot". That makes it sound like they actually hop around the pitch, but there ya go. Secondly, everyone on a team must speak with their hand over their mouth. This is vital. Thirdly, if you're stuck in traffic on the way home from work, it's helpful to know that most games actually only achieve anything in the last 90 seconds of extra time. You should know too that players spend more time on their hair and beards than actually training. This is also vital. Ooh, such pretty boys! Finally, and most fascinatingly, I learnt that, in every game, each player - on average - covers the turf with approximately one and a half gallons of spit!

So now you know ..

Ps; Today's shot - and I know I've shown it before - is another from my archive, circa 1980. 

Footie ..

One of the 'perks' of self-employment is that your boss always lets you have time off when there's footie on telly. Yesterday I put in a request for a half-day and I very kindly agreed to let me have it, and so it is that this afternoon will see me glued to the box for the England and Northern Ireland games. Handy that, isn't it?..

Ps: As you can see from this shot from archive, actually photographing the game was never one of my strong points..

The Manchester Bomb ..

It's 20 years since the 'Manchester Bomb'. I'll always remember that day as I was working on a PR job at Warrington Hospital at the time the bomb went off, but had been made to switch off my mobile 'phone whilst I took my photographs. I missed the whole damn thing!..

This cute shot of a parade - taken from my archive - is an appropriate picture to mark the event, and residents of our fair city may recognise in it the scene of the event. The bomb was planted just the other side of the iconic scalloped roofing of the old Marks and Spencer building. A couple of years later, after that entire edifice was demolished because of the bomb-damage, I was booked by M&S to photograph the start of the new building work. Ironic .. 

Three wishes ..

This time last week - almost to the minute as I write this - we entered Dubai airport to start our journey back to the UK. It was our last taste of the scorching sunshine and unbearable 43 degree heat. We literally hadn't seen a cloud for a week. "Wouldn't it be nice .." we laughed " .. to stand in a rain shower and feel cool water on our faces? .." It's practically not stopped raining since! Be careful what you wish for, eh?..

A couple who came to see me about their Wedding photography yesterday had one simple wish. They wanted to find a photographer who'd take their Wedding photographs the way they wanted them taken. They'd already been to see two other photographers and were getting fed up. "We just want to find a photographer .." said the groom " .. who'll take the kind of pictures we want, not the kind the photographer wants for their portfolio .." I hope I can make their wish come true ..

Three wishes? How about world peace? Workable gun laws in the US? A decline in CO2 levels? A decent English summer? A clear-cut answer to the EU referendum? A goal-scoring English football team?

Man, I think we'd better make that 300 wishes ..

Spotless ..

You may know that I was recently in the privileged position of being asked to shoot an old friend's Wedding. Did I mention he also happens to be a press photographer? I have never before been given so much 'guidance' whilst I've been shooting a Wedding! "Try it landscape now.." he'd say .. or "Come in closer" or "Let's shoot some over there .." You get the idea! Grrr! However, I'm pleased to say he is delighted with the results and so is his new Brazilian bride. The funny thing is, I got a glowing revue on Facebook from one of her Brazilian guests. It's not exactly 'Lost in translation' but it's so cute I thought I'd repeat it in full ..

"Highly recommend Martin! Absolutely amazing making his job with a great sense of humour! You don't feel bored with him! His work is just spotless!!.."

Obrigado, Ms Gomes!..    

Back from my hols ..

Dubai! What a place! What heat! What, eleven quid for a pint?? ..

A little montage of my week's trip for you, including several selfie takers, a dune safari into the desert, a trip to Burj Khalifa - the world's tallest building - and a woman in full burqa with a TopShop bag. I'm dying to know what she bought!! Click the pix to see them larger ..

Of course, reality has kicked in again and today I swap the shiny brand-newness of Dubai for the slightly older grandeur of Cholmondeley Castle to shoot the 'Pageant of Power' for a PR client of mine. Over the weekend I have two new brides coming to see me about my Wedding photography and, in between that, there just happens to be the start of Euro '16.
Very excited!..

Goodbye, Dubai ..

Back last night from a rather unexpected week in Dubai and all I can say is .. I've never seen so many people taking selfies! A bigger blog to come when I've got my breath back ..

Horses for courses ..

Having a great time this weekend ..

Yesterday I shot the Wedding of a very old pal of mine - a privilege to be asked and a pleasure to oblige, although perhaps I should say 'long-time' pal, as he's actually a year younger than I am! We had a blast, walking and shooting all the way from Manchester Registry Office to the reception at the new Innside Hotel opposite the site of the Hacienda nightclub. Many congratulations guys ..

Today? Horses! I dipped my toe into the world of equine photography down at a nearby farm, where I was photographing horses and their owners, taking the total number of frames shot in 2 days to 1,700! Who said Bank Holidays are relaxing?..

For Dad ..

Nothing to say today other than to mark the 7th anniversary of my Dad's death. My dear lovely Dad, who let me 'practice' my photography on him before I got my break on a newspaper. Patient? No, just the biggest poser on the planet, and my career has been all the better for it! God bless you, Dad ..

Cup Final Day ..

The morning of the FA Cup Final, and I remember how exciting it used to be as a kid, playing footie in the street as we built up to the three o'clock kick-off. Later, working for the Manchester Evening News, I'd usually be deployed to local bus-stations to shoot Man U fans departing to Wembley. I'll never forget the excitement though when, just a few days into my career as a press photographer in 1978, I had to photograph the team's Captain, Martin Buchan. Ok, so he was only opening a paint and wallpaper shop in Altrincham but, for me at 18, this was a sure sign I'd hit the big time!!..

Come on you reds ..

Back to Liverpool ..

It was back to Liverpool last night for the second PR shoot in a week. After photographing the opening of a new Dunkin' Donuts store on Tuesday it was time to cover the Liverpool City Region Tourism Awards at the amazing St George's Hall. Had a great night, and can't believe I've never been to such a fantastic venue before now. All that, and a set by The Christians thrown in ..

Back down to earth today with a booking to shoot a series of corporate portraits on an industrial estate in Salford and then it's a Saturday with my feet up to watch Man U in the FA Cup Final. Not to rub it in but I hope we do better than Liverpool did ..

So this is permanence?..

 Sticking with the theme of Memories in May, I dug out an old scrap-book that features this Eccles Journal cutting of my first ever published newspaper photograph. It was in this month in 1977 that, as a 16 year old, I got my 'big break' into press photography and the rest, as they say, is history ..

Also assigned to history is Hooky's 'So this is permanence' gig, which took place a year ago today in Macclesfield. He sang every single one of Joy Division's songs in a gig that will stay forever in my mind, and that in itself was to mark the day that the band's lead singer killed himself. Good to see then that, almost forty years on, both Hooky and I are still doing what we love.
Pretty permanent, eh?..

Aim high, kids ..

Here I am, aiming high and obviously wanting to go places! Incredible for me to believe but it's - almost exactly to the day - 40 years since I left school. May 1976, just at the start of one of the hottest ever summers and that was me done. I was out of there like a shot, not quite as young as I am in this photo but still a mere 15 year old schoolboy with the words of my careers teacher ringing in my ears. When he asked me what I wanted to do when I left school I told him I wanted to be a photographer. His encouraging reply? "Be realistic!"..

It took me only two more years before I was a professional photographer ..