231027 Collection Digital Cover 1 - Flipbook - Page 22
“I am definitely my own biggest critic, and
whichever mistakes I make, I to try to be
as honest as I can – with myself and others.”
R
So if it’s all concepts and art, then why do you try to make people look good?
R
Is there any work you’ve done that you’ve hated?
R
It’s not that I’m trying to make them just look good, but I do want them
to enjoy the process and also go away and tell other people that I’m
good. Interestingly for me, when you use a collaborative technique,
you’ll find people being quite vulnerable. As a photographer, it’s very
easy to be a dictator, to tell the world how you see it at the expense of
the subject, and their feelings about themselves. Personally, I feel that
approach would make me very dishonest. Yes, I believe in the empirical
view, but at the same time, that interaction that I have with the subject
is me really trying to see them for who they are and what they want
to be. It’s kind of like falling in love. The worst thing is when you don’t
have any connection, and even though you try every trick in the book,
nothing works! However, the best thing is when they look at the picture
and say “wow, that really looks like me.” There are very few things you
can compare it to – it’s like seeing that person and authentically
expressing that feeling.
R
Finally, a good question! I really believe that you have to make mistakes.
And I have made hundreds. For me to be creative, I need to do two
things: one, I have to be bored to be able to think of ideas. So the 24/7
cycle of social media and entertainment is something I have to step out
of regularly. And two, I have to make work. A lot of the projects I’ve
done in my life, which were self-perpetuating (i.e. there was no budget
for them, apart from my own) have been the ones that have propelled
me and made me a better person, not just a better photographer.
It’s going back to that Glaswegian thing again – I am definitely my
own biggest critic, and whichever mistakes I make, I to try to be as
honest as I can – with myself and others. I accept responsibility for my
failures and try to learn from them and get better. There are lots
of things I’ve done that I don’t love and some things I even dislike
immensely. Hate is such a strong word but there are probably some
things I really hate. For me, it’s important to put those out into the
world and not shy away from them. Plus, there are lots of things I’ve
done that other people hate. But that’s OK – I would rather have
enmity than indifference.
R
Okay, let’s get more specific. Who have you photographed that you hated?
R
Honestly, I don’t hate anyone. I was brought up in a very Scottish/
Glaswegian household. Even though I may not sound Scottish, it runs
through my veins. That upbringing really prepared me for life as
a photographer. For one, I never put people on pedestals, but I never
look down on them either. So I see and treat them all as humans.
Then I’m just nosy, I’m very inquisitive about the human condition.
Most photographers will say that they have to love the subject to
really work with it, to really see it. Some love landscapes, fashion
or travel, some love nudes. I love people.
R
But you objectify them?
R
I would say that I don’t. Yes, I use lots of visual signs to make an image
very exciting to look at, but actually I’m looking for something beyond
that. Something that humans can feel or sense, without being able to
put it into words. It’s a rubbish word, but I would say I subjectify them.
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R
Finally, is there anything you’re working on that you’re excited about?
R
Yes, but you are such an awful interviewer, that I’m not gonna tell you!
Honestly, don’t give up the day job.
