Two Guitar Greats In One Week.

What a great week I've had.

On Monday night the utterly brilliant Joe Bonamassa played to a sell out Glasgow Concert Hall and last night I had a front row seat for a very intimate but also sold out and equally brilliant Nils Lofgren.

I'm not going to try and tell you how good both gigs were as I don't have the ability.

I used my girlfriends wee digital camera to get a few images of Nils in action. It was a bit naughty as photography was strictly banned.......... but I couldn't help myself!

Winter Is Not Far Away.

I like this time of year as some of the colours to be seen are spectacular as nature takes its annual cycle into winter.














Yesterday afternoon in the Botanic Gardens as the sun was setting was the place to be.



Landscape photography is on hand even in the city.

Couldn't Resist This.

I spotted this old LP in the window of a second hand vinyl record shop in Byres Road yesterday called The Great Scots Arrive.

I say "old" as it was a mono recording and features a band resplendent in full kilt outfits playing electric guitars. I'll bet that went down really well with the traditionalists from the mid sixties. Check out the link as they were written up as "Canada's answer to the Beatles" ........ honest!

Now I feel really old!

Commonwealth Games Handover Spectacular.

I watched the official handover of the Commonwealth games from Delhi to Glasgow today with great interest as a couple of weeks ago I had been commissioned to photograph much of the preparation and choreography for the ceremony here in Glasgow. In the past, I have covered three Commonwealth Games as a sports photographer so it was interesting for me to see all the hard work and preparation that goes into the closing ceremonies.

Until today I had been sworn to keep it all under wraps. Over 350 people from all over the country took part and I witnessed the first inflation of the giant "Armadillo". It was astonishing to see such a huge structure taking shape so quickly and all done by leaf blowers. All in all, about two weeks of hard work went into the rehearsals all of which was done well out of sight from everyone not involved.

What can I say ?

It was a very spectacular display by everyone concerned and I'm sure it has gone a long way to showcase Glasgow on the world map.

The Games will be here in four years.

The Tartan Army.

The city centre was awash with soccer fans today.

The reason.... well, the world champions Spain are in town and are playing Scotland at Hampden Park this evening.

Scottish fans are collectively known as the "Tartan Army" and are known worldwide for their friendly demeanor. Our history on the pitch of late has been a bit ropey, a far cry from when I was a wee boy in the sixties. Back in those days we had legendary players like, Jim Baxter and Jimmy Johnstone. These guys were fierce rivals when playing for their respective clubs Rangers and Celtic but when they pulled on the Scottish jersey, they were poetry in motion. I took a shot of them back in 1992 after they had both long been retired from the game and it was good to see that they were still full of life.

I not a great football fan and to be honest I could hardly name anyone playing in today's team.

I hope they do well tonight.


News update....... We came back from 0-2 down to 2-2 but in the closing minutes the world champs scored a winning goal. As we say here in Scotland, " Nae Luck"!

Sir Norman Wisdom 1915-2010.

As a news photographer, I have photographed many famous people from the world of show business over the years.

Back in 1993 I was sent out to photograph Norman Wisdom and we had a milk float as a prop. I think he had played a hapless milkman in a much earlier film and we were recreating some type of anniversary of its first screening. I'm just not sure as it was so long ago.

He would have been 78 years old at the time and I remember being totally amazed at the ease with which he jumped on and off the float. He was a very fit man for his age.

He asked me if I could send on some photos which I did. A few weeks later, a very nice thank you letter arrived at the office.

Showbiz characters are always larger than life. Some take themselves too seriously. He certainly didn't.

My very brief encounter with him was very enjoyable.

Robyn's Return Visit.

After her first studio shoot last year which lead to her winning the "Face of Sophie Teenware", young Robyn came back to update her portfolio recently.

She has decided to pursue a career in the beauty business and in the meantime, she is on the books of several agencies and is still modeling.

Jake's Journey Begins.

A couple of years ago, Jake's dad was having photographs taken in the studio for his web site. After the session, he saw a photo of my son at a few days old and intimated that when he became a dad, he would get a similar shot taken.

Well guess what?

He got in touch a few days ago as his day had come and here are some of the images.

You have to do this type of shot in the first week of life. If you leave it any longer, the newborn baby features are lost forever.