My Camera Stories

My photos and the stories behind them

Category: street

  • Scotland Street Tunnel

    King George V Park is one of Edinburgh’s hidden spaces. Maybe not an obvious place for casual visitors because it’s just a local park – a green space for local folk who don’t have their own gardens, and a place for children to play. And it’s also, bizarrely, the site of a disused railway tunnel…

  • SEX before marriage = HELL after death

    Every year during the Edinburgh Festival Fringe, preachers make their way to the city centre to spread their message of hell and damnation. This image from 2003 captures a fleeting moment of tension on the bustle of the Royal Mile. The image is anchored by the preacher’s placard bearing a stark message: SEX before marriage…

  • Cane chair, Kelso

    I have no clear memory of taking this photo. From my notes, I know that it was taken using Kodak T-Max Pro 400. And from the context – the photos on either side of the negative were all shot in and around Kelso – I presume that that’s the location. But beyond that, my memory…

  • Liminal spaces

    According to the internet, liminal spaces are empty or abandoned places that appear eerie and forlorn. as such, I’m often drawn to photograph them. Reddit has a whole community dedicated to liminal spaces but beware – the posts there are often of back rooms or empty shopping malls with no real liminal qualities. Which begs…

  • But I don’t want to be a pig farmer

    If at first you don’t succeed, failure may be your style. It’s no good running a pig farm badly for 30 years while saying, ‘really, I was meant to be a ballet dancer.’ By then, pigs will be your style. There are many variations of this quote from Quentin Crisp. They’re all slightly different, and…

  • The MG Midget and the Beast from the East

    An MG Midget parked on a residential Edinburgh street during the Beast From the East in 2018 I had often seen and admired this car while out walking in Portobello. Some people like their vintage cars immaculate – concourse ready, as the phrase goes. I go more for the “gently distressed” look, so this car…

  • Victoria Street in the rain

    As I’m writing this, I have the windows wide open, enjoying the sounds and smells of a heavy rainfall during a break in a summer heatwave. There’s something special about British weather. Yes, we complain about it constantly. But those cloudy, overcast skies are a lot easier to live with than constant, relentless sunshine. And…

  • No Sitting

    The covid lockdown of 2020 was the most extreme event of my adult life. Here in Scotland, there were times when we were restricted to our homes, allowed to go out only for “essential purposes” and – once a day – for exercise. The exercise rule was strictly enforced. Yes, you could walk the length…

  • Machrie Bay Community Tuck Shop

    Think of the photo that you’re most proud of. Maybe it’s a portrait of a friend or family member. Maybe it’s a beautiful landscape that took hours of hiking to get there, and then even more hours of editing to get it just perfect. Maybe it’s a piece of street photography where all the elements…

  • Aberdeen Public Soup Kitchen

    In 1986, I didn’t really do street photography. My camera was a Zenit E – already a very heavy camera even before attaching the 58mm Helios lens. Somehow it never occurred to me to buy another lens so I was stuck with the 58mm focal length. The focal length was better suited for portrait work,…

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