In a little over eight hours, I shot more than 7,000 frames, a handful of which have gone to press. My strongest images, I’ve crafted into something different this time … an inspiring piece of art. Here’s a taster of what our new Read the full post >>

“Daddy, can I be a Formula One driver?” will be a question one of my little boys is going to ask sooner or later. I don’t wanna kill your dreams boy, but the reality if that you’re about double the height of an average F1 driver. It’s like being a jockey. You’ve gotta be tiny and lean to enjoy horsepower at its maximum. My boys would be better preparing themselves for a lifetime of being asked whether they’re basketball players instead …

Saying that, if you can find something you love doing and work out how to make money doing it, you’ve arrived. Perhaps buy your own F1 team and race the world best Grand Prix circuits? Or join the elite class of Ferrari Corse Clienti, where ex F1 cars are transformed into customer driving experiences. Of course, I’d be happy to come and take pictures of you flying around the track, similar to what Ferrari kept me Read the full post >>

“Love to run, run and run.” Cath is one of the unsung heroes when it comes to ultra distance running. She’s run over a dozen 100 milers in different parts of the world and this summer, she’s gearing up for a second bash at a sub-30 hours Badwater, one of the worlds toughest foot races entailing 135 miles out in the brutal heat of Death Valley. Hats off to her!

How did we get together? I’ve known Cath for a few years. I shot her a couple of times during the Abu Dhabi Adventure Challenge and we’ve been talking on and off for a while about doing some personal work, both photography and video. As for what got the ball rolling was her idea to Read the full post >>

My life is centered round new Dubai, with its luxurious and fashionable expat family lifestyle. I’m certainly very content here … there isn’t a single reason not to be … but I’d love to explore my world like a 5 year old would experience a new city, absorbing the energy, soaking up the vibes, eyes wide open.

I’ve been in Dubai nearly eleven years and would love to take on the old parts of town I call home. Yes I’ve been there on occasions, but normally on the fly, running behind my camera, completing the creek half marathon or with family on a wild tourist dash. I’ve never experienced the old town at the pace it used to have Read the full post >>

“Who sold that idea?”  These were the final words of Ian Haworth on day two of the Dubai Lynx Awards. There holds so much meaning in these four short words and they remain circling in my mind.

One such meaning is the generation of ideas … creating and crafting them. Whether based on a brief or a non-brief, aka personal work, strong ideas create movement and movement is what we like to see. Our team is getting more and more involved in the creative process. Planting seeds and nurturing shoots. Mood boards, sketches, brand sheets … it’s an interesting industry and we love having our brains Read the full post >>

After a chilled sleep at the trendy W hotel in Doha, I made a point of getting up early to be first in the breakfast room at 6am. Walking through the lobby I eyed a book on display, perfect for a browse over breakfast and it turns out, some real inspiration thanks to the work United Design has done around the world.

The stunning layout aside, I thought it a really nice summary, portraying 15 years of achievements. I loved the simply concept of thinking in reverse, Read the full post >>

We’re wrapping up the final stages of the Oxy Oman coffee table book and hope to share our work once the embargo is lifted. Closing the gap on the photography required, I just returned from a mad dash around Oman trying to shoot all the executives within their own working environment.

 Lot’s of portraits were shot, all on location and often put together in a short piece of time. Times like this and my Profoto gear comes into its own. Read the full post >>

The only ultra run you will find in Arabia. The next Wadi Bih Run is coming up, with a beautiful 72km of pristine off-road trail running. A few solo running enthusiasts will join around 200 relay teams of five competing for the coveted title. Over the years, I’ve photographed it a few times (read my ’12 post). We’ve camped high up in the mountains on more than one occasion, witnessed a very special marriage proposal and this very wadi is my favourite spot for hill training. It takes a couple of hours to get there but the effort it takes is so worthwhile.

These days, Nike is pretty actively involved in Wadi Bih and it’s great to see the race get even bolder. They’re bringing me down this year, so guys, make sure you’re running your best because I’ll be popping up Read the full post >>

Ready to break some sweat? How about a mad dash of soft sand running in and amongst some amazing desert dunes? Recently I witnessed the inaugural Desert Stinker desert run, shooting for my great friends at Urban Ultra who organised the race to raise funds for two amazing charities. It was a night run followed by an early morning sunrise run … two runs back-to-back covering either 20 or 40kms.

Being out in the dunes gave me race envy … gosh I would have loved to have been running. The conditions were perfect, the scenery amazing and the crowd inspiring … I can’t imagine a better racing cocktail. Read the full post >>

So here I am sitting in the back of a chauffeur driven Bentley, a Flying Spur to be precise, immersed in the world of the wealthy and surrounded by deep pile carpet, super soft leather and a massaging seat. There’s no shortage of space for my lengthy legs and my MacBook sits on my lap as I get on with some post editing and client calls. In the name of work, I occasionally look out the window to keep an eye out for dramatic backdrops.

“Say Henry,” aka Austin my pro driver, “can we catch up with the convoy please and take lead position. I’d love to take a few photographs here.” “Certainly Sir” he replies and puts his foot down in our 600bhp beast. Here we are doing Read the full post >>

From my trusty old Land Rover Defender to the fastest road car Bentley has ever produced … from one marked world to another! Having a job where playing around with gorgeous cars is all part and parcel makes me pretty lucky.

This luxury set was handed over to me along with a sign-my-life-away disclaimer marked full of exclusions …no drifting, road rallies, speed tests and such like. The simple brief, however, asked only Read the full post >>

I recently spent a fantastic couple of days out at the Dubai Desert Conservation Reserve experiencing the great research work being done by Biosphere Expeditions. Biosphere has brought in a crew of everyday people to help out on research of the Gordon's Wildcat and Arabian Oryx.

They’ve attracted an incredibly interesting crowd of people from all walks of life and all four corners, brought together by a willingness to dedicate their spare time towards conservation work. A non-profit wildlife organization, they also run Read the full post >>

If there is indeed a heaven on earth, it has to be an idyllic weekend cabin, a place to escape, a place to journal about past and future adventures, somewhere wild and unique. The Adventure Journal  has them nicely listed. Such places bring with

them a bursting desire to explore and discover yet at the same time, bring peace and serenity. Certainly beats any kind of five-star luxury resort.

We stayed at La Fleur Bleue in the French Alps last summer and enjoyed self-made breakfasts under the tree’s, hills in the backyard for long runs and a log fire to accompany a few bottles of Read the full post >>

In my two weeks with the Canon 1Dx, the majority of shooting had so far been action and sports-oriented so I sent a quick email to the team at The Fridge to find out if they needed any portfolio shoots for their new musicians. They always have a steady flow of newcomers and the confirmed assignment quickly followed.

I’ve work with Amir in the past. He’s a great guitarist, now expanding his

portfolio with a flamenco dancer and second guitarist. We set-up base in the big Read the full post >>

You gotta love personal work and I’m a big advocate of just getting out there and playing around with new ideas. Personal work gives my creativity free rein and with the lovely Canon 1Dx still to hand, I simply had to test the waters by shooting Queenax at Engine Health & Fitness,

Dubai’s latest health and fitness offering. My first introduction to Queenax was a few weeks ago when I did some advertising work at the club. It’s basically a fitness system that turns the space around you into a tool … it gave me a real feel of cage fighting but in reality Read the full post >>

I’m writing this post from mOre’s very first international branch down in Muscat Oman. With all their global expansion plans, I’m not sure if I can keep up visiting all their outlets but on this occasion, I happened to be in lovely Oman for some more Oxy work, closing the gaps of their celebration coffee table book.

Back to Dubai and the mOre outlet in Al Marooj is what this post’s imagery is all about. I’ve been shooting the mOre brand for a number of years and seeing them grow gives me great satisfaction. From a single outlet to three of their Read the full post >>

This was a last minute gig, a common occurrence at this time of year. We were talking about creating a set of intimate portraits of the client’s CEO when the question was raised. “Do you also shoot tennis?” A quick look at my previous work with a handful of tennis superstars on the Burj Al Arab helipad, the Mubadala Tennis Championship and a library build for Tennis Emirates and the job was secured.

The 15th Habtoor Tennis Championship is the only pure ladies tournament in the Middle East with some of the best players from the world coming to Dubai to compete for the trophy. It proved an intimate tournament with a great Read the full post >>

I recently did some behind the scene shots with P&G’s beauty brand ambassadors Pat McGrath, Eugene

Souleiman and Josh Wood. I’m always open to exploring new themes.

I’ve stepped in and out of fashion and beauty work in the past with shoots like Graciella and the occasional fashion show and it would be fair to say that I’d never shy away from a big campaign shoot by the likes of G-star RAW or Diesel … Read the full post >>

Following my shooting the Nike Night Run, I found myself at Yas Marina Circuit, just two weeks after it hosted the ionic Abu Dhabi Grand Prix. I’ve worked at Yas Circuit often … on the ground and in the air … but this was the first time with Ducati Motorbikes, or as some would say Ferrari’s on two wheels. Their latest 1199 Panigale was the star of the show and saw a group of their pro drivers taking it to some serious speeds.

I shot during the transition from day to night, grabbing some of that sweet end of day light and then moving onto more photo-challenging terrain as ambient light dips. Having said that, the floodlights at Yas Read the full post >>

Canon Middle East had kindly lent me their very first EOS 1Dx to play with for a couple of weeks. These series of posts reflect my working with it … my stories straight from the field.

My first gig with this fantastic toy was shooting the Nike We Run Dubai event, a race that attracted over 5,000 runners across either 5k or 10k.

When Nike coach Tom took to the stage for a grand warm up, the pre-race energy was live and kicking. I sneaked up from behind to grab a shot … seeing the crowd bounce to the tunes was a thrilling experience. Nike did a grand job in Read the full post >>

Finally, I’m so happy to share the latest on the Uganda Charity many of you so generously supported as part of my previous Gobi March run. Yes, there have been a few delays but all for good reason. Charity entrepreneur, Anne Peterson, has been working hard with the local organisation to get their plans in place.

‘No plan; no cash’ was her motto and so together they worked on devising a clearly phased delivery plan. The first phase has now started with the foundations of a two-story library. Anne recently visited the project and these were her words, “I am thrilled with the progress that has been made to date. Read the full post >>

Who could not love this space? I just got back from four days of energetic New York. The prime reason for the trip was our friends wedding and lots more. The wedding was magical. Isolated, intimate and amazingly special. Enough said about that though

… the inner circle knows all about it.

And the other days? We walked for hours, taking in the energy of the street, cranking up ideas for retail, art and lifestyle projects. I love cities where it all happens around you. Yes … I had to, had to, had to re-visit the B&H store! It’s a photographers retail haven Read the full post >>

We’re in the midst of a mad dash of changes with lots happening to the business. A big thank you to the new faces … Alide joined the team last September as our Producer, looking after new business and orchestrating forthcoming projects and campaigns. We’ve also welcomed some young blood with our intern Ibrahim, a design student at the University in Sharjah with an addictive interest in photography.

We recently moved into a dynamic office space right at the heart of the art and culture scene in Dubai. Come say hello at The Courtyard Dubai and the team at Le Chamarel is working hard on a range of specially designed photo frames, which is our first step into Read the full post >>

Part two of 48hrs with McLaren. If part one was all about dynamic speed, part two was its static counterpart, involving countless beauty shots of the bespoke MP4-12C special opera

tion model. Yes we could drive it but at comfortable running speed.

To maximise our time with this gorgeous sports car, we started at the crack of dawn … 0430 on the Palm Jumeirah, Dubai’s iconic palm-shaped island. I spotted the location when out for a run … clearly my chosen sport has additional benefits over and above the obvious ones. In fact, the location had little to do Read the full post >>

This is how business can roll. I did a corporate head shots session at a regional broadcaster recently, portraying their twenty or so top line guys and ladies.

Moving quickly between plain white backdrops and environmental portraits, it became pretty chaotic as their daily diaries kept on shifting. This certainly brought energy to the shoot. Read the full post >>

Part one of 48hrs with McLaren. With 19 MP4-12′s, we created quite a scene on the road between Dubai and Abu Dhabi over the weekend. We left the exclusive Burj Khalifa square in a colourful convoy and headed out to Sheikh Zayed Road

with S.B.H, the Royal Auto Gallery of Sheikh Sultan, our ultimate destination.

I should in fact, say 19 McLaren’s and a Pajero, the latter containing my driver and I, trying in earnest to keep up. It was interesting to see what kind of scene we made. Roaring engines, testosterone levels at their peak, Read the full post >>

We’ve recently been working on the artwork for the new Pegasus; a Nike running shoe that comes with a 39 year-old history. Check it and see how the fashion trends have evolved.

Our product to shoot was the brightest of brights Bolt yellow. Needless to say, I didn’t have to worry about flash as the shoe even seems to illuminate by itself in the dark. Add a bright top in the same colour and you can guarantee you won’t get lost Read the full post >>

I met Harmke through our shared passion for running. She wanted to discuss my Racing the Planet / Gobi March in preparation to her competing in the brutal Marathon des Sables in

Morocco. Endurance is what Harmke does for a living although her day-to-day job at one of Dubai’s horse racing stables is all about endurance horse racing rather than that on foot.

We spent an afternoon together creating an image library to depict her love for horses. I always find it awesome to work with people who truly love Read the full post >>

Rising before dawn and gathering around a lake shrouded in early morning mist with a few hundred excited triathletes ready to kick-start the inaugural order generic viagraen-ardenne” target=”_blank”>La Roche triathlon.

The course is no easy ride starting with a 1km swim followed by a 100k bike ride with 1,800m elevation gain and finishing with a 10km undulating trail run. But … Read the full post >>

In 2007, we published our first book, recording the tails and trails of a mad adventure race in the Scottish Highlands. It was a stunning backdrop to see some of the worlds greatest adrenaline athletes give it their all, in a quest to take home the A

dventure Racing World Series title. I found it fascinating to experience the race and realise just how hard the competitors had to push themselves in the rough wilderness, often on little or no sleep. Honestly, this is a sport seriously undervalued and one that deserves far greater respect and awareness.

“You’re about to embark on a unique adventure racing experience. This photo book is as real as it gets without actually entering the race” Travis Macy.

Now, five years on and after producing a dozen more titles, it seems a good time to sit back and reflect on the lessons learnt and advice worth sharing.

Read the full post >>