1953. Saturday morning pictures introduced a six year old to the wonders of cinema and kick started my determination to be part of that magic. As I grew up I was given a camera and some old darkroom equipment and so photography became my hobby. I left school at 16 to work for a local photographic studio.

After failing to find a way into the film industry without a union ticket, I was accepted onto a diploma course at The London School of Film Technique. After a busy and productive two years at the school, focusing always on camera operating.

I was approached by Operator Mostyn Rowlands offering me work, as a loader, on a feature documentary in Malta, with Cinematographer Keith Allams, a visiting lecturer. Of course I accepted. Next was a documentary, in Israel, about Ben Gurion, the founder of the Kibbutz system.

I was now part of Keiths regular crew as a loader. He managed to get me a full union ticket and I was set to go. We flew off to Geneva for three months on a Swiss Feature film, ‘La Vieille Lune’.

Keith had set up a crewing agency and I was sent up to the new Yorkshire Television Studio in Leeds, as a camera assistant, on a major six week documentary about the construction of the M62 Motorway.

When shooting finished, the Cameraman, Mel Davies, offered me a commercial shoot at Natural Breaks in Soho, which led to regular calls from them for more shoots.

Shortly after, when Ridley Scott joined Natural Breaks I became a regular on his shoots. When he formed RSA his regular crew moved with him. Working with Ridley led to calls from other companies and quite soon I moved up to focus.

Terry Bedford, a Film School friend, offered me ‘Holy Grail’ as a camera operator and after that I did ‘Author of Beltraffio’ as an operator with Ridley’s younger brother Tony.

Next was a Children’s Film Foundation film series ‘Unbroken Arrow’, as Cameraman, with Matt McCarthy.

I then started lighting commercials with Ridley and Tony Scott and other companies. I’ve  shot over 2,000 commercials as lighting camera man with some of the best directors around the world.

In between I shot several weekends of inserts and pickups for Alien and later 3 weeks of plates and inserts on 2nd unit on Empire Strikes Back before moving into feature films.

Adrian Lyne put my film career into the main stream with ‘Fatal Attraction”

Key collaborators;       Adrian Lyne, 3 feature films and many big commercials

                                    Charles Sturridge, 3 feature films and many big commercials

Sydney Samuelson nominated me to the BSC, I don’t remember when.

Sydney Samuelson also nominated me to BAFTA, I resigned on retirement due to exorbitant fees

I’m a retired member of AMPAS, no fee

I’m a retired member of IATSI

I have been awarded many DADA Awards for Lighting Camera on Commercials

Kodak Vision Award for Gulliver’s Travels

Royal Television Society, Craft and Design Award, Camera, for Gulliver’s Travels

My short list of 8 of my feature credits.

1986   “Fatal Attraction”      Paramount Pictures  -  Director Adrian Lyne.

1989   “Mermaids”                       Paramount-  Director Richard Benjamin.

1992   “Indecent Proposal”           Paramount Pictures  -  Director Adrian Lyne.

1994  “Bad Boys”              Columbia Pictures   -  Director Michael Bay

1995 “Guliver’s Travels”               NBC - Director Charles Sturridge.

1996 “Lolita”                       Chargeur / Carolco - Director Adrian Lyne.

1999 “Hanging Up”            Columbia / Sony - Director Diane Keaton

2005 “ Lassie Come Home”         Lassie Films - Director Charles Sturridge.