Karen McBride has made a name for herself as Manchester’s most successful rock photographer.
I’m very glad to count her as one of my friends. In fact she first contacted me on 26 April 2002 asking me if I’d take a look at her photos. I did and I thought they were superb. I’ve been in regular contact with her since, and watched her progress from obscurity to what she is today, one of the leading names in rock photography in the UK.
In the early days she devoted her time and effort to photographing unknown and often uncelebrated bands. Today she works with of the biggest acts in the business and her photos appear regularly in the press and in official tour brochures.
In this interview with Karen McBride I ask her how she got started in rock photography and what motivates her to take photos of bands. She explains how she came to photograph and visit legendary guitarist Scottie Moore, who played with Elvis Presley, Karen’s hero.
Find out how she got in with the Scissor Sisters, and was later commissioned to take photos of Robbie Williams performing live on his European tour. What was it like to work with Robbie, and how does she find him as a person?
Karen describes the cameras she uses, how she progressed from film to digital, and why she has never allowed her photos to be syndicated.
It’s a fascinating insight into the work of a successful and highly original photographer.
Click here to download and listen to the podcast MP3 interview with rock photographer Karen McBride.