Music Photography: Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes Promo

Client: Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes
Photographer: Simon J. Newbury

We’ve known local musician Phil Maddocks for ages and he probably holds the record for the most live appearances on our previous local music radio show. We have also done lots of music photography of Phil at many performances! Phil is currently working on an album with Nick Bayes and needed some publicity photographs for his online presence and new website.

Phil & Nick supported The Christians at The Box in Crewe and before their set we made use of the local area for this set of promo photos! You can check out Phil’s wonderful music on his website: Scruffy Harmonica

These are a selection of the promo photos:

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes Cheshire musician promo photography music photography

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes Cheshire musician promo photography music photography

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes Cheshire musician promo photography music photography

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes Cheshire musician promo photography music photography

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes Cheshire musician promo photography music photography

Phil Maddocks & Nick Bayes

Check out our music promo photography

Music Photography: Kendal Calling 2013

Event: Kendal Calling 2013
Photographers: Tina Newbury, Simon J. Newbury

The busy summer of music continues and we spent the weekend photographing at Kendal Calling in Cumbria. The festival boasts a wealth of great bands, many of which we had previously photographed in Crewe. The three Main Stage headliners were Basement Jaxx, The Charlatans and Primal Scream. Also performing over the three days were Ash (former Crewe Live headliners), I Am Kloot, Seasick Steve, The D.O.T., The Lightning Seeds, British Sea Power, Beans On Toast, Public Enemy, Johnny Marr, Mystery Jets and The 1975. We had a great time visiting all the different stages and photographing a great number of smaller bands on the other stages as well as the bigger names appearing on the Main Stage and the ‘Calling Out’ Stage.

These are a small selection of images from Kendal Calling 2013:

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Ash

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

British Sea Power

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Public Enemy

Cheshire music documentary photography live festival Kendal Calling

Kendal Calling 2013

Cheshire music documentary photography live festival Kendal Calling

Kendal Calling 2013

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Public Enemy

Cheshire music documentary photography live festival Kendal Calling

Kendal Calling 2013

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Kendal Calling 2013

Cheshire music documentary photography live festival Kendal Calling

Kendal Calling 2013

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Lightning Seeds

Cheshire music documentary photography live festival Kendal Calling

Kendal Calling 2013

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Basement Jaxx

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Basement Jaxx

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

I Am Kloot

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

The Charlatans

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Primal Scream

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Johnny Marr

Cheshire music photography live festival Kendal Calling

Seasick Steve

Check out our live music photography portfolio.
Check out our music promo photography portfolio.

Review of the Year – The Dabbers & Gridiron UK Photography

A few other notable things we have been up to this year include the stills photography commission for Gridiron UK and the ongoing rollercoaster of photographing Nantwich Town FC.

Gridiron UK Film Cast by Simon J. Newbury Photography

Gridiron UK Film Cast by Simon J. Newbury Photography in Crewe, Cheshire

Gridiron UK was filmed in and around Crewe. It was a very exhausting but rewarding 4 weeks. It was really interesting to see the behind the scenes work that goes into making a motion picture. The film is based on the true story of the formation of the Crewe Railroaders in the 80s by writer and director Gary Delaney. My main role was to photograph the behind the scenes work, create the official stills for the film publicity and appear briefly as an extra! Although I haven’t yet seen the final cut I have been informed by the director that my main scene, while slightly cut, is still part of the film!! I appeared briefly behind lead character Derek (Michael Dixon) in a scene filmed at the Market Centre in Crewe. I also appear behind Derek’s parents at a fixture at the Cumberland Arena. I’ll be sure to let you all know exactly where to pause your dvds when the film is released! The next stage for the photos will be an exhibition planned. Again, we’ll keep you posted!

Nantwich Town FC Cheshire Senior Cup Winners

Nantwich Town FC Cheshire Senior Cup Winners at Chester FC

We are now well into our second season as official photographers to Nantwich Town FC. Last year saw the club reached the first round proper of the FA Cup for the very first time in the history of the club. Last season was finished by a visit to Chester City’s Deva Stadium to take on Stalybridge Celtic in the Cheshire Senior Cup Final. The Dabbers ran out 1-0 winners and it was a great way to end such a great season for the club! This season has seen the Dabbers stronger in the league. Home form has been fairly indifferent but the Dabbers have been far stronger away from the Weaver. All being well the Dabbers will be involved in the playoffs come the end of the season!

Dodgy promo & music photography!

The music loving people of Crewe were treated to a fine performance from Britpop legends Dodgy at The Box last week. They were kicking off their new tour of their latest studio album.

I met the guys during their rehearsal day and we did a photoshoot at The Box. I did portraits of the three band members as well as a set of group shots. The images will be on my website very soon as well as appearing on my Flickr stream and on the official Dodgy Facebook page!

The images are being well received and someone commented that it was a “good, honest photo” of the band. I love that description and its really what I strive to produce in my work!

The gig itself was amazing and Tina and I got loads of images of the performance!

Its been all go with music photography lately. I’ve also done a very interesting photoshoot with local legend Tom Seals. It was a very well organised shoot which was fairly technical but very rewarding. I won’t go into detail as I am sure Tom wants to have a grand launch of his new website which the images are for!

The same weekend saw the Reign Of Sirius shoot. They are a metal band from Macclesfield and travelled over for the shoot with their new members. It was a very pleasant shoot and I really like the final images (as do the band more importantly!!). I played them on my Radio show on Monday and I am sure that will be the first of many plays!

Tomorrow I have yet another shoot with emerging Crewe band Rockwood. Looking forward to photographing a band I have been friends with for ages now!

Quite a bit on next week musically as well. The Beautiful South are now The South and after a recent request for some images I did of the band a while back I am off to Birmingham to photograph them at the O2 Arena. Another band I photographed last year was the Australian Pink Floyd. They were at Chester Rocks. I supplied them with the images from the event and I’ll be photographing them next week at the Manchester Apollo.

Sandwiched between those two events I have an after dinner event to photograph with Yvette Cooper MP and a Christening!

St. Valentine’s Day Special Offer

Well it doesn’t seem that long since Christmas but it’s February already! That means St. Valentine’s Day of course!

Because we love you all so much we have a special deal for you romantics! On the 12th February we are holding a special couples shoot. You can book a timeslot for you and your loved one and come and have a photoshoot with us in Crewe, Cheshire. The images will be put online in our password protected client area gallery for you both to choose your favourite shot which will be edited and delivered to you as a large 16×12 print for just £49. You may choose to upgrade to a stretch framed canvas print which is on offer at just £89. These prices are all inclusive of the photography and the final print!

We have limited places so get in touch as soon as possible to book your preferred time with your local award winning photographer!

Thin Lizzy

As you know music photography is one of my favourite areas of photography. I have worked with many bands in promo/ band setups, live photography, documentary or at festivals.

I was recently asked to photograph Thin Lizzy on their European tour which was a great honour. Tina & I traveled to Leicester to photograph the band both from the pit and onstage. Its actually an amazing experience being on the stage while such a huge band entertain a massive crowd!

My favourite shots came right at the end of the set as the band got together centre stage and saluted the crowd to rapturous applause. I got behind the band so I could capture the emotion of the fans. it makes for a great black and white shot!

Next up we are off to Sheffield to hook up with the band again to make a set of portraits and a full promo shoot. Really looking forward to it.

By contrast we have been at two gigs back in Crewe at the Box. Gypsy jazz legend Gary Potter rolled back in to town and I have to say I stand amazed at his music. It’s simply amazing! All the gig images are on the Facebook page if you want to check them out!

Before we get all rock n roll on Sunday we have a shoot in Preston with another MP and some local council candidates on Saturday. After that we head back over to the Weaver Stadium to photograph Nantwich Town! We are certainly getting about this week!

Band Promo Shoot Offer

I’ve been doing band and music photography for years. It’s always been a great love of mine and I’ve got to meet some great bands and musicians over the years. Promo images, or band shots if you prefer, take a fair bit of understanding to get right.

A band’s image is very particular. As important as the sound? I would say so! I like to work with bands to create an image that says everything about the band without making a sound.

I’m pleased to have had one of my promo images published in Kerrang! – of the mighty James Cleaver Quintet! I’ve also had many images published on websites and newspapers.

All through January I am running a special offer on band photoshoots. £70 gets you a full shoot, your selection of 10 of the images, those images edited to a professional standard plus a set of portraits of each band member!

Bookings must be made in January to qualify for the £70. Price rises to £125 from February!

Review of the Year – 2011 – Part Four

2011 was also a special year for our wedding photography. We got to share and document the special day of Emma & Ben, Jane & Tom, Kate & Matthew, Michelle & Matthew, Sarah & John, Emily & Mike and Joanne & John. We visited some wonderful venues and had a great time photographing all of them! A few highlights were the 50s theme, the Glastonbury Festival theme and the helicopter ride for the bride and groom to Crewe Hall!

We’re looking forward to lots of weddings in the new year, and have quite a few already booked in!

I was also honoured to be asked by Cheshire East Council to be involved in two big events. The first was the Centenary week of celebrations at the Lyceum Theatre. I was the official photographer for the week of events and photographed the performances that were put on in celebration and also photographed the buildings interior which is an amazing building and also the exterior when it came to life for the magnificent Illuminos Project, a fantastic light show telling the history of the building.

The second event was being asked to sit on the judging panel for a photography competition covering various categories designed to encapsulate Cheshire East in picture. The standard of entry was very high and choosing the various winners was not an easy task! It was inspiring to see so many great images of Cheshire!

We have also been up to lots of kids photography. From some lovely monochrome newborn photography through to babies and toddlers and through to some great shoots with older children. Lots of patience leads to some very rewarding images!

I was also pleased to produce the mayoral portrait for the Worshipful Mayor of Crewe in the Municipal Buildings mayoral portrait.

We’ve also kept busy with lots of product and commercial shoots. A great way to spruce up a website!!

All the best for 2012!

Christmas Gift Vouchers & ‘Last Chance Saloon’ Prints!

Well its that time of year again and we are all dashing around looking for special gifts for loved ones this Christmas. We have a few ideas for a special present to give this year.

Photographs can bring such immense pleasure not only at the time of giving, but for years and years to come. If you don’t have time in the busy festive period to get some pets photos, family shots or kids photography, you can always give one of our gift vouchers. It can be for as much or as little as you decide! It can go towards any of our photography in the new year so if you know someone planning a wedding it’s something that could make a real difference!! The vouchers can be put to use for prints or for canvasses!

We can also do some last-minute photos for you. We can come to you and do the photographs, and produce mounted 6×4 prints there and then! All next week in the build up to Christmas we will be available! We can also organise 7×5 or 8×10 prints within 24 hours! It’s not too late yet!!! Your local award winning photographer is available at short notice right here in South Cheshire!

Working with Cheshire’s Poet Laureate

Many of you will know I volunteer my services to local Community Radio station RedShift Radio. Presently on the airwaves on 87.7FM in the South Cheshire area I am doing four shows a week in between the busy festive photoshoots! I ordinarily present the local music show on a Monday but have stepped up the shows and present the local community show called Community Roundup three days a week!

Recently one of our many guests was Cheshire’s longest serving poet laureate, Terry Fox. He delivered several poems and one, Homage To Cheshire, was so full of wonderful imagery that I had to ask if we could collaborate. I have recently put together some slideshows of various areas of my photography and thought the idea of photographing a set of images to put to the poem would be a wonderful project. I am pleased to say that Terry was very keen, he commented “I am enormously pleased by the prospect of my poem being used with your photographs.” I can’t say how proud I am to be working with such an esteemed poet!

I will of course keep you up to date on the progress of this project!!

Meanwhile there is still time to get Christmas bookings in. I use local suppliers so I can guarantee prints and canvas for a while yet so please do get in touch if you fancy a kids, family or pets shoot for Christmas! We also offer vouchers which make wonderful Christmas gifts!

On Saturday 10th December we will be at the Kingsmead Primary School Christmas Fair in Northwich. You can pop along to see some of our canvas montages and printed work including our kids photography, family photography and pets photography! We’ll have images of newborns, baby & toddler shots, maternity photos and lots from our portfolio! I’ll also have my portrait portfolio and some of my wedding books! See you there?