The London-based Irish photographer provides an insight into his creative process and work which spans portraiture, film and music …
It’s very difficult to define your own style but I always want my images to feel cinematic. I’m always trying to capture people the way I honestly see them and make images that make me feel something. If I feel something then maybe other people will too.
I’ve never had any formal training, just the school of YouTube where I truly believe you can learn absolutely anything. I’ve been obsessed with music for as long as I can remember. My earliest memories are of my dad playing records in the kitchen while doing the dishes. I took up photography as a hobby when I was twelve but it wasn’t until I was 14 that I realised I could use it as a way to be involved in music and that’s when everything changed for me.
Mentors are so important and I’ve been extremely lucky to have some amazing people to look up to and learn from. My now close friend and IFTA-winning director Brendan Canty took me under his wing when I was about 15 years old, giving me endless opportunities over the years and being someone who I can always go to for advice and guidance. I never stop learning when I get to watch him work. He’s also one of the best connectors of people I’ve ever met. Conor McDonnell (official tour photographer for Calvin Harris, Kim Kardashian, Aston Martin F1) is also someone who gave me amazing support early on in my music touring career and I have a lot to thank him for. He’s a few years older than me and was someone whose career I wanted to emulate so for him to have been so generous and to believe in me meant a lot.
My first big break came in my teens, when I’d email the managers of every single artist coming to Ireland on tour. Those details can be hard to find now but back then most artists had those contact details listed on their Facebook pages. I would say 99 per cent of those emails never got a reply but just before I turned 16 I got a response from Macklemore’s manager who let me spend a day shooting him in The Academy in Dublin. He definitely wasn’t expecting a 15-year-old to show up but it was too late to send me home. He was only a small artist at the time, but a couple of months later Thrift Shop came out, and he became one of the biggest artists in the world basically overnight. Being able to say “I just worked with Macklemore” helped me get ahead so much quicker.
Music photography is all about trust and reputation and for an artist to allow someone into their world is a huge deal and that takes a long time to cultivate. It’s also important to be able to read a situation and be present when it’s necessary and equally to disappear when necessary. I’ve worked with Niall Horan and his band for over eight years and we’re all extremely close as a result. That job is so much more than work for all of us and I’m so grateful to have made such lasting, meaningful connections there thanks to photography and music.
A favourite location is Red Rocks Amphitheater in Colorado where U2 shot their iconic concert film in 1983. The venue is literally carved out of the side of a mountain just outside Denver and is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced before. Other iconic venues like Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall and The Greek Theatre were all bucket list venues I’ve been lucky enough to work at also.
My work now can be quite varied, and every project needs a different type of prep. For a tour, much of the preparation comes during production rehearsals and the first couple of gigs where I’m trying to figure out the show, the production elements, everyone’s movements etc so I can find the best shots. Often the most interesting photos on a tour come after you’ve shot the same show 50 times and are desperately trying to find something new. You’re forced to be creative and look at things from a different perspective.
Portrait shoots are totally different. Portraits are all about connection and trust which takes time to build, but when you’re working with big celebrities time is extremely limited. Often, they walk into the room and you’re taking their photo as you’re meeting them for the very first time which is a strange thing. For that reason I try to watch interviews or behind the scenes of other shoots they’ve done beforehand to try and get a sense of their personality and what kind of direction they might respond best to so I can make that connection as quickly and easily as possible.
At the moment I’m taking photos on the set of a huge TV series that I can’t say too much about yet. It’s my first time shooting on set like this but it’s something I’ve wanted to try for a long time. It’s a really fun new challenge and so fun to watch a world come to life every day. I’m using a Canon R5 and my main lenses are the RF 28-70 f2 and 70-200 f2.8. I’m also shooting some film on this project for which I’m using a Canon EOS 300 film camera with a couple of Sigma Art prime lenses.
Photographs by Christian Tierney. See more at www.christiantierney.com.
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