Paul Colwell { performance photographer

I have been photographing the performing arts for about 10 years now. I originally trained as a theatre electrician at the City of Westminster College, with a view to starting a career in lighting design. Over the next few years I set about gaining as much experience of the performing arts as possible, working as a production electrician, re-lighter and production manager on various projects throughout the UK and in the West End.

It was during this period that my earlier passion for photography was re-kindled from my art school days and I decided to pursue a career in both lighting design and photography. Since then I have had the pleasure of undertaking a big variety of photography commissions, with clients ranging from individual performers to Arts Council England.

My lighting design has also flourished, with numerous productions in theatre, opera, dance and concert. Favourite shows have included The Gates of Gold at Trafalgar Studios and Shorts for The Place Prize. In recent years I have also enjoyed being a guest lighting designer to The Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

paulcolwell@31415.co.uk

Performance Photos { how I work

Quality over quantity, always. My objective is to only give my clients photographs which are as close to perfect as possible. Better one perfect image than fifty average ones. After all, a mediocre image does neither me nor my client any favours.

Onstage Performance { shooting shows

I am very happy shooting onstage performances. My experience and ongoing work as a theatre lighting designer gives me a distict edge in capturing the atmosphere of an onstage production just as the creative team intended.

When photographing a theatre show, I try and get as much information about the show as possible before I start photographing it. Usually I'll be photographing a dress rehearsal. My system wherever possible is to watch one dress run and then shoot the next one. I always shy away from photographing live theatre shows, as the restrictions that a packed auditorium bring are generally too inhibiting to getting great photos.

Publicity Photographs { off to the studio

I also enjoy creating performance publicity photographs in the studio. I find the control that can be achieved in a photography studio often yields better results than trying to work in the compromising confines of a theatre. After all, a theatre is optimised for an audience not for a photo shoot. And of course in many cases we have no choice to create theatre publicity material in a studio, as the images are often needed long before a production gets to the stage. With careful consideration and planning a studio shot photo can be as convincing a performance as an image shot on a stage.

And Then... { after a shoot

I usually spend by far the most time working on performance photographs after the shoot. First off, there's selection. Having taken dozens of photos in search of the perfect moment, I go through all the images and make sure only the very best are selected.

Once the best pictures have been found, the processing and retouching begins. I do all of my own digital work, to make sure that the photographs are polished to perfection. This retouching can include anything from colour tweaking, to skin smoothing and blemish removal, to removing tell tale radio microphones, to compositing several photos together.

This work can take many, many hours, but again I think it is worth it. A carefully processed image knocks the socks off a 'straight from the camera' shot every time.

If you would like to talk to me about theatre and performance photography or are interested in commissioning me to shoot some photographs for you, please don't hesitate to get in touch.

paulcolwell@31415.co.uk

I think it's mad and I never cease to be surprised that some people will merrily take photos from my site and use them without even a credit, let alone permission. If you do want to use one of my photos for something, all you have to do is ask, I'm likely to say yes. Other than that, I find it necessary to state this legal stuff:-

Paul Colwell retains the entire copyright in all of the photographs, content and designs in all pages of the website www.performancephotographer.co.uk

No use may be made of the photographs, graphics, content and designs contained in this website without express permission in writing from Paul Colwell.

"Use" means any form of publication or copying of the whole or part of any photograph, graphic, content or design, altered or not, whether by printing, photography, slide projection, (whether or not to an audience), xerography, artists reference, artists illustration, layout or presentation, electronic or mechanical reproduction or storage by any other means including web site and CD rom publication.

Where the use of photographs, graphics, content or designs has taken place without permission, Paul Colwell will make such charges to the user as falls within the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

For more information about copyright you can visit the following websites:

The Intellectual Property Office

Copyright 4 Clients from The Association of Photographers

I try to ensure that this website is free from viruses or defects. However, I cannot guarantee that your use of this website or any websites accessible through it will not cause damage to your computer. It is your responsibility to ensure that the right equipment is available to use the website. Except in the case of negligence on my part, I will not be liable to any person for any loss or damage which may arise to computer equipment as a result of using this website.

Paul Colwell
My photo website, with a mix of professional and personal work.

The Focal Space
The Focal Space is a visual meadia agency that I am involved with, it contains a wider variety of my photographs, including portraits, products and performing arts.

Dance Photographer
I created this sister site as a dedicated dance photography portfolio. So if you're looking for more dance photos to feast your eyes upon, this is the place to go.

And now a few random performance and theatre related links:

Performance - Wiki
Performing Arts - BBC
Arts Jobs