Steve 'Shammy' Forward - The 'Singing Photographer'
I first encountered photography at Brighton Boys Club as a youth but it wasn't until 1984 that I became a Professional Photographer and I have been earning my living since then doing a job that I still enjoy to this day!
The nickname `Shammy` was given to me by Fury's Tornados when they noticed that a chamois leather is one of my most often used photographic accessories. The 'Singing Photographer' tag comes from hanging around with performers over the years and gradually getting the bug to the point that I now have my own backing tracks and have started doing a bit of cabaret along with the photography.
Over the years I have pretty much covered every sort of assignment one could imagine, but here is a brief summary:-
- In the area of Social Photography there has been everything from Christenings to Ash Scattering. Portraiture of every description and of course Weddings.
- A large proportion of my work has been Corporate / P.R. and I have covered a large number of high profile jobs involving celebrities, politicians, Heads of State and Royalty. A major client throughout my career has been various parts of the NHS covering sensitive subjects providing images for all sorts of purposes. From open-heart surgery to Royal Visits, from press releases to brochures and posters.
- Another area in which I have worked extensively is the world of the trade catering press, supplying the needs of magazines and covering major events for various organisations, from many parts of the industry. From product and food photography to celebrity Chefs, from Award Dinners to Exhibitions and Conferences.
- As well as creating general publicity material for performing artistes much experience has helped me develop a knack for live performance photography, particularly under variable stage lighting. For those of you who found your way to this site via the link from Halfway to Paradise - The Billy Fury Story, you will have seen some of my work which I have doing for them for nearly ten years now.
Since I have been a photographer there have been many changes in the equipment that I use. Now of course is the Digital Age and I am pleased to say that I have survived the transition from various formats of film to working mainly in digital. My way of working is to get things right in-camera and then burn it straight to CD immediately and also provide index prints or larger if required. Unlike the vast majority of photographers, this means you can see the results instantly and they are available on the spot.