Scottish born Allan Graham-Tay studied Art in Edinburgh and has since established himself as a gritty street life Photographer while working in America, India, Singapore and Europe.
"I was born in the late fifties, part of a large family in a small fishing town on the East Coast of Scotland. As a kid I would always be fascinated by the family piss up where you could quietly sit and wait for the drink to kick in and observe the changing group dynamics. The drunker they became, the more exaggerated their facial expressions and body language would become. This would develop my interest re character faces and group interactions within photography in later life"
Working in black and white, he focuses on capturing street life, inner city and beach life, while constantly looking for character faces and group interactions, he observes the unobserved, because “every one of them has an untold story to tell”.
“I live in an old cottage by the sea. grew up and raised my children by the sea. I feel a bond with it, there's a history. Whenever I need to stop and take a breath, I love nothing more I love than walking along the beach with my family and my dogs....the sea and me”
“Covid affected everyone, from isolation, routine, group interaction, simple things like hugging or kissing a friend or loved one. I tried to document my personal covid lockdown locally with my camera, so that in years to come my granddaughters and their children can see my personal and visual account of how crazy life became and how much the world changed"
“Inspiration is everything in photography, so when it was deemed safe, and a window of opportunity opened, I grabbed my gear and took a flight with friends and travelled to Italy (Lucca) to be re-inspired and capture street life. This amazing unique walled city and the locals were just the inspiration I needed, cobbled lanes, cafe culture, shadows and, noise and interaction, and lets not forget the amazing food and daily glasses of spritz”
I’m an observer, character faces and interactions, natural life moments grab my attention. I read somewhere that the best piece of equipment a photographer can have is an eye for a picture”