Ali Mor sta ris ir on Not many celebrated portraiture photographers of the stature of Alistair Morrison start their career in the Bank of England. He was, however, a bit of a rebel, with long red hair and green suits and whilst he enjoyed his tenure it was suggested that he might not be Bank of England material. To avoid the 9-5 commute, he left after three-years to attend college and find his calling. In the early days, it was his elder brother that was the family’s photographer, so borrowing his brother’s portfolio, he managed to secure a place on a degree course at Harrow covering photography and film. His brother, however, never took his photography any further than a hobby. Three-years at college gave Alistair a real passion for street photography, particularly ‘fly on the wall’ shots that documented key moments in time. He was inspired by European and British photographers who were socially conscious and covered the ‘gritty subjects’. At the end of his course, he put on an exhibition, hosted by the National Theatre in London, where he met one of the most important figures in his career. Jane Bown worked at the Observer and having seen his exhibition she took him under her wing. It was her influence that ensured the art directors from the Sunday Telegraph and Observer came to view his work and took a chance on him. His first ever feature for the Telegraph was on minders for nightclubs and private individuals. From deciding not to run with it, it ended up being a six-page feature on the strength of his photographs.
Another important moment of his career came when he photographed the ballerina, Lynn Seymour. He made the decision to deliver personally the photographs to the magazine and John Lyth persuaded the art director
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to send Alistair to Atlanta to photograph a band called The Police. After arriving in Atlanta, he met and befriended Miles Copeland. He was offered the standard photographer rights to the band but due to a delay in their gear arriving for rehearsals, Miles offered to let him stay on. He changed his flight and spent the next day getting picture after picture of the band. The magazine was awestruck and from then on he was their preferred cover photographer as well as working freelance for titles including GQ, Esquire and Vanity Fair. Alistair claims that luck featured in him photographing some of the great iconic stars of the day – including Lord Olivier, Sir John Gielgud, Betty Davis and Lauren Bacall. He credits this success to David Lewin, an established journalist who had spent the previous 40-years interviewing them. Alistair chauffeured David around and built up the trust that meant that they felt he was the right photographer to take their picture. He recognises that a key element of his work is psychology as well as photography. As a photographer he needs to knock down his subject’s barriers and gain their confidence, in order for them to trust his judgement. Alistair is proud that his work crosses the distinctive generations from the golden age of Hollywood to some of its more recent stars – Kate Winslet, Helen Mirren and Anthony Hopkins. The subjects he enjoys photographing the most are the ones most difficult to access. Anthony Hopkins was a particular favourite as he wished to reveal a compassionate side of an actor known for his role in ‘Silence of the Lambs’. He decided to photograph Anthony in a dinner jacket with a trained penguin – to highlight the fact that