Gregg Wright – King of the Rockin’ Blues

I met Gregg a few years ago. He is a super talented guitarist. On top of which he’s a super nice guy too. He’s played with some greats, including Mick Fleetwood and Michael Jackson.

I attended a gig of his a couple of years ago. I didn’t take a camera as I knew the venue was small and there wouldn’t be room to move. All I would do is annoy the the people attending by ruining their view.

Lucky I didn’t take any camera gear as not only did I enjoy the gig more but saw something that was the inspiration for this photograph. Whilst he was on stage I caught a reflection of Gregg’s white Stratocaster guitar in his trademark sunglasses. Between sets I asked if I could meet up with him to take his portrait. He was flying back to the States the evening after so we arranged a time for around mid-morning before he had to leave for Heathrow.

I knew that time would be limited so I did some lighting tests beforehand. When I got to where Gregg was staying I set up a backdrop and a single studio flash. He was busy sending emails on his laptop. I took some light readings and when I was ready to start shooting I called Gregg to come take a seat.

The first frame was so good it would have been more than acceptable. I showed him the shot and joked that we were done. In fact I only took a handful more. The photograph you see is the one Gregg liked the most.

By pre-visualising the shot and having a clear vision of what I wanted I didn’t have to take lots of photographs hoping that something good would come out.

I sent Gregg an exhibition quality print as a thank you. He’s framed it and it hangs in his studio in LA. When I saw him again last year during his UK tour he told me that the photograph has attracted a lot of positive comments.

As part of my fascination of documenting change in places and in people I hope that I will have the opportunity to photograph Gregg again in a few years time. He’s invited me to stay at his place in LA. At some point I hope to take him up on the offer.