Niall McDiarmid

Niall McDiarmid

Niall McDiarmid is a Documentary Portraiture photographer who has done three books about documenting the lives of people across the UK. Niall McDiarmid work shows people with colour and also the location to stand and to make the shots look similar to make the viewer think.

After watching an interview

After watching an interview with him on YouTube I have learned more parts of him around him. I have learned that he meets and speaks with strangers and he builds up a relationship that people and then he will ask to shoot them he wants to capture them in there natural state. So to this, he shoots 2 – 3 frames which account for blinking he understands the problem with digital which is, to shoot too early with the composition he shoots down the barrel to the camera lens. When some come to him and goes to him you should them he believes that they are always not the right one, He started with one lens and Fuji camera and he shoots down barrels.

 Queens Road, Nuneaton, Warwickshire, June 2015 – Niall Mcdrimand

Paddington, London, November 2017 – Niall Mcdrimand

Bargate, Southampton, Hampshire, July 2014 – Niall Mcdrimand

He started this project when he did not have a lot of money as he wanted to go out and shoot around the country and go to other places that he has not been he said if he was rich he would not have done it as he would have gone to somewhere they were rich. Typology X, and curate as this style, Niall does not like interwar photographer like August Sander, he knows the work but he is not happy about categorising people, his models he finds find hard to categorise themselves as people come around people across the UK and have moved over. He is not a storyteller but he includes street, town and date only. August has done a lot and him sociality categories e.g. baker Jewish baker, bakers wife as that his what was the style back in August’s day.

Women with red hair (Niall McDiarmid, 2014)
A man and his stick (Niall McDiarmid 2014)
Man in Yellow sitting on the bench (Niall McDiarmid, 2015)

These two shots are some the greatest shots that Niall Mcdrimand did for his latest book Town To Town, the shots are done with the location and the communication. These shots I like as he communicates to the model and captures them in their natural light. I want to use his styles in my work as they correlate to his message. Even though this was a personal project and a bit of fun he used this to show his work off. I want to use the style that he has done in my work. These shots are done with a similar styled compared to his first set of work of crossing paths. Niall uses a style that is relevant to him with this work he does not show peoples name or what they are like, as he hates people stereotyping what people are from different walks of life and the location, which shows how Diverse Britain is.

 Luke and Levii, Queen Street, Bridgend, May 2014
Southchurch Road, Southend-On-Sea, Essex, February 2017
Marine Parades, Hastings, May 2011

How does this fit with the Contemporary and Documentary Portrait Photography 

This work fits the Contemporary and Documentary Portrait Photography because this is documenting the UK from town to town. This style resembles with people and that these tell a story of what people are like and people can relate to what we are like. This fits the Contemporary portrait story as these are done to show what people are in the Morden life these done to show the here and now. I like how Niall is bold when making the colour choices with the subjects he has chosen what the location has connected to the viewer and we can understand what it might be in our life. When linking it to the style that I am after with his work it forms together with the way he has shot environmental portraits in the Past. 

 Hertford Street, Coventry, (Niall McDiarmid, 2012)
 Bedford Street, Rhyl, (Niall McDiarmid, 2011)
Adelphi Street, Blackpool (Niall MacDiarmid, 2012)

About the Crossing Paths shots

Niall’s shots are articulated to highlight the diversity in around London with none of his shots are showing someone looking similar because he wants to highlight that nobody is the same and that everybody is different. Niall uses prominent locations that most normal people will understand can relate in their lives. Niall turns location that looks run down or looks ugly into an inspiring masterpiece his work is taken around Britain as the crossing lines work is about a portrait of Britain. His work is done to document what real people are like he was after “the many not the few” (Labour Slogan 2017) of real people, not the rich elite that people must sadly put up with. After looking at his work in this Unit I understand how that Niall uses his work to show what Crossing paths works, this works together in and even though at times it comes together in other works for this project I am planning on using his environmental portrait style when shooting the project.

Bibliography

All photos are from Crossing Paths, Town to Town. From Niall McDrimand.