This year felt like stepping into my own skin for the first time. I began music photography in 2023, but 2025 is where it started to feel lived in, like something that belonged to me and not just something I was trying to reach for.
Joining MetalTalk in April brought a kind of quiet direction and the opportunity to get back on my feet. My first assignment with Sophie James showed me that there is a place in this world for the way I see things. For the emotion I chase with my camera and the stories I try to capture as fleeting moments of history in the making.
The road that led here was never smooth. It tested me in ways that had nothing to do with music. Yet MetalTalk opened a door when I needed one and let me walk through without asking me to be anything other than myself. That trust stayed with me. It became the backbone of my year.
My Top Gigs Of 2025:
Cheap Trick, where my mom wrote her first review.
This night felt like a gift. Photographing the show while my mum stepped into the world I love created a memory that feels like home every time I think about it. It was simple and human, and everything music should be.
Stone Broken’s farewell with Jayler and Sam Millar at KK’s Steel Mill
This was perhaps the most emotional. The performances were electric, and the room felt alive in a way that made photographing it feel effortless. Working beside Sophie felt natural and grounding, like coming back to familiarity.
Wolfsbane, my first solo MetalTalk gig
This was the night I proved something to myself. Walking into KK’s alone, it was the moment that whispered, quietly but firmly, that I am capable of more than I once believed.
My first gig, AK & The Red Kites
This is the moment that stays with me. It is where everything began to feel real. It allowed me to step into the team and publication I admire, and it gave me the chance to look at myself without doubting whether I deserved to stand where I stood.
That night taught me that good things don’t always have to come with conditions. Sometimes you are simply allowed to be.
What the future holds in 2026
In 2026, the music is going to lead me. More stories and more moments that reveal the hearts and the people who bring it alive. Through MetalTalk and my photography, I hope to capture the energy, the intensity, and the truths that live in the eyes and souls of every performance.
I hope to honour the music, the artists, and the fans who make it real. And as always, I hope to catch a few of my favourite bands in action.
Special thanks for 2025
Thank you to Steve, Ian, and Sophie for their trust and guidance. Thank you to the band members who meet the camera with emotion and make each night worth capturing. Thank you to my mum, Ylve, for supporting me through every part of my journey.
And a special in memoriam to our dog Pumpkin, who passed in May. She carried us through some of the hardest parts of our lives, and her love will stay with us forever. This year belongs to her, too.
And thank you to everyone who reads, shares, and gives meaning to the work we love to create at MetalTalk. Here’s to new beginnings, and to everything waiting just beyond the barrier.
