Interviews with experts – Tim Smith
Tim Smith
E: Hello Tim, so first question who are you and what do you do?
T: I’m Tim Smith, I’m a freelance photographer. I do a whole load of different photographic work, but I’m particularly interested in doing photography with arts and culture organisations which has included Mind the Gap for a long time.
E: Since the dawn of time isn’t it?
T: Almost.
E: How did you get into being a photographer?
T: I trained to be a newspaper and magazine photographer, for many years I worked for a news agency in Bradford which included lots of work for review supplements for papers like The Guardian and The Observer. I used to do production photographs for those papers and that’s how I forged a relationship with Mind the Gap. I could burble on forever about my photographic influences but I won’t, as it will probably bore the people reading this!
E: What are you doing for Mediabox?
T: I’m producing still photos to illustrate various ideas and scenarios that Mind the Gap people have come up with – that’s it in a nutshell, I think!
E: You obviously enjoy it, but have you had any aargh moments?
T: What, taken my bat home? No, but that’s because I enjoy working with Mind the Gap and hopefully it’s a fruitful relationship on both sides. As a photographer they are a good company to work with, as they are people who can think visually. And also a group of people open to collaborative working… I’m not just there to press a button to order, I have some input in turning people’s ideas into visual messages.
E: One more question, tell us one interesting fact about you.
T: About me?
E: Yes.
T: I don’t know, hmm (long pause)… I’m thinking if there’s something to do with theatre (really long pause!)… before I moved to Bradford I’ve never lived anywhere longer than 3 years, I’ve been here 25 – which is half of my life. On good days I think it’s because Bradford is a great place to live and work, on bad days I think maybe I’m stuck in a rut.
E: You could always move into the big hole?
T: Maybe I will.
