JPG: Stories: Photo Essay: This is Glasgow.

This is Glasgow.

By Kristin Mitchell

25 Oct 2008

As a student photographer, one of the things I frequently read about is employers want people with experience. Work experience is a valuable opportunity to anyone wanting to get their CV noticed by future employers. With one year left at college, and the UK on the brink of being declared "in recession", I am aware of the competition I'll be up against for any job when I graduate.

So I organised three days work experience with one of Scotland's leading national newspapers, the Herald.

During those three days, I accompanied three different photographers on a selection of very different shoots across Glasgow.

My first day, as soon as I arrived I was bundled into a taxi with a reporter off to the east end of Glasgow - a notorious area known for its problems with crime and social deprivation. But far from being another bad news story, this was one with a more positive twist. We were there to follow the Scottish Justice Secretary, Kenny MacAskill, around the east end, as he visited various projects working with the community. The aims of these projects is to help local people help themselves, and to improve relationships between everyone in the local community, both young and old, and to help them find ways of improving their futures.

The shoot which followed couldn't be more different. After a short trip back to the office, we headed out to the west end of Glasgow, for a photo-call by Scottish Ballet, who were promoting their latest show, Cinderella, in one of the glass houses in the Botanic Gardens. The dancers looked absolutely stunning in their costumes, and carefully stood, balancing for minutes at a time for the cameras.

On another shoot, we went to visit a man whose little granddaughter had saved his life. They had been watching a DVD together, when he went very quiet. She instantly realised something was wrong, and alerted her grandmother who called for an ambulance. The older man had experienced a stroke. This story was then a follow up, about a recent campaign for a Scottish stroke charity.

For the Scottish BAFTA award nominations, I ended up in a rather fashionable part of Glasgow's city centre. The BAFTAs are the UK equivalent to the Academy Awards and held in very high regard. After a quick photo call with the actors and two giant gold masks which are the logo of the awards, we were off to the main shopping street in Glasgow. More celebrities, only this time they were dressed up in somewhat more elaborate costumes to promote this year's pantomime - Cinderella. Unlike the ballet version though, this was a slightly more comical affair.

Not all my photo shoots were quite so glamourous. One photo shoot I attended involved waiting around in the rain at a country park, trying to snap a celebrity sportsman who was raising money for charity by walking round various parts of the UK. Stood in the rain, I was glad I'd brought a pair of sturdy shoes, while I waited with the press photographer to catch a glimpse. Unfortunately the celebrity in question was very insistent on keeping his gaze downwards, wearing sunglasses (despite the weather!) and a baseball cap, so that he was virtually unrecognisable in the shots. The bad news was that this meant their celebrity wouldn't be appearing in the paper, therefore there would be no story, therefore no press coverage for the charity. Rather defeating the purpose of his walk, I thought. However, despite the gloom and lack of success for the press photographer, I met a real star that day. A little girl who was undergoing treatment for leukaemia. She chatted to me, and sheltered with me under my umbrella while it rained. She and the other voluntary organisers were extremely chatty and friendly, and by far left me feeling more humbled and awestruck than any one else I met that week, more than the politicians, dancers, stars of stage, screen and sports.

From the red carpet to mud, I could easily say I experienced a little piece of everything during my three-day work experience placement. I learned a lot from the photographers, and from the people I met during my three days. I learned not only about how the photographers work, but also about how I work, particularly with people. While I might have gone in with a slightly mercenary idea of "this will really boost my CV", thinking I'd learn new tricks and techniques, I've actually come out with more as a person. The greatest thing I learned was from talking to the people.

The experience has made me sit up and take notice of the world - less about the world out there and more about the world round here and all the fabulous people in it.