NEAL PRESTON: PHOTOGRAPHER OF THE ROCK GODS
What exactly differentiates a Neal Preston photo from another photographer’s photo of the same subject?
“I grab the viewer by the scruff of their neck,” explains Preston, “and I put them right in front!”
There is more to it than that, however. A Preston photo takes you onto the stage, behind the stage and onto the airplane with the band. Quite simply, he has gone where few photographers have gone before. For instance, he was the only photographer ever hired by Led Zeppelin to tour with them. He was so intimately involved with Queen, he brought Brian May home to meet his mother.
Many of his subjects have insisted that Preston be the photographer chosen to represent them photographically. If you call him a “rock photographer,” he’ll quickly stop you and tell you how much he disdains that title, because rock music is only part of his legacy. He has shot four Olympics, numerous other sporting events, and he is a great writer to boot.
Preston isn’t shy about his prowess, and he’ll be the first to tell you, “I am the greatest live concert photographer ever,” while quantifying the statement with, “No matter how great you are, there will always be someone standing beside you in the pit who can shoot rings around you.” Contradictory? Perhaps, but essentially Preston likes to let his photos do the talking for him.
“My ego never required that ‘Don’t you know who I am?’ kind of bullsh*t. I know plenty of photographers who do play that card, and that’s not me. I could care less about whether or not people know who I am. If you know the pictures, then I know I’ve done my job. The most pleasure I get is when someone gets a print of mine, frames it, hangs it on the wall and they derive pleasure from it. That’s the ultimate compliment for me. It doesn’t matter if people know my name or not.
“I’m not a household name, but I am known to a sliver of the rock and roll world pie. The pictures are far more famous than my name will ever be, and that’s the way I’ve always been most comfortable. I know photographers who go onstage and it’s all about, ‘Look at me, look at me, I’m onstage.’ I could care less about that.”
The further we get from those halcyon days of the 1970s, the rosier the lens we view these things through seems to get. An easy assumption to make is that Neal Preston had the best job in the world, but in the first few minutes after you meet him, he will set you straight. “The job isn’t glamorous, it’s stressful as hell. The deadlines are never-ending, and there are personalities. Not the individual personalities of the band members, but the tour. Every tour has its own personality, and it can turn on a dime. The band doesn’t like the sound, they don’t like the PA, somebody f**ked up a song, the drummer
