When we first started brainstorming ideas for some new promo pics for Newcastle band Inhale the Sea, guitarist Michael suggested we do something involving the night sky. I hadn’t shot anything quite like this before, and wasn’t really too sure how. But, always up for a challenge, I decided to run with the idea and see what we could do.

Knowing that I would need some preparation, I went for a test shoot to get a rough idea of what I was doing and to try and find any issues I might run into. These 2 shots were taken just outside of Raymond Terrace. I was stopped on the side of the road, near a driveway, when the residents arrived to find me camped out with my camera. I can only imagine their surprise, but they didn’t stop for long enough for me to explain myself.

The shots were OK, but there was too much light for the look I wanted. I needed somewhere darker. Waaaaaay darker. Somewhere devoid of any civilisation, streetlights, roads, or traffic lights. After some poking around on Google Maps, I found my location.

Stockton sand dunes at night has a bit of a split personality – it is spooky and surreal at some times, but calm and relaxing at others. I was alone on this shoot as well, and again ran into some rather confused passers by (shot 2). I must have looked quite strange with my camera gear, but no car – I had parked it back on the road (Camry’s don’t handle sand dunes too well). Feeling confident now, I organised for the whole band to head out to get the shots I’d been after.

This has probably been my most ambitious shoot ever in terms of logistics and photographic difficulty. While shooting in almost total darkness definitely has its obstacles, I’m really happy with how the final shots came out. It goes to show that you get out what you put in – both in terms of my own preparation, and the great enthusiasm the band brought to the shoot and willingness to let me take them wherever I needed.

Inhale the Sea is just about to launch their new album, ‘The Fourth Coordinate’. You can find them at .