First stages of documenting the Manchester rave scene. Project 13

In order for this project to be a success I must document all aspects of Manchester's 'rave' scene. I want to document those who make the nights as unique and atmospheric as they are; therefore I will start off by photographing those who make the night possible...the dj's and mc's .

However, I don't want to be photographing them from a distance, I want them to be aware of who I am and what i'm doing.

I used who and what I know to my advantage and have joined Project 13 as their head photographer. Project 13 is a unique and clever group who feature the next up and coming dj's from around Manchester, allowing them to play in a variety of clubs and secret locations throughout the city.

I am currently experimenting with expired film due to it's magical variation of unique colours when x processed through the c41 machine. I decided to mix things up a little and use a rear flash to capture the dj's movement. I initially did this purely due to the fact that dj's can often look very stiff when shot with a standard flash. I feel like the rear flash technique is incredible at simply making the image appear more alive and energetic.

The two photographs below are of an mc who goes by the name of T Man. I am a great admirer of his work and how he can get the crowd going even when the night may be a little dead. At this moment in time I want to photograph as many people as possible in order for my book to have a diverse number of one of a kind characters.

I noticed this one guy who was standing right at the front of the crowd, he was clearly on drugs and the music was making him dance to the beat. Initially I wasn't planning on taking a photograph of him as I was more into what Acre (one of the dj's) was playing, however, despite this when going to take a photograph of Mr Acre this guy turned around, looked me dead in the eye and smiled; a rather peculiar but friendly smile. I shot the photograph and edited it in a rather abstract style to reinforce is 'wired' mind set.

I believe that by photographing the characters I encounter on a night I will have a strong array of portraits which provide the reader with a true insight to what goes on in Manchester after dark.