"I was setting everything up for a cover with Slash and Ozzy Osbourne, and Slash walked into the studio, saw me, and went, ‘Oh, it’s you!’ – I remember thinking ‘Slash knows me. Slash knows me!’"

Slash playing guitar in black and white.

Paul Harries – you’ve probably heard the name, and you’ve definitely seen the pictures he’s taken over the last 34 years. They’re stunning shots of famous music artists – everyone from Dua Lipa to Slash, Ozzy Osbourne to Tinie Tempah, Craig David to Kurt Cobain – that perfectly encapsulate their personalities. Paul gets hired by record companies for album shoots and publicity stills, as well as for editorial for publications such as Kerrang! and Music Week.

As I’m both a music artist and a newly-pro snapper, I thought it would be fascinating to sit down with Harries and learn all about how he became one of the most renowned music industry photographers. We met in a hotel in southwest London, UK on a gloomy winter day, and enjoyed a coffee together.