Welcome
The aim of this website is to share the versatility, creativity and exceptional photographic skill of Bob Martin, and to share his visual record of the energy, passion and talent of the entertainers who captured the imaginations of South African audiences from as far back as the early 1960's.
About Bob Martin
Through his magical lens, BOB MARTIN reveals his chameleon-like empathy
with all his subjects.
He started his photographic career whilst in
Kenya during the Mau Mau emergency, working as a ‘scene of crime’
photographer as a reservist with the Kenya Police, and then, on his
return to SA as a Sunday Times photographer.
He then broadened his experience by working as a publicity-stills cameraman on a number of international film sets, also assisting the legendary ‘Karsh of Ottawa’ on the film, “Zulu” with Michael Caine.
Highlights & Footlights
Photographer Bob Martin's magical lens has
captured many exquisite images through the years.
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Photo Galleries
See some of Bob Martin's fantastic photographs by clicking through to the different galleries below.
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Opera & Classical Music
Long before I became a photographer of the Theatre, I was a lover of
classical music a passion inherited from my parents, who were both
talented musicians. My photography of the Opera - with its amazing music, the genius of its stars, the conductors and wonderful musicians in the orchestra pit as well as the entire back-stage technical crew - was so overwhelmingly inspirational that from the word go it was impossible not to get wonderful pictures...
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Musicals & Cabaret
As you will no doubt read in my anecdotal captions to the photographs in this particular section of my book, when photographing Cabaret and The Musical theatre, life was never dull, and I had many ‘experiences’ with cabaret artists who are sometimes, notorious ‘Drama queens’...___________________________________________________________________________
Dance
It is I think, probably because of my brief but exciting (and exhausting) interlude as a dancer, during my youth, that I automatically felt completely at ease when photographing ‘Le dance’.I was fortunate that my work included capturing the ‘greats’ of dance, from the classical beauty of the lovely Margo Fontyn to the exciting earthiness of the company of Gypsy kids, in the Jose Greco Flamenco dance company...
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Theatre
I’ve always been smitten by the magic of the Theatre. As a very young man, I wanted to be an actor and performed on stage in several productions despite having been warned about it's precariousness as a profession.My fleeting experience treading the boards, also a brief spell with the University of Cape Town Ballet company as a dancer, gave me a real taste of all the ‘heart-break-house’ penury for which the profession is renowned and which, had I continued to act, or dance, would surely have been my lot...
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Film
Working as a publicity Stills photographer on a film is most challenging and can be very exciting, for film-making combines the highly technological Cinematic art and genre, converting the written pages of the shooting script into a piece of Motion-picture art, plus that of the director, the cinematographer and the actor’s talents, all in one ‘take’...___________________________________________________________________________
Portraits
Portrait photography is not only a highly personal experience for the sitter but also for the photographer. Most of my theatre, dance and music portraits are by their very nature, pictures of extraordinarily gifted people. Whether they are actors, singers, musicians, or dancers, the prime requisite is for me to gain their trust and get them to relax first, and then to try and connect, on a personal level.___________________________________________________________________________
Order Now!
It is so easy to order your copy of Highlights & Footlights or to order signed prints of your favourite pics...
