A conversation with Scottish photographer David Eustace
Having met at the screening of the film Precious Time for Balblair Whisky, which focuses on the importance of unrushed craft in whisky making and taking time to enjoy life, renowned Scottish photographer David Eustace talks to Rashmi Narayan about his philosophy.
Interview Rashmi Narayan Photography David Eustace 
What is the one thing you wish you knew when you ventured into photography?
I have always loved the medium. A student asked me the difference between analogue, film and digital. I said to him that digital makes it easier for those who know what they were doing. I knew nothing starting out. What I knew was that I was interested in people. I was interested in the importance of conversations. The camera is merely a record of that. My camera has introduced me to so many things across the globe.
Speaking of travel, was there any place that inspired you or was exciting to you?
I remember I was making a project in the back streets of Beirut in the early 1990’s and in the same week, I went to Cannes for another project. It was this contradiction of the two places, the diversity that stayed with me. One of the most interesting places I’ve been to was Nias island which feels like you’re in the middle of nowhere, but in reality, I was on an island close to the coast of western Sumatra, for an advertisement. It wasn’t the remotest place I’ve been to, but it was spectacular, very visual.
“If you want to be a photographer, you need to have an interest in life.”
Has anybody else’s work had an influence on you?
Not in photography no. This is what I always say to aspiring photographers – if you want to be a photographer, you need to have an interest in life. Start by having a conversation with someone, go watch a good movie, listen to a nice piece of music. You just have to talk to people. The conversations you get when you engage with any person, not just someone famous can be highly influential. You make an interesting portrait when you talk to interesting people. So many people that I have met have had an interesting story to tell. The main point of this all is to not worry if this doesn’t work out. As you mature and develop your photos, your style and interests also evolve. That’s just life.
Are there any details about your work that you particularly enjoy?
I have really been getting into sculptures lately. I’m the sort of person that looks for perfection, even though I know it doesn’t exist and I don’t want it to exist. I do the best I can do and it’s not about finding anything easy or difficult in photography, it’s more about what I find interesting. Every detail that I see in my work, I find it educational or a learning curve. Like this film I shot for Balblair Whisky recently, they put their faith in me entirely on how I’d bring it to life and so, I went away and did it the best way I could. If I don’t get things done the way I’d like them to be, I simply try something else.
Stills from the film Precious Time for Balblair Whisky ©David Eustace
Was there any particular time in your photographic career where you faced any major challenges?
The challenge was always within myself. I struggled to read in my early years due to dyslexia. The first two books I ever read was On Photography by Susan Sontag and Lebanon at War by Robert Fisk which were brilliant. What we do as photographers is of value and importance and in that, I try to achieve the best I can. I learnt that we adapt to different things as life goes along. Of course, one always comes across challenging people in their career, but we all know that situations can always be dealt with in a respectful manner – whether it’s the person facing the camera or the one behind it. There are no creative differences as such because you can learn something from everybody and experience can teach us how to collaborate with people better. Everything is a collaboration and everyone has a responsibility.
“There are no creative differences as such because you can learn something from everybody.”
Portrait of Sophia Loren ©David Eustace
About David
David Eustace was born in Edinburgh and served with the Royal Navy and also worked as a prison guard at Barlinnie before returning to education, graduating in Photographic Studies at Edinburgh Napier University. He worked in London as a masthead contributor at Condé Nast – Tatler, GQ and Vogue. He then moved to New York in 2001, after which he collaborated with some of the world's most respected brands. In 2009, Eustace launched Anthropologie’s Who Inspires Us? arts initiative. Anthropologie asked him to create another portfolio the following year, which saw him return to Scotland where he produced Highland Heart. In 2011 he received an Honorary Doctor of Arts for his contribution to photography from Napier and in 2015 became Chancellor at the same institution. That year, he also became the first photographer to host a main gallery exhibition at The Scottish Gallery.
To see more of his work, visit his website or follow him on Instagram
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