John

Think back to April 2020. Here in Melbourne, as in much of Australia and much of the world, we were in lockdown. Many things and events we took for granted did not happen in 2020. One of the biggest events was Anzac Day and the traditional Anzac Day Australian Football match between Essendon and Collingwood.

How this relates is that before the match, the Last Post is played in front of the 90,000-strong crowd, and you can hear a pin drop as it sounds.

In 2020, the RSL decided the tradition must live on and called my friend John, an Army reserve veteran and one of the finest performers of the Last Post I’ve ever heard. John performed the last post and reveille in an empty Melbourne Cricket Ground, to this day one of the most incredible videos I have ever seen. I was so proud of John as I knew it was on his bucket list to perform the Last Post at the MCG.

Ever since I first saw the video, I have wanted to photograph John with his instruments. And today, I got that chance.

Thank you, John, for making the 2-hour drive to come and shoot with me. I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did.

Richard Mayle is a portrait photographer and musician based in the Bayside region of Melbourne. He has long loved the high contrast black and white look of the former masters, such as Avedon, and is bringing this style to his own portrait work.

He photographs musicians, photographers, members of the roller derby community and is very interested in hearing if you have another concept in mind.

If you like what you see here, visit the Contact page to organise your own session.