Who is redManhattan?
Hi, my name is Andrew Beeson-Brackstone, and I am a photographer based in Dorset, UK.
I value photographs above anything else in the world for the extraordinary role that they play in providing us with fond memories to look back on. If you ended up relocating to the other side of the world, your favourite photographs would most likely travel with you above anything else. Whether a photo is a nostalgic old school photograph, a cheesy family portrait, your favourite selfie with your best friend on a special occasion, or one of those ghastly images that makes you wince in recoil, every single one of these photos leaves lasting footprints in our lives. And through these photographs, we can relive each moment again and again, remembering how we felt and who was involved.
First and foremost, I am a creative photographer and I love capturing beautiful, sometimes quirky images using natural light, composition, and emotion. I am skilled at using my cameras and utilise my techniques accordingly to create the effect that feels most natural in the moment. I love being on my feet with cameras most of all, where I make the most of the natural light that is available to me. But I also love creating imagery using my speed-lights, which also leads to impressive results.
Every photographer has their own very unique style that you will either “connect” with or not. Very much like the first impressions that we form when we meet new people for the first time, the same also applies to photography - you will know instantly whether you like the photographer’s style or not. If you feel like you connect with my style of photography, then by all means, please contact me. I would love to work with you!
What are your photography qualifications and experience?
I studied for my degree in Photography at Bournemouth University as a mature student and achieved a 2:1 with Commendation. I have worked as a freelance photographer since 2015 under my business name of redManhattan Photography. I have also worked part time as the Staff Photographer and Videographer for BCP Council between 2020-2024.
I am a specialist in Theatre and Performance photography. I work with a number of theatre schools, charities and universities such as Arts University Bournemouth, Pavilion Dance South West, Swish Theatre School, Forest Forge, Zest Dance, BBLOC and many more.
Are you local to Dorset and do you know the area well?
I was born and raised in Bournemouth and have lived in the local area all my life.
Why are you called redManhattan?
Although I have been a photographer since 2012, I didn’t form redManhattan until 2016. It was shortly after a trip to New York with my husband Ken in February of that year. We were considering all sorts of names for the business at that time, but being in New York in bitterly cold temperatures of -22 degrees made the whole experience really memorable.
We both loved it there and I love the colour red, so the rest is history and redManhattan was born!
What our clients say
“Best in the business.”
— George Bell-Starr
“We had the pleasure of working with RedManhattan on our show and we’re genuinely so pleased with the results. The quality of the photos are fantastic and he’s captured the show exactly how we’d hoped.
Andy was great to work with throughout. Really accommodating, easy to deal with, he completely understood the brief and delivered the picture in such a quick turn around.
He definitely went above what we expected and the final images have been a huge help for us promoting our show.
We highly recommend RedManhattan and we can’t wait to work with them again on our future shows!”
— Darling Productions UK
“We got Andy and Kenny to photograph our wedding in October 2018 as well as getting our engagement pictures taken, and we couldn't be happier with their work. They were so friendly and professional, made us feel extremely at ease, and we can't wait to receive our pictures from the big day.”
— Erlingur Grétar Einarsson
“Andy is a fantastic Videographer and Photographer who I've worked with for several years in my role at Arts University Bourenmouth. He has supported us greatly with our Being a Boy project, capturing fun and exciting content for our workshop documentaries and a short dance film. He works seemlessly as part of the day, understanding our event needs and needs of the young people we support. He works very hard to capturing everything you've asked for and more, producing films and photography at the same time. He's wonderful to work with and the outcomes are always outstanding!”
— Eleanor Ball, AUB
“Andy is an amazing photographer and videographer and we have had the pleasure of working with him since 2022 on various projects to capture creative activities in an education environment.
The documentaries Andy captured. and edited for us. sit proudly on our website and we always get compliments on them.
The quality of the photos are outstanding and we have used them for promotional materials and some featured in an exhibition of the project at the House of Commons in March 2026.
It is a pleasure working with Andy, and he makes the participants and their supporters feel at ease, which comes across in the videos and images.
Would definitely recommend Andy for any future projects!
Thank you Andy :)”
— Kate Venables, AUB
“I recently worked with Andy as the photographer for BIGLITTLE’s production of Curtains the Musical in February 2026, and couldn’t be happier with the results. Andy is very approachable, friendly, and nothing seems like too much trouble. He made the whole process easy and captured everything we asked for.
The photos themselves came out fantastic and the turnaround time for receiving all the images was incredibly fast, which we really appreciated.
Thank you, Andy, for your great work!”
— Sophie Adnett, BIGLITTLE
“Andy, is very professional, reliable, easy to work with and has a great passion for his work! Myself used redManhattan for a person fitness shoot and we have also used redManhattan on a business, which is based in the fitness industry.
Would highly recommend him and his work! Also his partner in crime Kenny is great to work with as well both really friendly and reliable guys!”
— James Ling
“Did the wedding of my daughter and son-in-law and they were fantastic. Would recommend very highly. Many thanks, wonderful job.”
— Philip Douglas
“Andy is a fantastic photographer who we will be using frequently. Andy recently photographed our first dance show and was able to capture the most beautiful photos of our students in their natural setting and this brings to life the personal excitement from dancers and teachers without it being staged. We were thrilled with the outcome and would highly recommend Andy!”
— Ciara Simmons, Zest Dance
Learn about the kit I use
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Nikon Z8
Nikon Z5II Mirrorless
Nikon D850 SLR
Pro lenses including Z 24-70mm f2.8, Z 70-200mm f2.8, Nikkor 24-120mm F4
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Nikon Speedlights & Godox portable studio lighting
Variety of soft boxes, light diffusers and portable diffusers by Godox & Magmod
Variety of paper and pop-up backdrops including white/grey and creative backdrops usable on-location and in studios.
Access to local photography studios in the Bournemouth area for studio shoots.
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DJI Mini 5 Pro (Sub 250g)
*A2 C of C (Pending completion)