Eamonn McCabe (1948-2022) created some of the best known images from the 1970s to 2020s. Starting as a sports photographer, he later moved in to more general editorial work and portraiture, and as a picture editor for the Guardian. Largely self-taught McCabe was widely respected across the industry. He produced a number of books and television programmes about photography.
Eamonn was born in London. He undertook a series of jobs before starting his career within photography. He joined The Observer newspaper as a sports photographer in 1976. He quickly established himself as one of the most able photographers in the field, able to cover a range of sports. As with his pictures in the Heysel stadium in 1985 he could equally produce powerful news photographs. Eamonn won Sports Photographer of the Year four times between 1978 and 1984.
After a stint on the short-lived SportsWeek he was recruited by The Guardian's editor Peter Preston as picture editor where he went on to win Picture Editor of the Year a record six times.
in 2001 Eamonn returned to freelancing, focusing on general editorial work and portraiture. His strong portraits for the Guardian Review were typically made in black and white using available light.
Eamonn produced a number of books on photography and photographers and fronted several television programmes on photography. He was an honorary Professor at Thames Valley University, a visiting senior fellow in photography at the University of Suffolk and held honorary doctorates from the University of East Anglia and Staffordshire University. He was a Fellow of the Royal Photographic Society.
Away from his own career, Eamonn was friend and mentor to many new photographers, encouraging and supporting them in their careers. He enjoyed talking about photography, and was equally at home speaking to a local camera club as to a group of fellow press photographers sharing his own insights and photographs. Many of his portraits are in London's National Portrait Gallery.
Photograph (top): © Bill Jackson. Eamonn McCabe in Bill's studio.