By Kristin Snapp
A man of great character and unfiltered language, Michael Chester started his career as a marine engineer, but he had always been interested in photography and had an even deeper-seeded passion for motorsports.
He used photography first as a way to get access to those motorsports. And while his sales jobs paid the bills, Chester kept working at his photography and freelance work and developed into a well-respected and sought after photographer of celebrities, politicians, sporting events and breaking news. He has just been elected to his second term as president of the Press Photographers Association of Ireland, and he regaled the Point Park students with stories from his long career and the importance of the PPA.
After a number of career changes, Chester became the first Irish man to be in FOPA – the Formula One Photographers Association – when he was working with a Motorsport magazine. His job duties were to ride alongside Formula One cars, photographing races, which he did for eight to nine years.
He landed a job at a newspaper by happenstance – He was knocking on doors, and one newspaper’s employee was sick and gave Chester the interview.
He worked at that paper for two years before he met the requirements to become a part of the PPA. He stuck with his role for 10 years until he became president.
“Normally, when you’re done with the presidency, you’ve got your gold cufflinks and you sail off into the sunset,” Chester said. “But they asked me to come back!”
For 14 years, Chester’s role with PPA has secured him the contract for the Irish Oscars.
“I’ve met people like Colin Farrell. You know Colin Farrell?,” Chester asked. “Treat him like he’s a gnarly guy. He’s a gnarly guy with a great job. I’m a gnarly guy, but I’ve got a job that I really love.”
Chester has a committee of seven helping him make decisions for the PPA’s annual awards program, a major project that recognizes outstanding Irish photographers and photojournalists, but he stressed that he runs things loosely.
“I come up with an idea, [and if] it doesn’t work, fine,” Chester said. “I don’t have a hissy because it was my idea. I get outvoted a bunch. It’s fine.”
Chester has photographed musicians ranging from genres and decades – from Paul McCartney, Eric Clapton, Elton John to Britney Spears and Katy Perry. He’s even U2’s photographer.
“I became buddies with [Bono],” Chester said. “I forced myself on him,” he laughed, noting that Bono lives nearby him.
The PPA offers photographers a unique connection with celebrities and public officials alike.
Just after the international media students concluded their tour of Ireland’s parliamentary building in Dublin, news broke that their taoiseach, the equivalent of a prime minister – resigned.
“We are so well-respected with the powers that be here,” Chester said. “I have the taoiseach’s number and I can ring him – and I did when he resigned, and he answered. He was in a pub.”
There are many requirements to becoming a member of the PPA, but one thing guarantees expulsion – Photoshop.
“Photoshop is an absolute no-no,” Chester said. “I’ve thrown two guys out for excessive use of Photoshop. We’re really, really strict about it. It’s pure.”
The day after the students visited PPA, there were no group plans on the itinerary, and Chester was kind enough to invite all photography students to spend the day walking Dublin with him taking photos and getting advice. Four of them took him up on that offer, and Jacqueline Roberts-Kpan’s story recounts their adventure. Three students who accompanied him – Emily Bennett, Roberts-Kpan and Chloe Jakiela, also wrote about it in their blogs.