One of the country’s leading professional photographers, Nick Callaghan – who has worked across Europe and beyond for more than twenty years with a wide range of top companies including M&S, Hilton Hotels, Pernod Ricard, Marriot, Ardbeg, and Scottish Power – is to join forces with the band and shoot the photography for our 2024 calendar.

The Haddington-based photographer worked on all of our early calendars, only stepping down when the success of his business, including a great deal of foreign travel and an intense schedule, left him too little time to support our project. Among his memorable shots have been the iconic image of poppies cascading down on a piper in St Mary’s (created in conjunction with John Archibald) and the Iwo Jima-inspired raising of the Saltire on Traprain Law.

“The quality of Nick’s work is absolutely outstanding, and we are thrilled that he has offered to work with us on the 2024 calendar photography,” said the band’s Alastair Bruce. “This is a real coup for us and we know that the creativity and professionalism which Nick brings to the project will result in a wonderful calendar for 2024.

“As in previous years when he worked with us, Nick will do the photography at no cost to the band, which is an amazing gesture for which we are extremely grateful. The band is a charity which relies on its own fundraising efforts to finance uniforms, instruments, tuition, and other expenses, and the money we raise from the calendar is a very important part of that fundraising. So having Nick partner with us in this way is doubly significant in not only creating an outstanding calendar but also in ensuring that its production costs are kept to a minimum.”

Nick Callaghan commented: “It was always a real pleasure to work with the band in past years and I am delighted to be in a position once again to support them. Having lived in Haddington all my life, I know just what a great organisation the band is and what they bring to the local community in their fantastic support for events and in bringing colour and music to the town. Working with them on the calendar photographs is always great fun and I am really looking forward to the photo shoots over the coming months.”

Planning for the 2024 calendar has already begun and while details of the final photographs are always kept under wraps until the launch, local people may well see some of the photo shoots taking place. The calendar itself is likely to be published in October of this year.