Sad time for racing photographers as York legend Jeremy Phillips is mourned

It is a bittersweet time for those who decorate these pages and others with miraculous images that bring racing coverage to life.

This is the season when their profession is rightly celebrated, with the shortlist recently unveiled for photographer of the year at the HWPA Derby Awards. David Davies and Tim Goode of the Press Association, plus our own Patrick McCann and Edward Whitaker, are in the running for an award the Post men have won ten times between them.

But there is sadness among their ranks, and beyond, at the sudden death of Jeremy Phillips, a man who radiated positivity at York, where he was racecourse photographer for more than 20 years.

This is reflected in the instructions for his funeral at York Crematorium at 12.20pm on Friday of this week (November 18) and the celebration at the racecourse afterwards: "Jeremy's life was full of colour so we would love to see you dressed to reflect this. Jeremy wasn't a fan of formal wear, you were most likely to see him in outdoor gear or jeans and a T-shirt, so please wear whatever you are comfortable in."

An example of Jeremy Phillips' work, from a huge portfolio built up in more than 20 years as racecourse photographer at YorkCredit: Jeremy Phillips

Phillips was also a fine interior design photographer and that hints at a more long-lasting cause for sadness among those who wield a camera on course: it is extraordinarily hard to make it pay on its own nowadays.

Being a racing photographer is a precarious existence – and an expensive one too. The equipment is not cheap and liability insurance is a condition of holding a press badge, yet fewer and fewer organisations are prepared to dip into their pockets to pay a reasonable sum for their handiwork. It is no coincidence that the quartet on that shortlist all work for the Press Association and the Post, two outfits who are.

A snap of Jason Maguire and Donald McCain captured by five-year-old RosaCredit: Rosa Carr

I recall my daughter Rosa, then aged five, taking a photo on my wife Em's mobile phone of Jason Maguire getting mounted in the parade ring while watched by Donald McCain.

It was nicely composed, in focus, with the subjects to the fore and the clouds making a good background. And that's the problem. Why should a media organisation with a squeezed budget pay for the accumulated wisdom and quality of an experienced snapper in the era of digital technology when "anyone can do it"?

Except, of course, we can't all do it, not to anything like the standards of Davies, Goode, McCann and Whitaker – and indeed Jeremy Phillips. He will be sorely missed.

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