Neal Preston

Ronnie Van Zandt

1975

Neal Preston is one of the most highly respected photographers in the history of the music industry. His career in photography, which started in high school and continues to the present, has spanned more than four decades. Through his body of work, Preston has made a significant contribution to the pop culture history of multiple generations. His archive stands as one of the music industry’s single most elite and extensive photographic collections. For years, his photographs have appeared in every conceivable media outlet: on the covers and pages of hundreds of world-class magazines, newspapers and books; on television shows; in feature films and documentaries; in Broadway show programs and billboards; in print and electronic advertisements; and on innumerable vinyl and CD/DVD packages. He was also the key contributor to VH-1’s acclaimed “Behind the Music” documentary series, providing over 1,000 still photos used in over 50 episodes. Although Preston is best known in rock circles as Led Zeppelin’s U.S. tour photographer in the mid-1970’s, his rock-and-roll travels have taken him around the world visiting Russia with Billy Joel; Japan with Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, Michael Jackson and Duran Duran; China with Wham!; South Africa with Whitney Houston; Canada with Heart; and Mexico and South America with Queen in 1981 and 2015. In 1985, Preston was chosen as one of the official photographers for Bob Geldof’s “Live Aid” concert at London’s Wembley Stadium. In 1988 his association with Bruce Springsteen helped land him the job as official tour photographer for Amnesty International’s legendary “Conspiracy of Hope”tour, a five-week world trek in which Sting, Peter Gabriel and Tracy Chapman appeared along with Springsteen. In 1980 he began a 30-year-long relationship with “People Magazine” and to this day remains the most-assigned photographer in its history, with almost 700 shoot days to his credit. After joining the International Cinematographers Guild in 1999, Preston served as both the unit and special photographer for the feature films “Almost Famous,” “Vanilla Sky,” “Elizabethtown,” “We Bought a Zoo” and “Aloha” and recently completed work on Season 1 of the Showtime television series “Roadies” (all directed by Cameron Crowe). In addition to creating the key art for those projects, Preston also provided photos used in the feature films “61,” “Singles,” “Laurel Canyon” and “Pick of Destiny,” among others. In June of 2010 Preston cemented a relationship with the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, becoming the first photographer to mount a one-man exhibition of his work on the premises. His work was part of the Hard Rock’s permanent memorabilia collection. Preston’s work has been displayed at such elite institutions as the Smithsonian in Washington D.C., the National Gallery in London, England, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio. His iconic photograph of Freddie Mercury is part of the permanent photo exhibit at the new Wembley Stadium in London, and close to 100 of Preston’s photographs adorn the walls of the newly renovated Forum in Inglewood, California.