Towcester Greyhound Photographer - The Jim Tate Interview

Jim Tate - The Towcester Photographer

One of the most notable figures at Towcester in recent years is photographer Jim Tate. Tate has been snapping the greyhounds at the track since 2015 but the greyhounds was something that Tate became interested in later in life. 

Born in Northampton on September 21, 1972, Tate was a football fanatic, playing at a solid level in his youth for Northampton and then as a semi-professional for Walsall Woods.  Although the first time he can remember going greyhound racing was at Peterborough back in the mid 90s, it was another decade before the true love for the game came about.

Towcester was a regular haunt for Tate, though in those days it was the horses that attracted him to the venue. The horses have also been a regular target for the lens of Tate’s cameras with credited work at Towcester itself as well as Warwick and Great Yarmouth plus a host of other events.. 

"I've photographed at Northampton Football Club and Northamptonshire County Cricket Club. I photographed some of the Olympics in Paris which was an amazing experience!

"I covered many Tribute Bands and some DJ Sets including Mel C from the Spice Girls, Vernon Kay from Family Fortunes and Jo Wiley from Radio 1. I've photographed various Golf Charity days, featuring people like Teddy Sherringham (Football), Michael Watson (Boxing), John Conteh (Boxing), Gerwyn Price (Darts), Wayne Mardell (Darts), James Richardson (Darts) and many of the cast from The Only Way is Essex.

"My most moving job was photographing Green Park where all the Queen's Memorial Flowers were put. The whole park was full of flowers and Paddington bears. I have also done 'Normal Photography' photographing weddings and hundreds of portraits and family photo shoots."

It's the dogs where Tate is best known to us and when the greyhounds came to Towcester in 2014, Tate began to immerse himself fully into the sport. “The speed of the greyhounds and the quick turnaround of races really caught my attention. It gave me such a thrill and a buzz. I loved how the racecard gave plenty of info to try and pick a winner compared to Horse Racing.

“I used to come to every single meeting. I then helped to run an unofficial Towcester Fanzine and created “TRAP 9” here, a sort of on track following and place to meet. Towcester heard about me and decided to take me on, on a part time basis, and it was then that I was asked to take photos for their social media.

“At first it was just presentation photos but then I was asked to do action photos. I didn’t really have much of a clue how to do these and when I did my first action photo...well let’s just say it was a disastrous blur. But I loved it and was determined to get it right and eventually got pretty good at it.”

Tate would work on a variety of roles at Towcester, always willing to do what needed to help out. From social media and photography to being the assistant to Towcester’s operational manager as well as regular appearances on RPGTV plus hosting the Xdog Racing Show, Tate turned his hand to plenty.

Photography has seen Tate find his niche

The Greyhound Derby has been seen through Tate’s camera on multiple occasions now, something that Tate doesn’t take for granted, acknowledging the privilege that it is to play any part in the top competition in the country.

I asked him what the most difficult part of his job is. “A lot of people would think that capturing the greyhounds in focus is the most challenging aspect but that is actually the easy part once you know how.

“The most challenging part is the sun. At Towcester the sun is always directly in your eyes. It causes a lot of glare on the photos and if you don't know what you’re doing, it can also create silhouette effects and make every greyhound look extremely dark. Never shoot into the sun they say. Well, unless Towcester can revolve the track around, I have no choice! I pray for cloudy days!”

Anyone who has watched Tate at work will know just what a huge range of equipment he uses to get the best shots on each Raceday. “I currently have 12 cameras! On a usual meeting I use three but at big finals and the Derby, I use up to eight at the same time for action shots to cover as many angles of the race as I can.

“I put together a set of photos that chronologically show the entire race through the eyes of the cameras. People who have seen it have loved it and I came third in a national award for it last year.

“I love doing the under-rail shots on the first bend. When they come off, they look absolutely amazing. They are very tricky shots to take as they are solely taken by remote shutter, and they run into the cameras range of view rather than being shot by hand where you can follow the dogs.

“All my cameras are Canon, and the best ones are my Canon 1DX Mark II’s. These allow me to shoot at speeds of 18 shots per second and are very good in poor or floodlight scenarios."

The next generation at Towcester greyhounds

Spending any time with Tate is akin to time spent with the Tasmanian Devil. This process started the Derby final lunch, trying to pick his brain about photography, Towcester and greyhounds in general, with Tate barely sitting down to wolf down a couple of mouthfuls of food, give a quick answer before he is up again, spinning off to take more photos.

It is tiring work trying to keep up but the moments I do grab with him, his love of what he does shines through. “I love to capture magical moments for people and there is no better way than through a photograph. I love capturing the joy of winning, and a greyhound in full flight with all of their paws off the ground, the ultimate shot!

"But the best part for me is getting the children involved in the winner’s presentation photos area and getting them to meet the winning dog. They absolutely love the experience and occasionally some of the trainers give them their trophies! 

"You should see their faces light up when they get one, it's heartwarming. They say don’t work with animals and children but for me it’s the best, at least when they are still for a second!"

Tate is never too busy to be anything other than generous with his time, with lots of that spent helping the next generation learn the ropes at Towcester.

“Myley is my fantastic apprentice. She has greyhounds with her family and is extremely keen on the sport. She has helped me with the remote shutters on the cameras during the Derby the last three years and this time, actually took some amazing first bend photos with a handheld camera in the Derby Final.

“Photography in this sport is so important and there really should be someone like me at every track full time taking action photos of ALL meetings. Not all Owners can make a Monday morning meeting, so taking photos for them is essential in my eyes and essential in incentivising owners to keep investing into ownership.

“The lack of action shot photographers is a BIG concern in my eyes, though not really seen as so by tracks and the GBGB, so I thought it would be nice to teach someone and pass down my experience. It also enables me to get more and different angles shots as I cannot be everywhere.”

Tate's day job is currently working in criminal law but it is the dogs where Tate would love to find himself permanently "I would like to be a full time member of staff at Towcester again working in photography and social media as well as presenting. I did it before when we were considered the world's best track ,so have so much experience and knowledge to give.

"For Towcester itself, I want it to go back to how we worked in the early years. We raced every Friday and Saturday nights with crowds of 1000 to 2000 people. As well as myself as the photographer, we had a presenter, Towcester TV, a big screen, money prize games, tipping comps, owners and trainers areas, mobile phone apps etc etc. We also had “Trap 9” an area where fans could meet up and chat to and support other fans and owners.

"Saturday nights have just started back and I will be the presenter from 23/08/2025. This is an amazing and huge step forward for myself and the track. Hopefully over time the other things will come too.

"I would also like to see some straight, super fast grass racing. I think this would be very exciting for the spectators.

"Not just for Towcester, but for all tracks, I would like to see the Track Challenge come back where teams go to other tracks and compete in a night of track competition with a league table and eventual winner. If this was spruced up and marketed fantastically, I think this would be  a huge boost in improving attendances and interest in the sport."

You can find all of Jim Tate's photos on his website - https://jimtatephotography.picfair.com/

Jim Tate's favourite Towcester greyhound photos 

We asked Jim to send us through some of his favourite photos from down the years, enjoy!

Was very excited to make my Towcester Debut with RPGTV presenter Darrell Williams. Had been helping to run the unofficial fan page and was invited up. The first recognition of my efforts from Towcester.

Towcester got the Derby in 2017 and they chose me to take the photos. Was such an honour to be chosen. This is Romeo Magico for Graham Holland after his success.

Was the host of the Xdog Racing Fanzine show. Absoutely loved doing this and was sadly halted due to the Covid Outbreak.

Being a Big Cobblers Fan, having this photo with Kelvin and his family meant a lot. It was the start of a great relationship between Towcester, Northampton and the fans. Hopefully, get this back one day.

Since I started taking the photos here at Towcester, I have always dreamed about getting a photo of the winner going over the winning line in full flight. This is not easy to do! But this year the Gods were smiling down on me and helped me to get this amazing shot!

Ok, as mentioned, my favourite type of Action photos is the Under The Rail Shots, along with 1st Bend Shots. But Under The Rail Shots are the hardest to do, so was very chuffed with these ones.

Was so proud to represent Towcester on RPGTV, went on approx 10 times. But on my Debut I got nine from 12 Winners, OIOI!

The Late Mo & Stan were legends and every year raised money for GOSH along with many Celebrities of which I used to go and take the photographs for them at Romford. It was an honour to photograph them when they came up to the Derby in Towcester to raise money. Pictured here with them both is John Conteh and Michael Watson, former Boxers, as well as up and coming boxer Ben Collins.

It's extremely rare to get a photo with all six greyhounds paws off the floor. I was luckily enough to do this a few times.