What would a ‘scene’ be without a photographer to document it? London gives birth to, then destroys, such scenes at an alarming pace. Blink and you’ve already missed two. Blogs and Flickr accounts are like the paparazzi of the underground, and photographers like Ellis Scott are giving us a first-hand view into sexy club nights full of neon, debauchery and most importantly, fun. Here, some of his insights into that world:

How did you first get into photography?
Most people in and around my family are either photographers or in some way work with photographers. My mum runs a lookalikes agency my dad is a retired art director. My Godfather shot the front cover of the Rolling Stone's record Beggars Banquet.

What do you enjoy about it?
I hated the slow nature of other artistic mediums and I fell in love with the technical aspect of photography, so I decided that it was a natural step for me to take. I love its immediacy, and that it enables me to capture life and my interpretation of life.

How would describe your style?
I’d say it’s erratic but aggressive. I use very strong light, especially in my studio work. I also like the naked truth—the true reality of my subject, void of any confusing background. I shoot a lot of single-subject portraits on very sparse backgrounds.

What's your definition of a Paparazzi?
Paparazzi are builders who didn't want to put up walls, so they picked up a camera instead. They don't know how to take a photo. All they do is find an average digital camera and set everything to automatic. I think that the biggest flaw of a paparazzi is that they give a bad name to reportage photography.

In what ways do you think your work is distinctive from all of the other "nightlife" photographers showcasing their photos online?
There are hundreds of "club photo" sites who shoot thousands of images of club-celebs in their area and put them online. Many of them have no idea of how to take a proper image. I like to challenge myself by creating different lighting and photographic scenarios , rather than 200 images that are the same in every detail, apart from the people in the shot.

What projects have you been up to lately?
I am shooting in the UK for Dazed and Confused magazine solely and that keeps me busy fashion-wise. Outside of that, I’m in the process of creating a book with the performance artist Scottee. It’s fundamentally a documentary of me shooting him over the last two years. It’s a mixture of staged shoots and reportage. At present we have over 600 photos and that number grows daily. I’m also working on a book of my own reportage work and a number of different exhibition projects.

Do you ever go out and people just don’t want to have their picture taken?
I usually don’t take photos of people I don’t know. I’m forcing myself to do it more now, but it’s mostly people I’m close too. I don’t like shooting people I don’t know in clubs, because I feel you don’t get a true dialogue between the subject and the photographer. It’s just a meaningless moment. The closeness allows me to capture moments that photographers who aren’t part of the scene, don’t get. I have more problems when I tell people I don’t want to take their photo. I once said ‘no’ to a couple that asked me to take their picture and when I turned around, the guy punched me in the back of my head.

What’s your favorite club night/event to photograph?
There are a number of nights I love, but they’re all so different. I’m more known within the performance art scene clubs like Foreign and All You Can Eat. I’m trying to move away from the structure of club-nights. I’d like to shoot more raves and squat parties.

What’s the most spontaneous moment that you’ve ever shot?
The first time I went to Anti-Social, I had an overweight 50- year-old woman ask me if I wanted to take her photos. When I said ‘yes’ she pulled off her top off and started sucking her huge breasts. I still feel like I haven’t seen the wildest moments yet, though. I once went to a torture garden expecting to be disgusted and excited about shooting some real disturbing moments, but it just didn’t happen. Just a few relatively tame sex acts and some middle-aged bondage.

Proudest moment of your career so far?
Getting an email from a friend of mine in Japan with a photo of her standing in front of a 50ft tall poster of one of my photos. It was used for an Alexander McQueen campaign shown in Harajuku, Tokyo.

What do you have planned for 2008?
As well as carrying on my work with Scotee, I want to approach magazines outside of the UK, especially in America and Japan. I have a project planned with the amazingly talented Gary Card, which will hopefully be done in March.

~Donald Crunk at Styleslut

First photo by Andi Pandi
All other photos by Ellis Scott