International fashion photographer. Watson was born in Edinburgh, the son of a boxer and physical education teacher. He was brought up in Penicuik, educated at the Rudolph Steiner School in Edinburgh and Lasswade High School (Bonnyrigg), followed by the Duncan of Jordanstone College of Art in Dundee (now part of the University of Dundee) and the Royal College of Art in London. He emigrated for the USA in the early 1970s, setting up studios in Los Angeles and New York.
Despite being blind in one eye, such is Watson's success with magazines such as Vogue, Rolling Stone, The Face, Vibe, Life and Newsweek that it is said there is never a day goes by without a Watson photograph on the cover of a major magazine somewhere in the world. He acted as photographer at the wedding of Prince Andrew and Sarah Ferguson and has been involved in advertising campaigns of many of the world's leading clothing and cosmetics companies.
He has published books of his photographs, entitled Cyclops (1995) and Maroc (1998). Watson's work was recognised through an honorary degree from University of Dundee in 1995 and his induction into the Scottish Fashion Awards Hall of Fame in 2006. His first British exhibition was staged in the City Art Centre in Edinburgh in 2006.
