Harry Potter actor who played Colin Creevey became an actual photographer!

Harry Potter actor Hugh Mitchell may be more familiar to fans as the adorable muggle-born Gryffindor photographer, Colin Creevey, primarily featuring in the spectacular Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. 

Unfortunately, Mitchell's character was sort-of replaced and recast in the remaining movies, and (spoiler alert) faced a melancholic death in the books, but that hasn't stopped the actor achieving fame and success as a professional photographer – using a suitably old school Canon EOS 5D Mark II and the original 6D.

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Just like his actor counterpart, Colin Creevey could always be found holding his camera in the Harry Potter movie franchise, often to the annoyance of the other students and Potter himself (Daniel Radcliffe), whom Creevey idolized and in some ways harassed unmaliciously to get the best images.  

Hugh Mitchell is now a professional UK-based photographer, snapping everything from weddings and landscapes to corporate products and interiors. His work is impressively spellbinding and his Instagram feed is even more remarkable, showcasing elegant images of desolate landscapes and wildlife that often include shots featuring his lovely greyhound, Penny. 

Life can sometimes imitate art, or 'you become what you portray' might be an alternative philosophical approach to the fact that Mitchell became a photographer just like his character, Creevey. Though Mitchell claims that a love of the outdoors, and winning a Pentax film camera in a magazine, is what really sparked his passion for the medium of photography, with one of his favorite images taken recently being of a spotted skimmer dragonfly.

Capturing headshots and portraits are another element of Mitchell's photography. Speaking with MyModernmet, he shared that, “I always enjoyed photography, so I don't think I needed acting to spur me into what I do now… but it certainly helps to know something of the experience from the other side of the lens, since part of what I do now is take headshots for actors.”

Many Potterheads wondered what became of Colin Creevey, as after his debut in the second movie – where he became petrified through his camera lens by a mythical snake-like creature, the Basilisk – Colin was not to be seen again in any of the following films. 

In the books, however, he is a key character along with his brother, Dennis Creevey, who together fight in what is known as Dumbledore's Army alongside Potter and other students. Colin faces an unfortunate end in the book series (spoiler alert) when returning to Hogwarts after expulsion for being a muggle-born (a policy brought in by Voldemort) he fought in the battle of Hogwarts and is killed by death-eaters. 

It has never been made fully clear as to why Creevey was replaced by a new character, Nigel Wolpert (portrayed by William Melling), who was not in the books. Speculation on chat rooms and details from the Harry Potter Wiki suggest that Nigel was introduced as a composite replacement for both Colin and Dennis Creevey, as a result of Mitchell no longer fitting or resembling the role of Colin due to an unexpected growth spurt.

Nevertheless, it's great to see that Canon-shooter Hugh Mitchell is still reprising his role as Colin in a metaphorical yet real-life sense. His work can be found on his portfolio website as well as his Instagram account.

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