Like many Canadians, I was first introduced to the slick cobbles of Edinburgh through the clucky misadventures of Renton and Sick Boy – a city-defining series of novels that makes “the Athens of the North” seem like a paradise for all brands of skaggery. And so you might say that the Scottish capital, voted by Brits as their favourite city in the UK nine years running, has a complex identity. Somewhat natural considering all that mist, booze and fog, but there’s much more to Edinburgh than darkness, damp drunkards and literary junkies. Mike Chalmers has been taking some portraits of Scots in their natural environment that subtly hints at his city’s salacious side.

PBLKS: Edinburgh isn’t wildly famous for being particularly stylish or sexy, but your photos seem to suggest that it might be a little of both, what’s going on over there?

MC: I think the outside perception of Edinburgh is deep fried food and heroin, but Edinburgh is most active right now, August. The city has doubled in population for one month and is filled with performers and tourists for the Edinburgh Festival. We have a bunch of different festivals but I group them all together.

These performers are the kind of people I often work with, they dance, act, sing and aren’t afraid to show off. They don’t mind getting sexy if it gets them noticed, there is so much competition here for an audience. Burlesque has really taken off here too, it’s popular to watch and perform in. So there’s obviously been a rash of photographers doing burlesque shoots, which is not my thing but I have burlesque girls who are friends and do some (non-burlesque) shoots with me. I think we’re a sexy city, if you know where to look.