Trudging Slowly Over Wet Sand…

To the place where no clothes were stolen actually and there were unequivocally no etched postcards.  Although I did get the impression that if you looked in the right place in Palma de Majorca, etched postcards and various name-on-a-rice-grain-jewellery could probably be found.  Either way, it was a lovely week away in the sun shooting a TV advert for a travel company with lots of time off with lovely people which is never a bad thing.

Last week in London I had the privilege of working with the very talented and  respected artist, Jeffrey Robb, a photographic fine artist specialising in 3D images.  One of his better know pieces is a hologram portrait of The Queen – royal holography at it’s best.  It was a wonderful day in London not only because of working with Jeffrey but also because the two other models were my friends and among my five favourite people to work with ever; the beauties Kayleigh Lush and Raphaella.  We decided we were only missing the goddess Joceline and the dancey line-up would have been perfect!

Some pics from one of our days off in spain.  More hats than you could shake a stick at…

Joel and Me At The Cottage Studio in Sussex!

Just a quick update of an upcoming workshop day at The Cottage Studio in Sussex with myself and the lovely Joel Hicks.  We have worked together on a number of occasions in a variety of styles including artsy, sporty, commercial and dance related.  Joel is a trained Latin dancer and is very fit and active so with my dance background also, we can pull of all sorts of shapes, lifts and manoeuvres of snazz…

All information is on the flyer, please email any of us if you’re interested in attending, so far we haven’t really advertised and it’s almost fully booked:

10:00 – 12:00  BOOKED

12:10 – 15:10  BOOKED

15:20 – 16:20  BOOKED

16:30 – 17:30  AVAILABLE

17:40 – 18:40  AVAILABLE

If you book the last two hour slot completely, you get a free ten minutes added on.  Disco.

Hope to see you there!

The Phoenix From The Teapot

Mr Time races on and on ever faster in manner of some sprinting panic beast… How is it May already?  And nearly the end of May?  I have neglected the blog for over two weeks, for shame… I’d just like to write that it does plague my mind with guilt when i don’t write, even if i’m stuck abroad with only roaming on mini iphone screen for webs, the guilt monster gnaws away at the frontal lobe relentlessly.  

Anyway, today Helios shineth upon us so fingers crossed for the start of summer and merriment.  I am getting increasingly excited about The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee!  I can’t deny that I love The Queen (some of the lesser Royals are perhaps dispensable, especially the ones who function solely as hat mannequins at ridiculous polo events) totally, right down to her pastel coloured skirts suits and her quaffed ‘do; I just think she is fabness personified.  I know the Royals are somewhat a collection of relics harking back to days of yore, but I think as a figure head, she is exemplary.  She’s not scared to get stuck in, travel the world and back again, shake many a common paw and even pay visits to Media City in Manchester once in a while (yay!).  And the woman has probably had zero days off in her whole working queeny life… But at least she has someone else to do the cleaning, cooking and walking of the Corgis if she’s knee deep in orphans at some ribbon cutting ceremony.  In celebration I shall be having my own Mad Hatter’s Tea Party in the back garden, probably using next door’s dog as The Door Mouse, me as The Mad Hatter (a-hem…) and… i’ll have to make up the numbers for the other characters with some of The Deads, say Helmut the wild boar with a wig on for Alice.  All sounding a bit macabre now actually, probably should invite some other actual real life people…that plan probably needs some attention.  But either way there will be mini cakes, lots of tea and champagne, cucumber sandwiches and some scones shaped as crowns; ambitious I know, but I have the cutter(!).

In work related news, I am recently back from Spain (advert for a holiday company, very nice to sit on beach and talk about holiday ‘all for £299 all inclusive’ in comedy advert voice), Germany, France and Germany again.  The thing I love most about plane travels is it means time for book reading; can’t really do that driving around the UK.  Here’s some images from a recent shoot in Blackpool with the lovely Andrew De Wael.  It is a 70′s inspired editorial set in Blackpool in an excellent B&B that is perhaps ironic, but we all doubted it(!).  All shot on instant film loveliness…. Love love love.

New Moo(n). No, Not The Movie…

It’s not even a new moon phase till the 20th May so this is inaccurate for those of you reading for astronomical information.  Obviously not many people…  But my new Moo cards arrived in the post this morning which made me happy as did the new agency comp cards that made an appearance this week too.  You can tell it’s Spring when new photo sprouts start shooting up; there’s nothing more rejuvenating for the head space.  Except maybe a week in Mauritius swimming with turtles… that’s probably pretty rejuvenating too.

Recently I have been drawn to analyse the ‘technique’ (if there is such a thing) of modelling.  I know I usually avoid talking shop too much on my blog, mainly because I find the vast world of eccentricity, politics and one-thousand and one other subjects a bit more entertaining, but also because mainly I post images of work and that’s probably enough without a dossier or diatribe of words to follow.  However, for a while now it has been creeping around the outskirts of my mind; what makes a good model awesome (sometimes despite raw materials) and what makes another model average.  We all know what makes someone a bad model, that is usually glaringly visibly obvious – they can’t perform for a camera and usually they can’t produce what the photographer, art director, producer, artist wants them to produce.  The more I look for instances of iconic models who for me really stand out like pearls in a sea of monotonous grit, the more I conclude it isn’t about what they ‘do’ in terms of posing, but more about what they are.  And not in a physical sense…. it is more about what they project.  Some supermodels on closer inspection barely move.  Take Kate Moss for instance.  She just ‘is’; she doesn’t really ‘do’.  And she ‘is’ amazing.  She just exudes herself and whatever the story, brand or concept; it’s the right thing.  Then on the other hand, Lara Stone ‘does’ and ‘is’ also.  I have to say, she is my absolute favourite.  She just oozes herself in whatever projected form that is and it is always utterly beautifully contradictory, strong, sexy and a little awkward.  I love her for the awkward more than anything I think, partly because as a viewer, I feel she is letting me in on something secret.  So maybe the notion of a good model is tied up also with the vulnerability to expose, not physically, but emotionally.  Having the balls to not be afraid to look stupid, ugly and awkward leads itself into the most beautiful of consequences I think, especially when, like Lara Stone, you’re raw materials are off the richter scale anyway.  Not sure that’s anything like a conclusion, it’s more of a head spill and perhaps a reasoning for my own attempts at a ‘technique’ revolution(!).  I’m trying to do less and not fling myself about in manner of a crazed, insecure rabid dog.  I am hoping this comes over as a conscious decision rather than an act of laziness – you have been warned..!

New Moo!

And some newies ‘trying to do less’ from my friend Mister Story…

Save The Frogs Day! (Oooops, it was yesterday…)

Save The Frogs Day was yesterday, not today, but it still deserves a mention if you ask me (not that any one is…).  Who doesn’t love a frog??  The little dudes can breathe in water and out, have soft squidgy bodies, can jump like olympians and come in all sorts of colours of snazz.  Nearly one third of all these little amphibious hoppers are on the verge of extinction… due to pollution, loss of habitat, climate change and over-harvesting.  Waxy Monkey Frog is my all time favourite, he lives in South America and lays eggs in tree leaves, clever little beastie.  I have adopted a frog, but the literature was unclear as to who exactly was adopted, so in my head, I have decided it is Waxy Monkey Frog.

In other beastie related news, this gorgeous new book is now available on Blurb, ‘Help Save An Ass’ by Joao Carlos raising funds for Donkeyshelter.org.  It is a beautiful book of portraits of the rescued donkeys living in a shelter in Portugal.  Some images of the donkeys below!  All proceeds from the book go to the charity and helps keep the donkeys in foods and blankets and massive patches of grass to wander around.

In work related news it seems to have been whizz of castings for various commercials and catalogues which is nice both for work and also as it means despite the doom and gloom ‘double dip reccession’ news flooding the media right now, that this can’t be the case throughout all industries.  Hoorah.  I have certainly noticed a steady increase in production in the UK since 2010, and the start of this year was infinitely better again.  So continuing the cheery theme, here’s some lovely work by Andrew G, some shot a few weeks ago in a rainy and windy Blackpool and some in late January in a surprisingly warm London.  In Blackpool we were channeling Marylyn Monroe in the 1940′s on a beech in, errrrr, Blackpool.  And in London we shot in a beautiful graveyard for a merry widow in red lipstick vibe.  Brilliantness all round, love working with Andrew 100%.

In Blackpool…

And in London…

The Glitch

Short blog post tonight as I am sleepy like a hibernating bear without honey.  This awesome video was shot by Paul Ottey up at Hallam Mill a few weeks ago.  We wanted to capture a kind of mental asylum inmate feel, which I think we definitely succeeded in(!).  Shot on digital and Super 8 – I love it.

Hollywood, Hunks and Hotpants.

How is it April already??  How, how?  I know how, the world spins and the time pixies spin on as ever, hence how it is April already.  Still seems a bit quick.  I am back from Germany and Brussels and now off to Switzerland tonight.   I love Switzerland, scenically, it is one of the most beautiful places I think.

I worked another day on the new Ron Howard film last week, this time with a better (infinitesimal) role where me and the gorgeous Gracie (who I’ve been lucky enough to work with before) spent half an hour shooting with the film’s lead actor, Chris Hemsworth.  Elevated to the status of ’1970′s F1 Podium Girl’ (!), we got to have champagne shook over us repeatedly by a friendly, jolly and, I have to say, beauteous Chris.  Not too shabby for a day’s work.  After the scenes Grace and I were invited into the tent by the producer to see the footage a few times with the directors and other producers.  Somewhat bizarre and excellent experience.  I wondered on the day why everyone was so friendly and lovely and accommodating to us all day (unusual for large film sets), but then I saw the outfits in context and understood why!

So some probably very naughty behind the scenes images – have absolutely no idea why there is a technician so close in the shot, but it was a close up from heads to mid torso, so he is absent in the final footage(!).  Now Gracie and I cross our little fingers that we don’t hit the cutting room floor…