Photography Assistant – Stephen Perry

On Saturday the 22nd I was given the opportunity to assist Stephen Perry on a photo shoot he was involved with. I jumped at the chance having been a big fan of Stephen’s work for a long time.

I got to London Waterloo at just gone 9 and met Stephen. He was very charismatic and made me feel relaxed instantly building a rapport from the start. The shoot was based around various characters from film and music vying for the attention and admiration of one solitary figure with a key to the creative industry. The companies focus is on bringing acting/music/producing talent etc to the attention of the industry.

My main role as assistant was to help Stephen unpack his kit and get it all set up. Being able to physically set up the kit and get a feeling for why Stephen was placing lights where he was and with the various accessories (soft boxes/gels etc) I was able to see his vision come to life. It was a real education in lighting and also communicating effectively with the models as there was over 30 and so maintaining everyone’s interest and attention is a difficult task.

I was elated with the outcome of the day and so happy that I was given the opportunity.

You can check out Stephens work at…

http://www.stephenperry.com

Photography Exhibition – Olga at Stark Gallery

On Saturday 8th I was privileged to be able to view Olga’s photography exhibition at the Stark Gallery in the heart of Canterbury. The work varied in theme, but focused mainly on creativity and seeing the world from a different perspective. Olga experiments wonderfully with skewed angles and motion blur which allow her pictures to create some very intense compositions. I was joined by two other photographers, Matt Tyler and Keith Franklin, and it was a pleasure to witness and support another photographer and her work.

Photography Workshop – Brian Brown Photography

On Sunday 2nd November I was lucky enough to participate in a workshop hosted by Brian Brown, one of the most proficient fashion and portrait photographers in the UK. I arrived at 10 o’clock and was met by Brian at his home where we went through to his on-site studio. The studio was furnished with excellent equipment and I instantly new I was in for an educational and exciting day. I was joined by another amateur photographer called Keith who was as eager as I was to absorb what Brian had to teach us. The model for the day was Rachel Boulden and she performed brilliantly, maintaining a very high level of pressionalism throughout what turned out to be quite a gruelling day.

The majority of the day was spent learning several different lighting setups which were very helpful as it broadened my understanding of lighting. We also learnt how to communicate effectively with a model and learnt various poses and techniques on how to look for a striking pose or position for the model to stand in. I was also lucky in that I was able to shoot some artistic nudes, which is something I have never done before but has always intrigued me. The final results were excellent and would definately recommend one of Brian’s courses to any photographer looking to experiment and learn something new.

Brian’s portfolio can be viewed at…

http://www.brianbrownphotography.co.uk

David LaChappelle ‘Jesus Is My Homeboy’ at Robilant & Voena Gallery and Annie Leibovitz ‘A Photographer’s Life, 1990 – 2005’ at The National Portrait Gallery

Yesterday was an extremely busy day as I went to visit two photographic exhibitions. The first of the day was at the Robilant & Voena Gallery in Westminster where David LaChappelle’s project, ‘Jesus Is My Homeboy’ was being displayed.  David LaChappelle is one of the most exciting photographers of our time and has been dubbed the 21st Century Andy Warhol which is saying something. His bright, vivid, hyper-real photographs display some of the most brilliant photographs I have ever seen. His project entitled ‘Jesus Is My Homeboy’ is a set of several photographs displaying Jesus in various contemporary locals surrounded by various urban artists and characters. But as you begin to look closer at the images you see that they are actually based on various famous paintings and moments in the bible like the last supper, or the anointment of Jesus’ feet but updated to a much more visceral setting. The photographs which are sometimes difficult to look at because of the bright tonality were awe inspiring spanning several feet in each direction. I felt truly honoured to bask in this great mans work.

The second exhibition was for a vast series of work by the artist Annie Leibovitz who is one of the most proficient and respected portrait artists of the latter part of the century. Her work has dazzled audiences for years and se gained some quite humerous press when she asked the queen to remove her crown for a more informal photo shoot. This exhibition was in The National Portrait Gallery and contained a few hundred photos varying in subject matter from portraits of celebrities to shots of her dear friend as she grew ever closer towards death at the hands of cancer. The images were intoxicating and it was hard to stop gazing at some of them. The majority of the work was in black and white which only added to the mystique of some of the photographs. There was a strange order to the photos. I was expecting it to progress slowly from celebrities to the work with her friend and finish. However it was much more sporadic, spanning several celebrity photographs then one of her friend or family and then back to a celebrity as if to highlight that these moments with her friends or family, no matter how small or insignificant, were deeply engrained on the consciousness of the artist.

All in all I had a great day in London and will be travelling back soon.

Photo Shoot – Suzanna Marks at IMG Digital Studio

Had another photo shoot today, and my first using a studio. I was slightly nervous going in to the studio in awe of the amount of equipment I had available to me and slightly overwhelmed. The studio was run by Sean who was an excellent host and great help, teaching me how to use the equipment to gain some excellent results.

The model who took part in the shoot today is called Suzanna Marks and was one of the most professional models I’ve worked with so far. She needed absolutely no direction and was completeley at ease with being the focus of the shoot. I managed to dabble in some glamour work which had as yet eluded me, so I’m very happy about that. All in all a superb day and another step towards my future.