Since returning from London I have had to adjust to the blinding sun of Phoenix. Bought a new pair of sunglasses and faced every shoot depending heavily on reflectors and the shade. However, this week the rain clouds floated into Phoenix and was a welcomed new experience downtown. Kirsten is an absolutely gorgeous friend of mine and I was so happy to get the chance to capture her personality. We spent the overcast and wet afternoon together walking the streets and alleys of Roosevelt and around the shops of 7th street. The rain gave us the opportunity to sit and rest in some of downtown’s best coffee shops, even managing a few shots indoors.
bonus: a new downtown coffee shop was found, visited, and approved
the third installment of my sister’s senior photos.
Cottonwood is filled with beautiful scenery
always a good change from Phoenix concrete
it is also the home of the best vintage shop
-a future photoshoot location.
The family left for a winter weekend spent in the white country of Flagstaff and in the dead grass pastures of Cottonwood.
This week I had the incredible pleasure to photograph a beautiful friend. Ellyn is an incredibly talented actress and musician and photographing her was always on my list. She and I met downtown and hit the streets looking for our city’s unique and strange spots.
Every since I have returned from England, I am in shock at Arizona’s glaring sun and winter heat. The afternoon was anything but a January winter day, so we became appreciative of every shady location we found.
After we failed to break into a burned down church, we came across an abandoned home and invited ourselves onto its steps. It was an incredible find and we were able to get some great photos.
The rest of the time we played with colors, working down walls of bright colors and newly painted murals. Downtown is always my vote for a location and with such a perfect model like Ellyn, I really couldn’t have gone wrong.
My sister Morgan has for about a year now been asking me to do her senior photos and this weekend was the first installment of our phoenix photo fun. We stumbled across this amazing location in downtown phoenix, my camera once again experience the strength of the arizona sun, and we met a new friend. It is always fun to shoot someone who is used to your camera pointing in their direction and is really open to anything you suggest. The ashes ruined a few pairs of shoes, but I think the photos speak for a fun afternoon.
The next day Morgan brought her two closest friends for a short friends shoot. This may be my favorite from the afternoon.
i think the lowest it has been all week has been 50°.
so last night, we all bundled up and headed into the phoenix winter cold.
i was reunited with the arizona sunset.
it looks better than i remember.
(i think you were warned about the sister photos)
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yesterday i was also able to shoot photos for my wonderful family.
the near future- new years eve, tea with friends, first friday, cottonwood
christmas this year was doubled with family reunion
along with the usual traditions of the season
there were many new additions to the celebrations
all in all- christmas will always be the best holiday out there.
(by the way- since I am home again, photos of the sisters will assuredly be filling the posts for a while)
families
gingerbread
newspaper wrapping
musical instruments
babies
tea parties
new years is approaching, and the list is frantically being written.
so today i conquer item number five.
catch up on blog posts.
it has been a week and one day since the return.
christmas was had by all, in a frantic two day celebration.
and now new years is calling. 2010.
so, in order to fill you in on the recent phoenix happenings, i have to finish what i started in london.
these are a few images from the last three days we spent in the wonderful city.
the city and the people i am missing more and more everyday.
tonight the feet hit the desert soil.
after thirty six hours
from the moment we tumbled onto the 72 bus towards Hammersmith
to the white convertible pulling into the corrine drive driveway.
christmas parties start tomorrow.
the holidays begin (in america).
there is too much to try and say
to try and remember and put to words.
all i know,
is that it feels good to be home,
but it feels awful to have left.
for now all I can do,
is keep sipping this hot cider
and listening to the crackling voice of elvis
in the spirit of christmas.
“Photography?…It’s just another paintbrush.”
- David Bailey
After a night of little sleep and a sad morning farewell, I ventured off to Somerset House to explore the SHOWstudio-Fashion Revolution exhibition. The exhibition is an interactive look at photography utilizing creative means and participatory efforts. Part of the exhibition is a live studio, where there is only a wall of glass separating the audience and the photography studio of Nick Knight. Nick’s current project is to shoot 100 portraits from september to december (ending next week) for I-D magazine.
The studio is set up for high fashion photography, shooting video, and a live web stream. I arrived an hour early, claimed my spot at eleven, left at eight. For eleven hours I sat and watched Nick Knight and his four assistants in the SHOWstudio shoot about 14 portraits (30-40 minute sessions). Besides the fact that I was entirely captivated by the studio and Nick’s production, I was able to meet two wonderful individuals, Patrick Wolf and Bishi who had sessions at different points of the day. [and if any of you know me, you can only imagine how excited i was].
Patrick’s shoot (the one I waited all day for), not only drew the largest crowd of the day, but also made the audience smile the most. He walked out onto the set wearing nothing but a bed comforter and combat boots, in which he proceeded to roll around on the floor. This shoot was the first time I saw the photo team struggle to keep up- Patrick wouldn’t hold a pose for longer than .01 seconds, leaving Nick the only option of taking his medium format camera off the tripod and getting down on the floor along with him. Patrick had a hard time keeping a straight face, breaking out his bright wide smile too often to count (at one point he even broke out into song). It not only made for some priceless shots, but spread contagiously to everyone watching.
Bishi, second shoot of the day, made some beautiful images. When you wave around an enormous union jack gown, I suppose it is hard not to get an incredible shot. Anyway, she looked amazing and was incredibly sweet.
The group I saw: Cerith Wyn Evans, Bishi, Aitor Throup, Fergus Henderson, James Long, Hanna Hanra, Hussein Chalayan, Bella Freud, Susie Bubble, Bistrotheque, Val Garland, Lara Stone, Patrick Wolf, Simon Foxton. The have a continual live feed of the studio online and I would highly suggest taking a look.
I won’t get into too much detail, but this photo has been waiting to happen for six years now. After approaching him with most likely the largest smile my face could give, we started talking. Every photo taken was out of focus, but what can you expect from a staff member of world renown fashion photographer. We talked Palladium, London weather, LA gigs, Australia, Japan, sleep deprivation, Christmas…accountants. A parting hug was given and the shoot preparation began. Thanks Patrick.
Thursday- definitely made it on the list of top ten best days spent in Europe.
Four more days in the amazing city…let’s do it.
