Graduate Fashion Week

On Wednesday, my alarm went off at 8am. I dragged myself out of bed, got ready - and was on a London-bound bus by 10am. I arrived at Liverpool Street Station at midday, with an hour left to get to Hackney and figure out where the Graduate Fashion Week's offices were. By the time I got there, I was sweating. The temperature in Norwich when I'd left had been overcast, but at lunchtime in London it was boiling, with ice cream vans on nearly every corner and sunglasses attached to everyone's faces. I found the offices, and was welcomed by Cat Kinselia, the production manager of Graduate Fashion Week and the woman I'd been emailing for the last few weeks. We were joined by her colleague Sam, and had a 15-minute, informal discussion in the meeting room before I was back on my way.

On Twitter about a month ago, I read a retweet by someone that stated that Graduate Fashion Week were looking for photographers and to please contact Cat. I did so, with a link to this blog and some other examples of my work, and was told that I would be good for one of the positions. On Wednesday, I dropped by the offices to talk about this position, and what my role will be during Graduate Fashion Week. And I couldn't be more excited with what I've been given. Covering 4 days, Graduate Fashion Week celebrates the work of all graduating fashion and textiles students, in a series of catwalk shows, exhibitions, and displays. During this period I will be photographing the sponsors involved with Graduate Fashion Week (George, L'Oreal, Karen Millen, to name a few), including their products, the products in use (i.e. on the models), their displays, and any celebrity endorsements they've chosen to bring along. I will be photographing alongside big names, and the images will end up on the official Graduate Fashion Week blog, as well as any associated websites. And, in the midst of all of this, I will also have free periods where I can go and photograph whatever I want backstage; the models, the crowds, the clothes - whatever I want. I'm going to be heading back to the offices soon to have a briefing about the role, and the work itself will begin on June 10th and continue until June 13th; the days will be long, and the travelling will be arduous. Fingers crossed that the weather will be nice!

To finish up, here is a photo that summarises my day in London: a businessman struggling against the unexpected heat, taken near Bank, next to the river where people were enjoying their lunch and a spot of ice cream.

Auschwitz

On the last day of our trip to Poland, we took a trip to Auschwitz. I shot with digital, film, as well a couple of Instax Mini. Though I obviously liked the way that the digital pictures looked, I much preferred the gloomy, overcast black and white film shots once I'd seen them developed. On a completely different level, however, are the Instax. Detached from the rest of the book due to their medium - and their hazy, glazed tone in comparison to the sharp, accurate photos in the rest of the series - they are timeless and ethereal. Instax, and instant film in general, are influenced directly by the temperature around them, meaning that on a gloomy, stormy day the temperature is low and the sun is hidden, and the Instax are therefore filled with cold blue tones and grey shadows. On a warm day, on the other hand, the photos would be doused in warm reds and glowing floors. On this particular day, the clouds were parted and rain was soaking us all from head to toe - and I really love the way these photos turned out as a result of that. Misty, with puddles reflecting the view back at us, the photos are eerie and seem to stretch onto a foggy infinity. I wanted to centre the main subject of each image, and really focus on similar shapes; and this is evident in pictures 3 and 4, and adds to the idea of the environment in general. 

Being at Auschwitz, at the time, didn't feel real and was hard to comprehend. These pictures are a reflection of that. 

Krakow: The Journey is available to buy and view here.

Krakow: A Journey

"Krakow: The Journey" can be found on Blurb here.

A few sneak peek photos from Krakow

I'm going to be heading into the university to use the 35mm negative scanners tomorrow, but for now here are a few sneak peek photos from the 3 days I spent in Krakow. Though the trip was fraught with disaster - on the first day I fell off a high curb and my ankle was the size of a golfball; on the second day one of my films failed entirely - the photos I did get look fantastic, and I'm very excited to start sequencing the images and creating the book. These are just two images I got of traditional musicians, taken on two different days, at the Florianska Gate that leads from the Old Town Market Square to the Barbican.

The Nexus Agency and The People Tree

I'm heading out to Krakow tonight, and I'm extremely nervous - everything has been very last minute after being mucked about by my former employers regarding my pay. Around £180 should have entered my bank account last Friday, and instead I was appalled to see that £17 was sitting there, the week before I was due to fly out to Krakow and two weeks before my rent is supposed to come out. Therefore I've had to dip into the money I received for my birthday only two weeks ago, and thus everything has culminated in me hurrying about the city today trying to get my pounds changed into Polish banknotes, and attempting desperately to find somewhere that stocked cheap enough film that I could spend my last £15 on it. Luckily the university shop had some slightly-expired stock left, and I managed to get my hands on four lots of black and white film, two of which are C41, and one colour. Phew!

There was more to last Friday than just sheer panic over my struggling funds; it was my first job for James Thomas, my new photography client who will hopefully be employing my services over the next few months. James is head of the Nexus Digital Communications Agency, a company that provide online promotions and media for local businesses. My role in this is to photograph the interiors, exteriors and products of the companies for use on their websites and social networking sites. Friday's job was for The People Tree, a small shop in central Norwich that stocks ethnic goodies for your house, bedroom or even pocket. From ornate furniture and wall hangings, to beautiful jewellery and accessories, the shop is filled to the brim with the brightest colours, the most delicate ornaments, and incredibly embellished masks. There are trinkets hidden everywhere, such as tiny wooden cats that are painted a vast array of bold colours, and hanging mobiles of pigs with wings; with hidden gems tucked beneath every surface and burrowed into every corner, the room has been used to its fullest potential, packed solidly with a feast for the eyes. I borrowed an amazing wide angle lens from my uni, a 10-22mm lens, which stretched each view from wall to wall and produced brilliant results.

The following photos are my favourites from the shoot.
Click for higher quality.

You can find The People Tree at their website.