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.