Thursday 3 February 2011

A few past memories

Yesterday I was somehow linked back to my old DeviantART account, (which I have an unintentional habit of forgetting about) and not only did I find some pretty horrific images of me from years back in my own galleries, (what was I thinking!) I had a little sort out and came across some images of me that other photographers had added.

Mick Waghorne - the link there is for his DeviantART page, although all you need to do is image google his name and you'll see most of his stunning work.
Anyway, April/May 2008, was a delight to work with.. so charismatic and fun, and the icing on the cake? He loves the Doors! Well, he used to love the Doors. He probably doesn't love the Doors so much now after I found an old LP resting up by a door and made him play it the whole duration of the shoot.
I'm not usually a fan of music playing whilst I'm working, which is odd because I'm very musical and play the piano; I find I can't concentrate. But there's something about Jim Morrison's voice that draws you in to just the right mood.. mmm.



Jim Rowbotham - lovely guy and good friend who now specialises in exquisite dance photography and once took me to Paris to shoot at the Sacré-Cœur and Père Lachaise cemetery. We have shared many a story along with images and our inspirations.
Here's one from June 2008, not in Paris but just down the road at Lowford Studio when the studio was just starting out.


Ashley Pomeroy, whose blog 'Women and Dreams' I really admire, was one of the first photographers ever to have worked with me at Lowford Studio. In fact, I think it was when the studio had a different name and was managed by the previous owner.
July 2008 - I used a whole tube of silver body paint to cover every inch of my skin and we experimented with natural light to enhance textures and shape.


November/December 2008 - classic art nude by a beautiful window in a beautiful indoor location and a first proper attempt at erotica with George Swift. It wasn't far off his first attempt in this genre either. I think we did well but I'd have to dig into external hard drives for more photos from this session.
Plus, having also worked together in the last four months, I will be posting images very soon of our second shoot.
So I arrived in Newcastle after a 7-hour train journey, desperately needing a cup of tea, somewhere to retouch my make-up, somewhere to chill for 5 minutes before shooting.. but thinking we were heading straight for a bitterly cold outdoor location to get started.
No, George had booked a 5* room in a gorgeous castle - a large ensuite and a beautiful four poster bed. One of the many reasons I am so fond of him!


Mark Gilham worked with me during an afternoon in Kent this time last year. His studio in Maidstone, The Beauty Of Light is where he took the final photo, (below) after many attempts and hours of very slight movements of my body, hair and the light behind me. It was a very awkward pose to hold but as I hope you'll agree, well worth the effort.
Sometimes, having one striking single image to show for an afternoon's work has more impact than getting and keeping a dozen.


Finally, at some point before May last year, (I can't remember exactly) I did an art nude workshop for Mikko Summala at MWM Studios. These photos were taken by one of the participants of the workshop, Gary Plumley, not Mikko himself.
It was a highly productive and informative day, even for me. We were playing in low-key, experimenting with shadow and learning about the use of directional light with the aid of a snoot.
I love being able to easily see how light falls on my body. The slightest movement can make the shadows dance.
I also love how in the last photo, shadow has been used to enhance my body shape. It really 'nips in' my waist and encourages the eye to follow the contours of my curves.



As for my DeviantART account, it's empty now bar one photo, but I will be looking to add bits here and there, so please feel free to watch or add me as a friend if you're a member: http://wildchief.deviantart.com

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