Finery Drapery

I'm back from a very successful and enjoyable trip to Paris (more on that later, I promise!) and have some new shots to show from photographer 'Penfoldpc', taken in Worcestershire last month. We had lots of fun shooting in various styles, but the following are my favourites. Paul wanted to create a very classical scene based around the natural nude. I like these a lot!

There is something about the colour red that always works so well. Just a slither of it is so beautiful!

Silk in the Dark

I really love the style of these 'boudoir' shots, which seem to cover ground somewhere between 'hollywood' and 'victoriana'. I love the effect of the soft, illuminated silk against the darkness around the frame.

...Voila some 'retro', elegant and slightly mysterious glamour. (Photographs taken by Barry Barker; you can see some more of our work previously blogged here):

Spring Flower Portraits

I love these shots by Richard Tuckett - so fresh and airy and somehow 'shabby chic' in processing; perfect for this time of year when the sun keeps teasing us with its presence and filling the days with light and hope!

Costume changes!

I love these shots by Mike Croshaw, taken recently at a studio day (its first!) at Cheltenham FilmPhoto Studios. Considering we only had a two hour slot together, and quite a bit of the beginning was taken up with me having to be laced into my wedding dress (I doubt any bride ever had to dress herself...), I think it's impressive how much we got done. Here are a few from our session together. Very much looking forward to working with Mike again sometime. And for anyone interested in trying out the studio, I'd recommend it and can get you a good deal!

I've not really done 'pin-up' before, but Mike wanted to give the theme a try with me and I really enjoyed playing the part of a 50s cheeky-grinned starlet. I'd love to give pin up a real go, actually - I think it could possibly suit me quite well. Thanks Mike for choosing something fun and new to shoot with me!

This next shot has featured here before, but in the interests of comprehensiveness (of themes covered)... Gorgeous lighting and soft pastel hues:

I happened to have brought my brand new Asian bridal saree along with me to the shoot, in hopes of shoe-horning it into a session... I think it's so stunning - I really really love 'World' costumery and I love India in particular so much. I spent some time there a few years ago (mainly in the north) and have been aching to go back ever since. Every year I tell myself it will be THIS year. I think it's such a beautiful country, and I love how brightly coloured the women's clothing is, as well; fanciful decoration and ornate, intricate beading is everywhere, and there is no such thing as too much adornment. It's impossible to take a bad street shot there! Mike and I think a plainer background would probably have worked better for this shot (or I would love to shoot with it in a grand house, with the full works!), but for the garment's first airing I do love this.

Below is a composite image in a classical 'Old Masters' style, which is a theme more traditionally suited to my strengths...

And finally we spent some time doing some movement and 'swirly' images. I love the golden curves of the fabric here, and its flaring wisp to my left in the composition (camera right?).

...Let me know which you like! :-)

A celebration, some wedding princessing and some Lions (and a monkey)

Hello!

Thank you all so much (those of you who have commented on my facebook wall and sent me messages; you know who you are!) for my birthday wishes for yesterday! I had such a nice day and it very surreal racking up so many good wishes on my facebook notifications - I felt very popular, haha! Seriously though, it's so appreciated and really reminds me how nice it is to hear a 'happy birthday' from people even when you haven't heard from them in a while and that I must always remember people's birthdays myself!

Today's post is going to involve a series of tenuous links.

First, I will tell you about what I did yesterday... I went to visit the Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Science Museum in Oxford in the morning. Some really impressive shots and the staff member on the desk was so chatty, telling us all about the various controversies, and the artists who'd visited and what they'd said about other photographers' work... I really loved one shot of a white bird lifting out of the water, with it's emerging wings spread in blurry motion. It looked so ethereal and beautiful! LOVED the polar bear too, plus lots more. Had a delicious light lunch at a lebanese restaurant afterwards avec some borrowed (must order it myself next time..) sugary mint tea.

After that I had my traditional family tea and cake ceremony in the afternoon - fodant fancies featured heavily, as always.

Then at 4pm I was taken to London and got there for an early dinner (really tasty veggie burger of portobello mushroom, baby spinach and goat's cheese) and courgette fries at Byron Burgers in Covent Garden, before (feeling we might explode) going to watch THE LION KING at the Lyceum Theatre!!!! I had been wanting to go and see this for years and years, and occasionally, when I remembered the lack of it in my life, had a little moan... so it was a masssive treat and something I'd really really built up in my mind, so much so that afterwards I announced 'It's amazing that it didn't disappoint me at all', which my friend said was hilarious and should probably go on their poster... Haha (oops). Seriously though, the moment I left the theatre I wanted to just go back and watch it all again!! From the first second of the show, with the characters hurtling down the aisles to the stage while the most incredible powerful music seared into my ears, I was spellbound and genuinely a little bit teary. And then the creativity and ingenuity of the set designs, the use of space and the way they showed the passage of time, the sunsets and silhouettes, balletic gazelles, giraffe men on stilts, the elephant, costumes and colour, were all so utterly jaw-droppingly mesmerising. My favourite aspect of it by far, though, was definitely the call and response singing. After I come back in my next life as a Lebanese/bellydancer/Columbian/Shakira hybrid, I think I'll come back as a big African mama, singing magical heart-stopping soulful Savannah tunes*. Ha. Rafiki, basically; the crazy wise lady with the staff, who tells Simba to 'look into himself' to find his father, and teases him into going back to reclaim his Lion-y throne and sorting out the hyenas and marching slinkily and powerfully back up Pride Rock. Aaaaah. :-)

* Joke. Pretty sure we only get one chance at things, and sadly, I'm lily white. I did once get cast as a lion though (for hair reasons) in a school performance of Pyramus and Thisbe. My friend played the wall.

Anyway, I will be adding to my 'White' website gallery soon with some gorgeous new wedding images. There is a bit of a medley below!

Shot by Mike Croshaw at the brand new Cheltenham Film Studio. We did so many different styles in two hours (including pin up!) which I will hopefully show soon:

These were taken by Sabel Gonazalez recently around the centre of Oxford. The male model is the lovely and handsome James Pike, hair stylist Nikki Wright and make up artist Laura Pusey.

Finally, to complete the wedding theme bonanza for now, here are some outdoor shots by David Ballard., taken last week:

I'm going this afternoon to my local animal sanctuary in hope of finding a buddy for my little Chi! Can't wait to meet the current members of the centre. I have a feeling I'm going to want to take quite a few home though... In related news, here is a photo of me holding a howler monkey called 'Chiquito', a temporary resident at an animal rescue centre I visited in Puerto Viejo, Costa Rica, in December. The centre was founded by a couple of european vets who met and fell in love during a work placement in Costa Rica. They set up house together and when the locals knew there were animal doctors in the area, any stray/hurt/lost animals were scooped up and delivered to their doorstep until it became necessary to expand and put up purpose-built enclosures for various lost and found animals to recuperate (The place is emphatically not a zoo!) until they are ready to be released back into the wild. I hope I can go back there soon! Chiquito was soooo sweet. We had to hold his tail strongly in case he jumped away (but he didn't; he just wanted to snuggle!).

OK, here's a little hand-licking deer I met there too (a little too tame to be released now, apparently):

Bye for now!

Handbags and Gladrags

These shots come from a very short session I did with photographer Sabel Gonzalez for a client wanting to display the handbags she sells. Bags available at www.ladytori.com. I like the green one. :-)