Monalisa Moyo – On Location #2 Shoot

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It was lovely to see and work with my old friend and longest serving model Monalisa Moyo again. These images were taken on location again on what was her 30th Birthday (I first worked with Monalisa when she was nineteen!!) We have not seen Monalisa since she kick started the year for me with a January shoot in my grotty bathroom if you can all remember? So here she is on the suspension bridge and against the pink wall. I would like to tell you they were taken in an exotic country, but the reality is they were in somewhere not quite so glamorous and around the corner from me. Still they turned out nice and Monalisa looked great in her kaftan and blue dress.

August Flower Updates

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Its the end of Summer flower shoot in the home studio this month, with autumnal weather being dominant all season long. I have mixed feelings on that as I am not keen with scorching hot Summers, but we have not had a solid week of warm weather this year. Maybe we might be in for an Indian Summer I hope?

A big thanks then to our friends in the Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours. to Chris and the ladies for all their help and assistance in beginning this months flowers to you. A mention also to my wife Amy for all her help at taking the images. It could not be done without all of you.

So that is it for this month,. See you back at the end of September for the next chapter in the adventures in photography with Lujon Rael.

x

See you next month x

July Updates, what turned out to be a very busy month and a lesson never to send parcels to Romania !

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Welcome back to my little corner of the web.

There were two shoots this month and a shoot taken on the last day of June (so technically for all sakes and purposes this month) Blessed with four great models to work with Mercybongo and Carl Tilson. Maryna Sedin and Marie Jean Saxton, they have kept me busy snapping and editing.

We also managed to travel to my parents home and see them which is always good. Not just to get away from our house, but to spend quality time with them is worth the journey. I managed to do one of the shoots on location in my Fathers lush garden as well as them taking us to Rushden Lakes for some magazine shopping and photo taking around the buildings. It was fun,Amy and I loved it, So thank you greatly to Mum and Dad x

Now here is a word of caution …. if your thinking of sending anything to another country (in this case Romania) you might want to think again about it. I sent an old camera to a man in Romania who could chip the camera so as to make it take Infrared images only. I know I already have a camera that does that, but I wanted a higher spec and it made use of my trusted old Nikon D3. So I sent it via the post office carrier (I shall not mention their name here!) at the princely sum of £50.00 only for the empty box coming back to me a few weeks later! Apparently it got as far as Bucharest and customs did not like it and sent it back, but between there and my front door some thieving turd helped themselves to it. Returning the empty box like trying to rub my nose in it! The Royal Mail recommended I call the Romania Customs and ask what happened to the camera? but that is as futile an effort as a one legged man in an arse kicking contest! Taking the piss obviously, I think they just said that to get rid of me. It worked. Although I have put a claim in, I have still not heard anything from the carriage company, and don't hold out much hope. Oh well, I guess some things just were not meant to be and I shall not do that again. Lesson learned.

Hope you enjoy this bumper month of pictures to make up for last months lacklustre offering.

x

Project – 'Architectural Metaphor' Update

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These Architectural pictures for the Architectural Metaphor project were all taken at a shopping area called Rushden Lakes. Its got some great modern design there with interesting features. I even found the back of the shops interesting as they almost looked like they were from a different planet.

There is also a really brilliant magazine shop there that sells just about every magazine that gets published, I wish I lived closer as I would visit it weekly. There are a few candid shots of my local hospital, who get really touchy about photographing the place. But I did it anyway when they were not looking and besides this might sound like a false sense of entitlement, but after all the things they have stuck in me over the years – they owe me that!.Anyway, here are the architecture pictures for that day.

Project – 'Landscapes' Update

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While being at my parents home, they very kindly took Amy and I into the Northamptonshire (Flat) countryside for some landscape shots. It was highly rewarding, if possibly a bit dull for everyone else. My favourite shots from the day were of a broken gate laying in the overgrown hedgerow and moody sky above it. Yes the sky was really that threatening, but again no rain. We also went to walk around the lakes of Rushden Lakes shopping complex and got some great pictures of the water and skies. It was fun.

Maryna Sedin – Second Shoot – In The Garden

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Here was a shoot planned many months ago and would always be at the mercy of the British weather. Lucky for us it did not rain that day until we were done. So this the second outing for amazing Maryna Sedin took place in and around my Fathers garden, on the last day of June 2023.

I had help from a great MUA from Northampton called Kerry Claire, who did a wonderful job on the lovely Ukrainian model Maryna Sedin, which went a good way to making this shoot so memorable. I must also mention my Mother for making some lovely nibbles for us all to eat at half time and of course Dad for making his garden accessible, neat and tidy for the shoot. My wife Amy cannot be left out as she was the lighting woman on every set, so thanks to her in no small way.

I do hope you all enjoy the results from this shoot?

Mercybongo – Third Shoot with Carl Tilson

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This is Mercybongo's second shoot this year with us and there are still two more to come before the year is out. However, this shoot was based on the video of 'Shock the monkey,' by Peter Gabriel complete with tribal makeup and match suits for both her and her partner Carl. The idea was to make both models look androgynous in white clothing and white background. I have actually used the alternative blue versions here as I think they look better. Thanks then to Mercybongo and Carl for their input and assistance. To Shadrine, at Kavour Beauty for here great makeup. To Phil Lynam at the boardroom studio for his help and of course Amy for being there.

Marie Jean Saxton – Third Shoot

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Welcoming back the lovely Marie Jean Saxton for this unplanned two hour shoot at the Boardroom Studio in Derby this month. Most of the images were deliberately blurred and for another web site, but there was enough clear (normal ones) to go to print here on my site. It was lovely to work with Marie again in this simple stripped down, no thrills shoot.

Project – Infrared' Update

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This is a mixture of random grabbed photos taken using the Infrared camera of my Father garden, the Northampton countryside, Rushden lakes walk and the M1 journey home. It would have been nice to use the camera I sent off to be converted in Romania, but alas that was not meant to be. Please enjoy the gallery/

'The Garden' – Update

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In the day following our shoot with Maryna Sedin, I took the advantage of taking some fresh images of my father’s garden. It was still an overcast day, but the light was good enough for the task. I was aware that only a few years ago I had done similar, so was pushed to try not to photograph the same flowers. I don't think that was achieved, but I did attempt to capture them slightly different from the original garden shoot.

Thank you Dad for making such a great and lovely garden that I can work in. x

July Flowers Update

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This month flowers comes curtsy of the good people at Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours. Who always provide me with some of the best subjects I have ever had the pleasure snapping. So a warm thanks to Chris and the ladies at Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours. A special mention also to Amy for all her help when taking the images. I could not do it without all of you.

Thats it for this bumper month,. See you back at the end of August for still more. x

June Updates and a sorry case of Old Mother Hubbard syndrome

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It has been a very quiet month this June and I feel like Old Mother Hubbard going to her empty cupboard. There has been no model shoot or visits to the studio (I took a break!!). Although I am actually going to be doing a shoot on location on the 30th June, so too late to go into this months blog. Never mind. Julys blog will be a bumper harvest, so hold out till then.

Earlier this month I sent an old camera I had sitting around Romania to have it chipped so it can do Infrared shots and a 24mega pixels. I had my doubts about it but sent it through Parcel Force. Cost me £50. It came back to me, (or at least the box came back to me!) a few weeks later minus the camera. According to the tracking it got to Bucharest and was refused at Custom & Excises. So then between there and my front door, someone helped themselves to the parcels content. I have put in a claim for its cost and postage, but I shall learn a lesson. Never send parcels through Parcel Force and never to Romania. Thieving arseholes !!! The worst bit is that I had a gut feeling this would happen. Like a sixth sense. Should have listened to it. Never mind.

I hope you enjoy this months very short blog and come back for much more next month.

Project – 'Abstract' Update

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Just one item captured in Abstract this month and see if you can guess what it is?

I shall give you a clue. It is red and green. It is large and very watery. Its got pips in it.

Any guess? Answer below the flower gallery

Project – Lujon Fressonique ' Update

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This is a project still ongoing if a bit slow. I use the plastic fantastic lens that Amy made for me, like a pinhole lens. Then some manipulation in Capture one and Photoshop. I hope to be using it again on the 12th July in the studio on Marie Jean Saxton model.

June Flower Update

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Lovely showing of flowers this month from our friends at Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours. Amy added to it with a flower or two from the curb side she found on scrub ground. I don’t know if thats legal or not, but its not like cutting council planted daffodiles on a roundabout/

So thanks here must go out to Chris and the ladies at Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours for their warm assistance. A shout out as well to Amy for her assistance.

That is it for this month, please do come back next month for a more substantial harvest. x.

Answer: Water Melon in and out of a clear plastic bag

May Updates, stuck fingers and a small spring cleaning for the site

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Welcome back to my little corner of the web.

I am having issue with my fingers especially on my right side of the body getting stuck in an awkward position every morning. I had it so bad recently that I had to talk with the Doctors about it (yes I did manage to talk with one !). Its the onset of creeping arthritis I have in my hands and knees. It does not hurt, its more of an inconvenience trying to snap them back into place or massage them. Holding knives and forks is a problem now as does using a camera. Still it could be worse and I be in terrible pain some people have with arthritis. The joys of getting old I suppose.

So I have had a spring clean on the site and moved a few things around. Notice please the Beauty Shots and fashion/ mode gallery's are now amalgamated under one title. Notice also that there are now two projects folders. The projects folder is for ongoing work that I am still doing where as the Projects Extra folder is for stuff I feel I cannot do any more with. I had to do this as the project file on its own with everything in it was proving difficult to open and show its content.

There was no model shoot this month. Instead we have a gallery of pictures from a shoot with the lovely fashion model Mercybongo taken at The Boardroom Studio on the very last day of April. All hair and makeup was done by Kavour beauty, who did an excellent job as always. And check out the backdrop to the shoot especially made for this project. Awesome – best I have ever seen !!!

Thanks for dropping by and enjoy the show. x