Project – 'Abstract' Update

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Abstracts taken mostly in my parents downstairs toilet, as well as a prop from the Boardroom Studio in Derby. Can you guess what they are?

Project – 'Architectural Metaphor ' Update

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Just a few of the back end of Beckworth Emporium (the place with the spaghetti ice cream to die for) in the garden centre bit with an angry looking sky behind it.

Project – 'Noir et Blanc' Update

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Something new for this project gallery with a theme we have already covered before, but what the hell … I wanted to do it again. The coffee and teas and food on the table at Magazine Heaven shop and cafe in Rushden Lakes shopping centre. Sitting behind us was the old disgraced ex Tory MP for Wellingborough, who normally has a lot to say or just likes the sound of his own voice. Mr. Peter Bone, He looked all forlorn and rejected. I don’t like to kick a man when he is down (after all, we have all been there at sometime or another), but in hindsight he probably should have kept his trousers up and not been such a bully!

How the mighty fall.

Random Stuff !!!

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Just a few random things I snapped while being at Mum and Dads. It got to the golden hour and this beautiful light was streaming through the front window, gently lighting up the scatter pillows on the settee. It seemed to pick out the fabrics textures and subtle colours which I liked. There for a fleeting moment, then gone all to fast. I also took snaps of a glass of orange juice with metallic straw against a black glass outdoor table and a riot of colours from the garden in the background.

Flowers – The Garden 3

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Both Amy and I took a whole lot of images from my parents garden this month. I never normally get to see it in August as its June that Amy and I normally visit. So its great to see the garden in its late Summer glory. And here they are for you …

August Flower Updates

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We got a bumper crop of good flowers to photograph this month, which took a longer time to do it but I was able to put some away for a future showcase (banking the images as I call it) if times get hard again like Covid. So thanks then to our friends at Brambles Florist and Flowers to yours for all their help in picking out interesting specimens. Thanks also to Amy for her assistance.

That's it for this month, I do hope you have enjoyed this Augusts offerings and come back for more at the end of September

Bye for now X

July Updates,

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Welcome back to my piece of the web for July 2024, I wish you well and pray that you enjoy this months offerings.

Its only been a matter of two weeks or so since I last updated this blog, but this month I am on cue with everything. Trouble is that not really very much has happened in the intervening weeks.

I have however been working on new ideas for shoots coming up for the second half of the year. Leading the way will be a shoot idea called 'Amongst Butterflies' featuring Munira Model in August. It will be a beauty shoot with lots of creativity and makeup. Mercybongo will also be back with what I will call the 'Gold Shoot.’ We also have a new model that I have not worked with before to be announced for the September fashion shoot. So watch this space, things are cooking as they say.

My wound is scabbing over nicely, the EVRI man has not been at my door since his last fake chirpiness self popped up. And America looks like its having amnesia and forgetting about the last time they let the anti Christ loose on the world. So for all our American cousins with bad memories, look over this great video and song from Barbara Streisand called 'Don't Lie To Me.'

Its not too late people …...

… And on that all it leaves me to say is please enjoy this months blog.

Still Life Update

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In this months Still Life there are a mixture of fruits and vegetables like sweet potatoes and cherry's with satsumas. Most of the images have a distressed overlay given to them to make the impression of an old appearance to them. There is also the Arum lily from Junes flower shoot in a vase, interesting I think because of the kink in its stem. I shall hopefully do some more this next month.

Digital Art – Update

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This months Digital art based picture is an odd one. I made what supposed to be a ghostly face using the bottom of the drinks holder from McDonalds. I normally get a milkshake on a Saturday as a bit of a treat and because we have to carry them, the staff give us a double cardboard holder to put them in. If you turn it upside down and look at it, it can look like something out of a horror movie. So adding 'Monster lighting' from below and a textured overlay in Photoshop, I made the picture..

Its not really scary like a picture of something demonic or a life sized picture of my fat hairy arse, but its a close enough.

Project – 'Abstract'

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Here are a few bits and bobs I photographed around the place in an abstract manner. Most of them should not be too hard to guess. There is one odd one, think Dr. Who and the …. to get it.

Please enjoy.

Model Sin Yu Chan Photo shoot

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This month I went for a couple of hours for a shoot with lovely Asian model Sin Yu Chan who had popped up for a shoot at the Boardroom Studio in Derby. I had none of the team with me that day so it was a one man show. Originally from Hong Kong I believe, Sin Yu Chan was great, with some professional moves that set the shoot apart from just a simple stand and smile job. I would be happy to work with her again, and hope that she might come to a shoot at my parents house next Summer (If they permit it!!). So please enjoy these shots from our session together.

Model Mercybongo 8th Photo shoot

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Can you believe its our eight shoot together? I know Mercy has some way to catch up with Monalisa at thirty photo shoots or Tyler Dyce at fifty six shoots, but she is on her way with two more set before the close of the year.

This month we all went on location at the tunnel and an old Victorian mill factory site. It was an itty bitty day with the weather, but in-between showers we got some positive work done. Yes I know I have used the locations before, but there is a certain amount of repartition in any photography project you do when you have been at it over thirty years as I have been doing. But they are good locations, and worth another go when the weather is allowing.

So thanks then to Mercybongo and Carl for putting themselves out on the Sunday as well as a big shout to Amy for her help.

July Flower Updates

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Highlights of this month in flowers would be the very delicate and extraordinary lovely 'Love in the mist' I was told its proper name, but forgot it in all the excitement. Its almost impossible to take a bad picture of the flower. But it was not the only great flower we were given by our friends at Brambles Florist this month. Check them out !

So its another big thanks then to our friends Chris and the ladies at the Brambles Florist and Flowers To Yours. For all their help this month As well as a mention also to Amy for her assistance.

That is it for now. Be sure to tune back at the end of August for another update.

Take care of yourselves.

x

June Updates, Two enjoyable model fashion shoots, a gamy back leg and an equally gamy EVRI delivery man.

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Apologies for the slight lateness in this last months blog. I somehow got myself locked out of the Squarespace dashboard area that controls the website. We are all sorted now so here we are, better late than never I suppose ?

I have a tale of woe for you and a gruesome picture of the back of my right neck. It looks like an axe wound, but it is in fact a blister that burst open on my leg. It was a huge one and I get them because of my diabetes. Anyway, it burst and splatted all over the bed sheets leaving a sticky mess. Thankfully Amy was on hand to treat it and she has done a very good job too.. At one point I had to go to my local A&E because I ruptured the scab that was nicely growing on it. It suddenly turned green and black and gave off a very ripe smell of decay. They cleaned me up and put me on antibiotics which did the trick. Now my local GP nurse wanted me to come in and have it seen to at least three times a week but I said no as doing the quick maths it was going to cost me over £100 +in taxi fares alone for the month. I argued that Amy was doing a good enough job and so should continue …. so that's what we have done and its healing up nicely now. No more puss and a foul smell any more …..

…. And talking of puss and bad smells it leads me onto the little wing ding I had this last month with a deliver from EVRI (previously called Hermes) So there is this delivery man who is also the wrong side of fifty as am I, that regularly knocks on my door to drop off parcels I have had a previous run in with this man before when he complained to me that we had been away when he had banged on our door three days on the trot to deliver a parcel at new year time. He pulled a sour face that only someone who used to chew tobacco as a kid would do. So I apologised and said I will happily send him a postcard next time we are away ! So up to modern day and to cut a story short, I needed to replace a chair my fat bum broke in the studio the week before and I purchased two from Ebay. They were set to be delivered on the Saturday ready for me to take them down to Derby on a Wednesday. They did not show up, so on the Monday I cancelled the order. Then would you believe it, on the Thursday they turned up with happy chops himself at my front door. I politely informed him that I had cancelled them to which he flew into a strop and stamped his feet saying why the f**k did I order it in the first place and I was wasting his time? So that was it … I was pissed that he would swear at a customer like that, but hay-ho, I can give as good as I get and so did by telling him were he could go and calling him a miserable (a private part of the female anatomy and a word that rhymes with the name Jeremy Hunt) ! I then went and complained about him on a message I left on EVRIs telephone line. I doubt anything was done about it but smiley turned up again two days later with his face hidden by his cap and was as nice as pie. I said nothing. He also came the following day when Amy answered the door and he even slimly called her 'love' … ahhhh how sweet of him! Although I think I preferred the puss sack when he was just a miserable C......!

At least then you knew where you stood with him.

So this month I must apologies for not having any extras to show you in Digital art, projects or still life. Its because I have had to replace my old and tired PC with a new one and that was time consuming and stressful, although I did get a helping hand from my friend Mark (I hope your reading this) and to whom I am hugely in debited for his advice. Cheers buddy, We do however have some great flowers to show you and two huge galleries of model fashion pictures starring Mercybongo and Maryna Sedin.

Please enjoy x

Model Maryna Sedin 3rd Photoshoot

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Its always good when awsome supermodel Maryna Sedin drops by the studio for a shoot. She is so natural. Point the camera and off she goes making magic.

So this shoot I would try to have made on the day a paper dress. Not something made out of old newspaper, but rather out of the paper that bunches of flowers come wrapped in. I put this idea to Chris at https://flowerstoyours.com/eco-friendly-flowers and https://www.bramblesflowers.com/ and see if it could be done. He provided me with two rolls of paper, one plain and the other with pink dots on it. And it worked. Maryna wore a simple grey dress underneath as the paper was wrapped around her by Shadrine and Amy pinning it up at the back … and it looked great.!

We also created an all red effect with a red hijab, long red coat, shoes (red of course) and leggings to create an androginous look.. Through in a big red beach ball and red umbrella and you get the idea. Maryna also came with her own clothes that were checkerd black and white. So with some half / half balck and white makeup another look was created on the spot. Thanks then to everyone involved with the shoot. To Chris at https://flowerstoyours.com/eco-friendly-flowers and https://www.bramblesflowers.com/ to Shadrine at https://www.facebook.com/Kavourbeauty/ for her hair and makeup. To Phil Lynam at https://www.theboardroom.studio/ to Amy for her asssistance and of course the lovely Maryna Sedin whithout whom it all would not have been possible.

Model Mercybongo Photoshoot

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Can you believe it this is Mercybongos seventh shoot with us at the studio and this month we have a bit of an Audrey Hepburn and Janet Jackson feel to it. Taken at, and with thanks to the brilliant https://www.theboardroom.studio/ This shoot features Mercybongo in a different style than we have previously done. The model wears what I call her Naomi Campbell long straight wig with black trousers and a pair of fishnet tights with the feet cut off over her top half and bra. This is an old trick I picked up decades ago and it creates a very edgy and strong (Janet Jackson) look. Its also cheap as you can get a simple pair of fishnets from Primark for about four quid. Mercy is also wearing a long black dress with white collar. Her hair is up with a tiara in it and some fancy pants lighting behind her. This I hope gives a classic Audrey Hepburn 'Breakfast at Tiffanys' look. There is also a third more spanish inspired look that is light, bright and orange / yellow..Thanks then to Shadrine at https://www.facebook.com/Kavourbeauty/ for her hair and makeup. To Phil Lynam at https://www.theboardroom.studio/ and a nod to my lovely wife Amy for her help.

I hope you enjoy them?