Dann Holliday

This post is not merely a homage to my friend Daniel, who takes turns to take me out to dinner and I him (we used to really like Chimichangas but it's changed drastically...)

He is currently applying for internships... He studies Fashion Atelier (fancy) and so he asked me to do some portfolio shots to send along. Apparently all the big fashion houses need to see images now. His work is really good so I wanted to do it justice. We were afforded just one afternoon and a University corridor. I did a few detail layouts... at first we shot on a white background with flash, it looked too fake so we went for sunlight (at 5pm!) and did some nice working backgrounds. Makes it a bit more active I think.

I love this dress... we spent some time in Bluewater looking for climbing rope for this, God knows where he found it in the end, can't wait to see it finished.

This jacket can be short or long... so clever.

Amazing two piece in I think wool, or definitely some sort of wooly material.

I wanna see your Peacock!

Last night we went to see my total idol, Katy Perry herself... not the usual sort of "gig" I guess but whatevs, I loved it! There's something about watching acts like her and Usher (a few weeks ago), the production and actual show are amazing. But BF was having none of it, and proclaimed Katy Perry needs to put on a show whereas The Vaccines can hold their own with their songs. Which may be true for them, but it is a totally different ball game I think.

The first thing we noticed at the venue was the smell in the air, not the usual gig one of sweat and beers, but of kinda cherry candyfloss. Makes sense since a limited run of her album were released with a candyfloss scent! Never experienced this at a gig or "concert" before but it really gave it an edge... well as edgy as candyfloss smell can get!

I love her singing and music anyway but I absolutely loved the fact she did a medley of other artists songs (Lady Gaga, Rihanna, Willow Smith and JAY Z - Big Pimpin'... so legendary) and changed her outfits and the theme of the set more times than I can even remember.

The laser show during ET was out of this world (boom) and the mass gingerbread man dancers at the end were hilarious... I am definitely in love with this woman.

She did at least four outfit changes during "Hot n Cold", some of them just walking through a metre wide curtain... I really don't understand how she managed it! But every single one was amazing, especially the Peacock and the glitter cape. I also couldn't believe she was only at Hammersmith Apollo with a show like that, but I think the production ensured next time she will be at the o2 or something!

Interviews, Venison & Soap Vases

Lovely hipster view from the train...

As usual, the event I am writing about was a few weeks ago because I am slightly behind at the moment! Maybe it was even last week... I don't know, I've lost track of the concept of time!

Basically, Blane Chapman over at Chav in Skinny Jeans was conducting an interview with the crazily multi-talented Ollie Olanipekun, and I popped along for the day to photograph it and generally hang out/eat Mcdonalds/meet up with Georgie. 

I spotted a lovely t-shirt shop with the nerdiest photography t-shirts, might have to pop back and get one! Hasselblad please!

The interview took place at The Old Blue Last, and when I told my Dad about this on the phone, he was going on about how in the old days it was good and how his Girlfriend used to hang out there a lot. Apparently there was a guy who used to play piano there... so that's interesting... my only experience of it was extremely wasted, but I noticed how lovely it was in the daytime this time around! I took some photos of the surroundings:

Massive gap in the floor... standard!

During the actual interview bit, I was dotting around trying to get the best images possible with a 50mm fixed lens (feeling a bit like the worst paparazzo ever/an unrelenting stalker), totally got in some guys way and then he ended up moving to the other side of the pub... I think the images came out very well regardless! To hear/see the actual interview of Ollie's exploits of a very successful guy moving from Coventry to London, you're gonna have to wait until Blane decides to publish it!

My fave portrait!

We then met Georgie and took ourselves over to McDonalds like the classy people we are, then met my old friend Elliot at the gallery Haunch of Venison, where he is working.

Georgie excited to see art!

George and me

Blane pondering art and/or life

You will be SHOCKED when I tell you that all of those figures (aside from the painting obviously) were made of SOAP. I kid you not. The Korean artist Meekyoung Shin has recreated sculptures and classical Chinese porcelain. In soap. It's all about dislocation and translation, heightened by some vases being presented on the crates they are shipped over in, clearly marked "Korea". 

I will leave you on this massive photo-essay of a post with a lovely picture of some typical East London graffiti that made me smile.

Large Format & Flash Workshop

A few weeks ago we had a really interesting sign up workshop with our tutor Jonathan. We used Wista and Bronica to try and balance ambient light with fill in flash. It was a really cool experience, and we found out some of the places were Jonathan has worked, which was just crazy and made me panic ever so slightly. Think British Vogue, Paolo Roversi... gah!

I learnt a LOT about balancing light and changing apertures to accommodate for extra light. Taking 4 light-meter readings on a scene etc. All very handy! I'd like to start shooting on film more. For my upcoming project I am shooting interiors and portraits on large format (it's probably my favourite to shoot on... just a little long winded and expensive).

We had the workshop at Chatham dockside in this room:

That is the fight scene from the Sherlock Holmes movie, fact fans. Here are a few of Kevin's sketchbook pages of our notes, with yours truly on Fuji instant shot on a Polaroid back for Wista, easily one of the coolest things I've used so far. Plus some "hilarious" annotation from me...

Running back to blogger

Like a prodigal son daughter! Fuck you Wordpress, you're too difficult to balance my Usher-loving with. Even the mobile app didn't help my plight. I'll admit it's good, but it makes it into too much of a "thing". Blogging for me was so much more effective when I could quickly update on something I'd done. So for now, it's Blogspot, and Tumblr for all the iphone screengrabs of gigs and street style I should be shooting on the regs.

What has changed since I last posted? Weeellllll...

• I put on the exhibition I posted about with my group, went down a treat! So many visitors and yummy sponsorship from Vitamin Water
• My boyfriend has acquired a PS3, as much as I love it and C.O.D Black Ops, I am now usually shunned on a weeknight
• I've managed to swing a Summer placement at Front Magazine...! Also covering street-style at Lovebox, V and Creamfields for Mixmag (really excited about this), as well as the upcoming Kitsuné x Ponystep party at Heaven on Easter Sunday. What a way to spend it...
• My wonderful friend Georgina is assisting me in obtaining some Doc Martens, these specifically, I think they will do nicely for stomping around Essex/wandering around fests... maybe pick up some Hunters too! Now that I have silly long hair I also want a floppy hat.

• I have decided to continue my studies in third year whilst commuting from home. It's close to Stratford, which has a direct high speed train to Uni, so I will save a fortune. I'm travelling so much at the mo anyway it makes sense...
• Probably loads of other stuff I will update as and when, my poor brain isn't functioning today!