no idea where the blue came from, but I love it…just a film happy accident
When you work as a studio assistant, one of the perks of the job is that you get to use the studios to test.
The assistant’s privileges on the matter varies from studios to studios, each one has a different policy: same charge very little, just to cover expenses, or, even better, they don’t charge at all, others charge a reduced rate for assistants, while the right to use the space is granted depending if the assistant works full time or freelance, if he/she has worked at the studio for a long period and/or if he/she is a key holder.
I feel incredibly privileged to be able to use the amazing studios and equipment that we have at Sunbeam and I really should make the most of it while I can, so I decided to get over my preference for locations and daylight and try to test a bit more with the studios space and artificial lighting (both flash and continous).
I have already written about a rather successful (at least for my standards) test that I did with a couple of twins in studio 1, our biggest space, here and this time I want to write about a semi disastrous test that I did in studio 3.
At the time I just found out that Lewis, the first male model I ever tested with, had moved from the North East of England, where I used to study, to London and he was testing for refreshing his portfolio.
old picture from our first ever test together
I jumped on the occasion to shoot him again, as he’s lovely and I felt more confident testing with someone that I knew already. The same thought applied to my choice of the MUA, Silvia Ribera, the sweetest MUA and hair stylist that I ever had the privilege to work with, who I already tested with and I knew was super talented.
behind the scenes
The whole thing was organised rather last minute, I struggled to find a wardrobe stylist and when I finally managed to find one, she didn’t have enough time to pull many looks (or shoes at all) and we ended up with a couple of high street looks and a furry hat that I thought was totally hilarious, but, hey, what do I know of fashion?
Lewis wearing the funny hat in the garden
I don’t know why, but I must have felt like it was my first and only chance to use the studios, because I decided to use EVERYTHING and, when I say everything, I really mean everything I could put my hands on: flashes, ambient light, disco lights (!!), the studio, the gardens, random props, smoke etc etc.
digital test with disco lights
…and another one
contact sheet of my experiments with disco lights
It was fun, but we ended up with a bunch of pictures that don’t have any link with each other; they don’t look like a story at all, more like a crazy experiment of a dissociate photographer.
behind the scenes – how to get smoke when you don’t have a smoke machine 
using the flat in studio 3 as a frame
moody lighting
showing his beautiful tattoo
he wanted a picture with a cigarette, it’s kind of cliche’, but I don’t mind it
love how the light leak matches his socks!
I do like some of the pictures and so did Lewis’ agency, but I feel that if I focused on ONE idea instead of a gazillion of them, I would have probably got better results.
