I have given myself a challenge: to go out every day to take a portrait of someone I
don’t know. Click One Portrait a Day to visit the blog.
Sorry for the lack of portraits lately! Some of you have been asking me about them. Even the biggest writer has experienced writing blocks, your favourite musicians have done shit albums and I have experinced photography block due to lack of confidence lately. It happens to all of us. I don't think Simon the painter has any problems focusing on his art. He told me to hurry up so he could back to painting.
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In the old days benches were designed with only one usage in mind; to sit on it. Over the last decade or so they have also been designed to keep people away. My favourite bench is the German beer garden benches like the one Lynn and Claire are sitting on. Lynn is a weaver and Claire is her intern.
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Libby is a lovely lady living close to me. I met her today to look at some old photographs of the area I am doing a project on. It was inspiring to meet a great grandmother who talked about photoshop and which camera was the best out of Canon G10 and G12.
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The days of computer geeks as rock stars are numbered. For the last decade or so they have been riding on a wave bigger they could even have dreamed of. I predict the new rock star over the next decade or so will be people with old fashioned craft skills. Now people want to slow down, learn, appreciate skills and enjoy quality.
Brian Walker (in the photo) is the local signwriter on my street and he was just finishing of
Lucky News when I walked past today.
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Pink seems to be a colour that people have a strong opinion of. My wife was once told off by a woman in the street for dressing our son in pink, in certain places some men seem awkward when they talk to me if I wear a pink jumper and today a guy came in and said my portraits are great but he could not understand why I had chosen a pink backdrop. It was not good he said. Black or grey is much better I was told. I think I will stick to pink even more now, so I can have some more stories to tell in the future. This is T.D.O. Flaherty. He parked his electric wheelchair outside my
pop-up studio and came in for a portrait today.
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Yetty was one of many local Clapton people I photographed on the fifth day of my
pop-up studio today in Hackney. Only three more days to go.
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4th of the pop-up free portrait studio. Shane came in with his friends for a portrait.
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Max- and Jude posing at the
pop-up studio today. The pop-up studio is a week long experiment where I am offering local people around Chatstworth Road in Hackney free portraits and a free print to take home.
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I am doing a
pop-up portrait project this week as part of documenting my exciting neighourhood Clapton in London. Everyone coming to the studio in the empty shop on 33 Chatsworth Road gets their portrait taken for free and get to leave with a free copy. I am really greatful to all the generous supporters who made this possible!
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I might have mentioned this before but I have no better story today. My Austrian family has never heard of
Sound of Music(set in Austria), which in the rest of the western world is one of the most famous musicals ever. When I first started dating my wife she proudly admitted it was her favourite musical; and I was thinking then I must be blinded by love since I didn't care. Today in Slovenia near the village of Mozjanca I was struck by the view of the fog covering Ljubljana below. Then walking over a top towards me I saw something that looked like a happy von Trapp family. Franci (the father) runs a bakery/restaurant nearby and was escaping the fog with his wife Meta and daughters Iva and Eva, and to catch some sunshine up in the hills.
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I went to a friend's wedding some time ago and a group of nurse student girls there referred to themselves as the sisters of mercy. Aparantly one of them was old enough to have been a groupie with a member of the Sex Pistol. She was also dancing on the actual bar at 3 am and when she lifted her skirt one could see another friend's of mine boxer shorts. Very odd!
I think I prefer the band.
Sasha and his girlfriend were selling home cooked
boscht before his gig in Clapton, London, today. Vodka and Russian rock is a great combo!
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Since you are reading this it meant that
doomsday did not come true yesterday; probably because the calendar and time is a man made concept anyway. But it gives plenty of
nutters something to talk about on chatrooms. In this digital age everthing moves on too quickly and many only slow down when upgrading the software on their tablet computer.
Guy here on the other hand is a man of hand craft and old techniques. He works with photography the slow way, using alternative processing and printing methods. It makes me miss the time some years ago when I shot everything analogue and actually met other people - in the darkroom and lab - instead of my computer.
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I have been doing this blog for nearly two years. During this time I have always been approaching people in the street, shop or similar. Now I am getting the subjects to come to me. For one week I will be running
a pop-up studio on Chatsworth Road in Clapton, starting 27th November. And the good thing;
everyone photographed will receive a free print! . Reece, Ahso and Kashaun live in the area and are coming to get their portrait taken. So should you!
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Croatian Mak getting ready to play to the public at Chatsworth Road Market today.
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Croatian Mak getting ready to play to the public at Chatsworth Road Market today.
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I was pretty ignorant to some music as a teenager and thought for some time that
Knocking on Heavens Door was an original
Guns'n'Roses song. Michael here on the other hand was knocking on houses in
Chatsworth Road today for the e
lectoral roll. Most people didn't bother to open even though he shouted as well as ringing and knocking on the door. Michael is doing this as a temporary job together with his sister. This is his third week.
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One good thing about the lack of space and small houses in London is that people take things to the streets or parks. Sean from Tucson, Arizona, who is staying in London for a few months, was practising his double bass in Hackney Downs park today. It was a great sound track to cycle past at this autumnal day.
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Muhammad in his shop
PC Clinic in brand new space on Chatsworth Road, London. Muhammad had to move from his old shop three doors down the road after his previous
landlord demanded triple rent to renew the lease. Some people don't have any heart what so ever.
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"It Will Grow Back" is the best name for a hairdresser I have ever seen. Sadly it is gone now replaced by something hip on Kingsland Road. This is Esmine in her hairdresser
Diva Style on Chatsworth Road in London. She has been a regular customer for more than a year and comes her twice a month to get her hair done. What she likes most about this neigbourhood is the community spirit.
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