London was always going to be special, after visiting so many other wonderful places this year and felt so welcomed by everyone it was my turn, on familiar territory, to play host and tour guide for what turned out to be a unforgettable experience. 

We were only eight students strong but filled with enthusiasm and the love of photography I think this workshop produced the highest quality imagery I’ve yet seen.  Everyone felt confident enough taking a model to shoot with on their own and create something uniquely individual.  It’s a testament to Scott’s captivating and inspiring teaching methods.  London was for me a milestone because for the first time I felt like everything I have learnt this year by attending these workshops (lighting, posing, composition, technical know-how and everything else!) for the first time worked in harmony allowing me to be not just more creative but more productive too.  It’s a great feeling.

As ever there were so many highlights most obviously the gallery show on the final day (see previous post!) but who would have imagined staying up until 4am editing our images would be up there! Hanging out, sharing stories, memories and weird humour whilst under pressure to finish our images was indeed magical and just shows the great community of photographers that I am privileged to be part.  Other highlights?  Three visits  to the same Balti House to sample the delights of indian cuisine and to satisfy Arielle’s huge craving for it!  Being allowed the use of the most expensive prop ever in the shape of a £100,000 Lamborghini, in black! Oh! And Scott’s hilarious incident on the London Underground when he decided to get trapped between the train’s sliding doors and in the process delay the entire Northern Line! Priceless.

A huge thanks to Liz, Ama, Kelly, Vanessa and Fliss who all gave up there precious time to model for us.  They were fantastic but also great fun to hang out with.  Christina who ignited the idea of a Scott Robert workshop in London and Dave, without him so much would not have been possible.

So what’s next? Well tomorrow kicks of a two month photography frenzy with three weddings in as many weeks followed by visits to Paris, Italy & Spain in september!  I get tired (and hungry if I’m being honest) just thinking about it.  But I won’t complain because simply put, I can’t wait!

Take care.

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I’ve had so many opportunities and great things happen this year but this one will take some beating!  At the end of an amazing week in London attending Scott Robert’s Next Level workshop everyone chose one of their images to be part of a gallery exhibition located in the city’s hip and trendy East End.  Believe me, to see my work blown up to a massive 20×30″ in a gallery show is one of the most satsifying feelings I’ve ever experienced and hopefully the start of things to come!

I could have selected any number of images for the gallery show but this was one of a small handful that stood head and shoulders above the rest. In fact if this had been the only image I had taken during the course of the week I would have been happy because I think this image says more about me and who I am than all the other imagery I took combined (something Scott recognised before I did!).  Why? It’s an image that was born out of a vision that I’ve nutured in my mind long before arriving in London but for the very first time everything came together and I was able to complete part of that vision.  And somehow the more I look at it the more I learn about myself and the photographer I’m destined to become.  It does indeed have a little bit of my soul.

A huge thanks to Dave who was the ‘MAN’ and organised the whole gallery exhibition single handed including the venue (The Jago), the DJ and all the prints! We had the easy job of turning up ready with a slideshow to project all our best images from the week and simply talk to all the guests about ourselves!.  He was a star, a true gentleman and everyone’s best friend.

And just in case you didn’t realise the women in the image is in fact Ama (yes it is her, honest!) who I had the pleasure of shooting last year shortly after returning from my very first Next Level workshop in Paris.  You can view that shoot -here-

Thanks to everyone who came and showed their support, see you next year!

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