Last Few Street Photography Shots

I fancied a change, so here they are in black and white.

Street Photography #4

No one on Tuesday, no one yesterday, and almost no one today until, just as the light was fading, I found these two on Charing Cross Road. They were well dressed, charming and patient while I fumbled with camera and waited for the 95896 people on the street to go past so I could take the pictures. Lovely.

Her face is blurred, which is a pity, but her expression is lovely and I do still like this photograph -  particularly for the bicycle shadow on the wall behind her.

The light was fading so fast that by the time I took this (only about a minute later) it was already quite dark. A lot of the detail on his coat is lost, but if anything it emphasises his silhouette. He looked like he could be in the book/film Absolute Beginners.

Lynchianisms

I don’t often read other blogs. There are about four that I check regularly, apart from that, my involvement in the ‘blogosphere’ is pretty much limited to writing my blog. Occasionally, however, I have a peep at someone else’s efforts and am rewarded by a snippet of information that I cannot believe has previously eluded me. Suddenly everything falls into place. 

The piece of information giving me a minor epiphany at the moment is the fact that the Gucci perfume advert (below) was made by David Lynch. This might not seem that revelatory, but I bloody love that advert, and now it makes sense in my head why.

At the moment, Audrey Horne from David Lynch’s Twin Peaks is my number one style inspiration, and the reason I’ve been spending a lot of time looking for a nice kilt.

Street Photography #3

My afternoon in Brick Lane yesterday was a success, without exception everyone was v. obliging when asked for a photo, though a few people got a sort of world-weary expression on their face as if they are asked for the privelige rather a lot. I don’t know what the fuss is about, I’m always really flattered on the occasions I’m stopped for a picture, but then maybe I’m a bit of an exhibitionist.

This couple make me sad that the photos have to be printed in black and white as their red hair looks incredible with the blue denim they are wearing. They prove that you don’t need to be typical fashion people to pursue an disinctive, personal look.

This girl was great infront of the camera.

Below is one of my favourite looks so far. The photo doesn’t do her justice  – you can’t see her turban properly or the cape coat. She was only about 5′ 3″ and her outfit was perfect.

Street Photography #2

Maybe I’m not dedicated enough, but on the cold London streets, I still haven’t found many immaculate head-to-toe vintage looks. Come on people!

This is Flora on NYE wearing a 1940s millitary overcoat. The photo is very dark, but I really like it anyway. When I make them black and white to hand in it will sort out the yellowish tone too – after I took it I worked out that there is a setting on my camera for street lights which I will put to good use soon.

Yesterday I went to the sale at This Shop Rocks on Brick Lane, possibly my favourite vintage shop ever and bought a black mohair coat with a brown fur colla. The coat was reduced to £30 from £100 and has taken pride of place in my growing coat collection. Surely coats and jackets are so practical that having nine of them can’t be considered frivolous? I don’t know, maybe nine isn’t such a lot anyway…

I digress - back to the photos. At This Shop Rocks I took the opportunity to photograph one of the shop’s owners, who was wearing a lovely grey suit and a cravat. I love a man in a cravat.

I was glad to get a photo of a man, and would definitely like my work to represent both genders, though at the moment, men of the type I want to photograph seem harder to find.

Street Photography

My Christmas project from college is to take 20 ‘street photography’ images documenting a style tribe. In typical CSM style, successful results will take not only the use of a razor sharp fashion eye but also a willingness to subject myself to mild torture, as it is freezing outside and street photography does tend to involve rather a lot of standing around in the street.

Whining aside, hanging around for a bit down Brick Lane wasn’t too bad, as any mild frost bite was eclipsed by finding people sporting the exact sort of styles I was looking for.

These are the two best from today, they were friends but I wanted to photograph them separately.

I have to submit them in black and white, but I thought they’d look nice up here in colour. Two down, 18 more to go…

The Kooples

When I was in Paris over Christmas I stumbled across a shop named The Kooples (it took me a while to work out the name but I realised it’s ‘couples’ pronounced phonetically in a French accent). The shop immediately interested me, partly because of it’s adoption of a fashionable ‘club photography’ style for it’s advertising and partly because I thought it odd that a whole shop should be themed round the idea that it sold both menswear and womenswear and therefore can be worn by couples.

I would have dismissed the whole thing as an odd gimmick if the clothes hadn’t turned out to be really nice and wearable. The wares are mainly androgynous basics, like a cross between APC and a desaturated American Apparel. There are  lots of t-shirts, fine knits and jackets for both boys and girls (layering is most definitely encouraged) to be teamed with narrow jeans and trousers or little shorts. Colours are predominantly neutral and sludgy.

The Kooples look strikes me as an interpretation of English indie kid style cleaned-up and given a french twist. It’s all very sophisticated – and so it should be with t-shirts starting at €40 and coats and dresses around the  €250 mark. Below are two of my favourite pieces.

The Kooples distinct anglomaniehas let to a rather successful tailoring collaboriation with Patrick Grant of Savile Row’s Norton & Sons and a surprisingly subtle range of jewellry designed in partnership with rocker’s favourite The Great Frog. It is these features that give the brand an edge, rather than the skull logos and slightly laboured connections with clubbing and music.