An Afternoon out with Mr Mcnairn

 Well John and I had a shoot yesterday (gosh it feels like it was days ago)... Anyway we started off checking out a lovely priory type location which I think will look awesome in the snow so we are waiting until the snow comes, although I'm quite rubbish at waiting so the next time we are at a loose end we may well end up there.

This was a very quiet little riverside location, Johns wife suggested we try this area so off we went to have a look and take some pictures.. I wouldn't attempt getting down the hill to the river in the snow so it was perfect for autumn, although the trees just haven't quite "turned" yet!

Love love love this shot, although there is a little detail in it which might have been overlooked.. I will send John back to the drawing board with it but until its replacement arrives its staying on here.

Yesterday was more a location hunting mission with a little shoot if we spotted the right place to work in.. I had a couple of little outfits with me and John was on the hunt for a bridge he remembered from years ago as being cool, we may have found the bridge but it wasn't the way it once was. I spotted out of the corner of my eye something which looked like a big old ruined castle, sadly the road to it was "private piss off" type signs. So we parked up the road and went for a walk. The "castle" was once maybe quite cool but it looked more like a fort with only windows right at the top and a doorway which was half way up the walls, needless to say we didn't get in or use it.

Instead we decided to walk up the road a little, we had seen a little map in the carpark and spotted something called "old church" so we chanced our luck and kept walking up this gravel driveway. I was beginning to loose hope, thinking we had maybe walked past where the "old church" once stood, we climbed up a hill and when we looked down this is pretty much what we spotted, alongside was the old church which we didn't really get a proper chance to look at when we arrived at the location because others were around.

So we went further down the path, waiting for the postman to deliver to a dot in the distance and took some shots.

The rock was really quite slippy, but I managed to just about keep my balance. I did do some full nude ones up on this rock but I dunno if John has came to those yet ;-)

This is the view looking back, you can almost see the gravel "driveway" we arrived on. The reflections in the water were amazing and the way the mist was hovering above the hills was quite breathtaking. I just know that if I ever go again it will end up being really windy and horribly wet. There really is much more which can be done at this location!

We have a wee studio shoot on Friday so very much looking forward to that, the studio is pretty much out in the middle of nowhere though so it might be a bit of a task for John to actually get me through the door of the place, I might end up distracted by the surrounding forest :D

Cxx

Alister Aberdeen and a couple of SP's

 Well I spent a lovely Sunny afternoon recently with Alisteraberdeen (PS), it has been almost 3 years since we first worked together. Its amazing how much lives change in 3 years!

We went off in search of locations and found a new one and used one of my trusty old ones too. Its sad though when it only feels like you have been out for an hour and you are told its actually only 20 minutes before the end of the shoot.

 Big thanks to Alister who sent me over :D I'm looking forward to our next shoot, which is on Monday if the weather holds up. Now to keep my fingers crossed it does!

All images above by Alister Aberdeen.


Oh I got myself a remote trigger yesterday too, its mainly so I can shoot hats while Rory is hat work but  I gave it a little test drive last night when I got home from my shoot with John mcnairn and it works wonderfully..


There was a whole bunch I could have used but I could only be bothered to edit 2. I kind of like them and I learned something while shooting them - but I wont say it here because I need to make the same mistake again to see if its actually been a mistake or if it was just the wrong setting for what I was doing ;-)

And a little more relaxed one :D

Right time to throw some hat in the cat shots onto a media stick and hot foot it over to Perth for the hand over! As always I hope they like what we have done this week

xxx

Hats... hats.... hats!

 The weather has led to quite an uneventful week in Chrissie land, but here are some pictures :D

All hats by Jeanette Sendler of Hat in the cat. I've started taking less hats home with me every fortnight, was really struggling to shoot the ones I was taking so we have cut back, been desperate to get outdoors with them during the weekend but the only time the weather was any good I was already out shooting with somebody else. By the time Rory gets back in the evening its almost pitch black outside.

I've ordered my trigger now, so hopefully self portraits are going to be somewhat easier and less limiting. The above image is a self portrait. I'm quite excited about it arriving actually, the thought of being able to just shoot whenever I want or whenever the light is right is a lovely prospect.

Anyhow I have a shoot tomorrow and will hopefully have another bash at the tartan hat before this collection is to be returned at the weekend. Next time I'm going for more of a "warm" hat selection and hopefully going to get some locations done, I may need to persuade Rory to take a day off work but fingers crossed we can get out. The strange thing is the trees have not yet went proper autumnal, they are still looking fairly summery, can't wait for them all to go orange and lay on the forest floor for me to lie in!

XxX

An afternoon with Jamie Howden

Well a few weeks ago I had a shoot with local photographer Jamie Howden.

We had no plans, just a date set and done whatever we wanted really.. Here are some of the results.

I've had a few shoots recently, fingers crossed I get to see some of the results.. I always love seeing images back from shoots I've done.

To see more of Jamies work go here - http://www.w-photography.co.uk/

xxxxxx

Happy birthday to meeeeeeeee!!!

 Well I turned 27 today, I actually had it in my head I was already 27 so it came as no surprise and doesn't bother me as much as I thought it might.

I had a lovely shoot yesterday on location, the weather was beautiful - well it was a little frosty but the sun soon warmed me up.. Kind of hoping for the same weather for the rest of the week as I have another shoot on Thursday.

Here are some more shots from when Sarah was up...

This is maybe my favourite below :D All my idea, totally original really.. like a medieval glory hole  haha.

I have another blog to do, but I will save that for tomorrow! Time to catch up on an episode of homeland then get a bit of an early night. I got so much lovely things for my birthday, can't wait to have a nice long pampering bath with all my new treats. Got some awesome new boots to keep my toes warm too... Thanks nana

I may even do a "rose petals" shot at somepoint this week, seems like the "in" thing at the moment..

xxxxx

The cat lady :D

I've always wanted a picture of me with one of my cats, so it was awesome to get a shot of me with not only 1 but 2. Its a shame the 3rd kept running out of shot :D Maybe next time we can get all three!

Sarah who is also the model - Artemis was up in Scotland last week and I was lucky enough to have her come stay with me. We had so much fun and it was nice to have another girl around the house to giggle with. I don't have many friends of my own sex and age so it was a welcome change. We didn't plan on shooting anything, it just kind of happened when we had nothing else to do.

I love the above shot, I think its because it doesn't really look like me - yet it does look like me. Strange but Sarah captured something I've not seen in a shot of me before, although I can't explain exactly what.

I was acting as a look out on Sarah and Simon Poles shoot, and while Sarah was having a quick 5 minute warm up I got up and had a little pose :D You can even see Simon in the 2nd fun shot.

I totally recommend you all to pop on over to see more of Sarahs work, not only is she a fantastic model but she is a great photographer too!

Sarah's work!


xxxx

Tips for shooting a model on location (in the cold)..

Image by Simon Pole

I've been asked for tips in the past from photographers about location nude things - I was also speaking to fellow model Sarah - Artemis while she was with me last week, its amazing how many experiences in common we have. So I decided to post a blog on it, most of it is just simple little steps to keep a model happy. Believe me when I say a happy model really is a better and harder working model. So if you want the best from us then treat us as well as you possibly can. I do realise though that some models are fiercely independent and don't want to be treated like a precious flower but others *me* like that technique on location shoots. Along with many other models our bodies are important to us, mistreating it isn't going to do us any favours in the long run.


My first tip - this could be useful for models and photographers.
Is to have an item of clothing like the jumper in the below image, I got this old thing years ago and its stood the test of time (although its about half the thickness it was when I bought it). I call it the "naked jumper". I don't know what I would have done without it. Having an item like this reduces the time it takes me to get undressed and dressed again, yes it might only save a minute or so but its a minute or so which would be better spent posing rather than standing fighting with a button or a zip. I also tend to wear old ugg type boots with fur lining, I have went through about 9 pairs since I started modelling - again they take 2 seconds to put on and take off again. My clothes generally end up getting chucked in any direction out of shot. So maybe ask your model to have a piece of clothing like this, its also beneficial when you are working in public places - like I said it only takes a second to throw on so if a pesky dog walker is approaching while you are with a model throw it over to her and a second later she is clothed. Another great thing about my naked jumper is that the neck of it is HUGE - so it wont mess up my hair or makeup.

Image by Rory Quinn - MUA/Hair - June Long

So the model turns up, has an item of warm clothing to quickly throw on between shooting.. I also like taking a thick blanket with me too - so once basically dressed I can wrap myself in it. I always recommend practicing before taking the actual shot -

This is kind of a practice run from a shoot I had with Simon Pole on our trip to the Isle of Skye a few years ago...

And this is the final shot - or at least one of them.

Doing the practice runs is really beneficial - you can roughly set up the camera and composition you are wanting to get and the model can see what poses work in the area and see what she has to work with. Shouting directions to an incoming wind/next to a fast waterfall or in a public place is not the wisest move. I wish I could find better examples of the before and after but I've stopped using my old computer with all the shots from these shoots on them so that will have to do grrr!!

So I've covered - clothing and practicing the shots you want to get.

Now its down to the little things..

NEVER say to a model "its not that cold" especially if you are wrapped up in a cosy winter jacket with only your eyes and nose exposed to the weather. I'm not saying - get naked so you can experience it, just don't say it. If a model says "I'm cold" then she is cold, wether or not you think its cold is irrelevant as you are not nude.

Another thing which is wise not to do is say -
"Well I swam in the Antarctic naked in colder conditions" / "the last model I worked with was in even colder conditions and she coped fine". Comparing our threshold to yours or another models isn't a very nice thing to do. Its great you're last model was better at coping with the cold but every body is unique and copes in different ways. Don't make us feel inferior just because its not coping as well as somebody else's would or your own.


This next one is very common - once you have got the shot in the bag don't run past the models clothes to show her the images. Yes the images are important and she is excited to see them but remember those few minutes of her standing naked looking at the back of the camera would be better spent getting her warmed up so she is able to perform as well at the next location. So don't chase her with the camera when she is trying to retrieve her clothes, grab her clothes and take them to her or throw them over to her so she can warm up then show her the pictures. I have lost count of the amount of times photographers have stood watching me struggle over harsh terrain to get my clothes when they are only inches away from them. It takes me longer to walk over sharp stones and nettle infested woodland without shoes on than it would if I had my shoes on.

Image - Craig Mcguire

This next little story is not the "norm" but worth keeping in the back of your head for future use. I remember once being booked by a lovely man who shoots on various different formats of camera. There was a horrible wind and ice on the ground, I didn't get much opportunity to stop and warm up and his last set was a bit of an experiment for him - He wanted to do a slightly longer exposure and have me moving material around with my arms but my face had to remain still. If you have shots like that in mind which are focusing on the face or they are not overly dependant on the weather being nasty then its better to try that shot out first before I have snot running down my face, a red nose and the shakes. Or better yet wait till the summer :D

Its difficult to remain still when you have been out for a long period of time, balancing is also a bit of an issue for me so when you add my "not very good" balancing to an episode of the chilly shakes its not a good mix. I remember once on a windy snowy day I got up on a window ledge  (see below).

It doesn't even look overly high, I think at the front it was around 6ft but behind me was a 25-30 ft drop. The ledge itself was only about the same width as my foot and it was covered in ice.. If I had even attempted this shot without being properly warmed up beforehand I would have really struggled. So its a good example of "keep model warm she will work better". 

Image by Simon Pole.


When the weather is seriously bad its also nice to be fairly close to the car, so that we can get out the wind as quickly as possible. Especially on snow shoots when everything I come into contact with ends up soaking wet and cold. I remember years ago doing a night-time shot in Glencoe, I wasn't wearing waterproof shoes and ended up stepping in a stream which was kind of hidden under a blanket of snow (and it was pitch black outside). My foot was actually warmer exposed than it was inside my shoe. So models always take extra shoes/socks just incase you have an accident.

I always find that the more productive location shoots are those which have short bursts of shoots - so 5 minutes in one location - warm up then move onto somewhere else. Another plus point is a flask :D I wish I could remember who it was but one photographer even had a spare flask and a hot water bottle and filled it up when we were done... If whoever you are is reading this then just incase I didn't say it at the time - YOU ROCK.

Image by Nigenw

I'm not really sure what to add to this..  just be considerate.. If you are a model don't feel like you have to stay quiet, if you are cold just say "can i have 5 minutes to warm up" honestly.

Image from a cold morning by - Carl Grim

Have fun...

Oh and here is a sneaky wee peak at an image from last week :D

I will be doing a separate blog featuring Sarah's work and the fun we had together.

Lots of out-takes and the like.

Much love xxx