2021: looking back and looking forward

I think many of us will agree, 2021 has been a strange year. As we look forward with optimism for the year ahead I wanted to look back over some of the many highlights from the past 12 months that made 2021 an enjoyable year of work.

2021; A year that saw me burn through 2 cameras, 7 modelling bulbs, 2 magic arms, 1 flash tube and a lens.

125 days on set shooting 74 projects for clients. 5.5TB of data. (No wander I was tired by the end of it)

A personal project that has collected 4 awards, 3 overall/ category winners. (Creative Communication Awards; Other / Photography; Winner - Creativepool Annual 2021 Peoples Choice winner, Photography category - Creativepool Annual 2021 Bronze, Photography category - VIPA 2021 Still Life Category Winner)

Id like to offer a huge thank you to all the great clients, crew and retouchers who have made 2021 a hectic, but wonderful year of work.

Bionic Arm: Tech imagery editorial.

I was recently commissioned to photograph a 3D printed bionic arm made by Open Bionics, who are based in Bristol, for an editorial piece for Dyson:On magazine. Along with a couple of hero images, the client required a contact sheet of images with the arm hiking everyday objects.

It was particularly challenging as the arm, unless worn, doesn’t grip or do anything. Everything just springs back to the default position, which worked perfectly for the main images here, but not so much for gripping and holding things. So with some precise wedging of the joints in the fingers, I was slowly able to manipulate the hand into the desired positions to hold these objects. And yes, I ate the chocolate bar as soon as we were done.

Drinks photography for Louis Roederer with Philippe Starck.

Back in the autumn last year we were asked to shoot the exclusive UK release of a collaboration between Louis Roederer and French designer Philippe Starck. Brut Nature 2012 was a continuation of a collaboration between the Champagne house and the designer which started some years previous.

The release was exclusive to the Beaufort Bar at The Savoy Hotel, London for a month prior to general sale in the UK, so what better location to shoot it in! I’ve shot in the Beaufort Bar before, its a really stunning venue, But it does provide some challenges to shooting in there as its a contrast of black walls, gold detailing and mirrors.

We spent the day creating key visuals for both the Blanc and Rose variations that set the bottle in the beautiful setting of the bar. Turns out that there 244 year history, Louis Roederer have never used a British photographer either for any of the imagery they have had produced, so that felt quiet special too!

Hope you enjoy the images as much as we did shooting them (and testing the product!).

Festive Drinks Photography

Last summer we built some sets in the studio and shot some festive drinks, perfect for celebrations, and warming moments of reflection. Here is just a few of the images, getting in close too for some great details!

Baileys Cinnamon Spice

For two servings, you will need:

• 50ml Baileys® Original Irish Cream Liqueur

• 40ml Smirnoff® Vanilla Flavoured Vodka

• 240ml Milk

• 2 Cinnamon Sticks

• 1 generous pinch of Cinnamon

Equipment:

• 2x Martini glass

• 1 x Strainer

• 1 x Jigger

• 1 x Cocktail Shaker

Method:

1. Fill a shaker with ice.

2. Add Baileys Original Irish Cream Liqueur, Smirnoff Vanilla Vodka and milk to the shaker.

3. Shake until cold.

4. Strain into a glass.

5. Garnish with cinnamon powder and a cinnamon stick and serve.

Hot Toddy

For two servings you will need:

• 50ml Whiskey

• 3 tsp of good quality Honey

• 1 Cinnamon Stick, snapped in half

• 1 Lemon, half juiced and half sliced

• A couple of cloves

Equipment:

• 2x heatproof glasses

• Teaspoon for stirring

• Lemon juicer

Method:

1. Stir the whisky and honey together and split between 2 heatproof glasses. Add half of the cinnamon stick to each, then top up with 200ml boiling water.

2. Add a splash of lemon juice to each, then taste and add more to your preference. Finish each with a slice of lemon, studded with a clove, and serve immediately.

Gin Daisy (traditionally a Sea Breeze)

For two servings you will need:

• 75ml Gin

• Juice of half a lemon

• 2 teaspoons of sugar

• A dash of grenadine

Equipment:

• 1x Cocktail Shaker

• 2x Old fashioned, or stemmed cocktail glasses

Method:

1. In a shaker filled halfway with ice cubes combine the gin, lemon juice, sugar and grenadine.

2. Shake well until combined and chilled and serve in your glass of choice.

Old Fashioned

For each serving you will need:

• 50ml Bourbon or Rye Whisky

• 1x brown sugar cube (traditional) or 1 tsp of simple syrup

• 2 or 3 dashes of Angostura bitters

• 1x orange for peel

• Large cube(s) of ice

Equipment:

• Muddler

• Bar Spoon

• Peeler

• Old Fashioned Glass

Method:

1. Place the sugar cube at the bottom of an old-fashioned glass.

2. Saturate the cube with bitters and muddle.

3. Add the whiskey and stir well.

4. Drop in the ice and stir the liquid through well, until the ice starts to give and melt.

5. Take a slice of orange peel for garnish. You can squeeze to release the oils if desired.

Kir Royale

For two servings you will need:

• Creme de Cassis

• Champagne

• Fresh or frozen Blackberries

Equipment:

• Two champagne flutes or saucers

• Martini picks (optional)

Method:

1. Pour roughly 1 tsp of the crème de cassis into the bottom of a champagne flute.

2. Top up with Champagne

3. Add a blackberry as garnish, you can skewer one onto the martini pick too and rest across the glass if desired.

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Looking forward to shooting more like this throughout 2020 - I might even shoot some more myself and put a little book of festive flavours together in time for next Christmas. Maybe…

I’d love to work on loads more drinks based stuff this year, so if you have a project that might suit, give me a shout - I’d love to work together!

Drinks Photography for the Beaufort Bar at The Savoy

I recently shot a selection of drinks for the Beaufort Bar at The Savoy in London. Such an elegant location, and amazing looking drinks made for a beautiful set of images. My personal favourite was the cocktail specially crafter for the BAFTAs, elegant coupe glass decorated with a blue glaze and a shard of glass like ice placed in the top. Beautiful.

Looking forward to the next time I’m in London shooting cocktails!

The Perfume Shop, Eid Collection

I was recently commissioned to shoot a collection of images for The Perfume Shop aimed specifically for the Muslim calendar Eid celebrations which are just around the corner at the start of June.

Had a great time shooting some equally lovely products, lots of gold and rich colours in the sets too!

Styling: Olivia Clifford

Art Direction: Clemmie Rubens

RHS Chelsea Flower show afternoon Tea, The Savoy, London

I was honoured to be asked to photograph the special afternoon tea inspired by the Chelsea for luxury hotel The Savoy.

I’m sure that you’ll agree that Dan the pastry chef and his team have made an amazing job.

Brandy Snaps

As things wound down for Christmas and seeing in the new year, I found some time to mess around with some Brandy. Fitting for the season! Enjoy!

Single Use is No Use.

In recent years, consumers have become ever increasingly conscious about the effect that their habits have on the environment. Possibly none more than the use of single use plastics. A hot topic of the moment.

Plastic bags and straws have provided large talking points, and pressure has been put on businesses to make small changes to help protect the environment.

Things as small as changing plastic straws to paper ones. It’s crazy to think that the plastic in a black straw is non recyclable, and here have been a few videos circulate on social media to highlight the damage done from such a small and seeminglessly harmless product. The one that sticks in my mind was the turtle that had a black straw lodged deep into its nostril. A distressing watch which provoked thoughts that this could easily be prevented.

I've wanted to do a project that looked at these single use plastics for a while now, but I wanted it to be more than just plastic bags. I popped into a few shops and managed to find a whole host of cheap, single use plastic objects, most costing less than £1 for a whole pack of things. I couldn’t believe how readily available and unnecessarily cheap it all was which makes it even worse. 30 plastic forks, spoons or knives that cost just £1 would be around for the next few hundred, if not thousands of years.

Single use plastic is becoming a huge accumulative problem.

Here are the range of things I managed to pick up in about 20 minutes in various high street stores.