‘The Last Dance’

There’s not so much to write  about my trip to Ascot. It was purely for work, to research what the women were wearing on the famous ‘Ladies day’ …… I spent most of my time following around women wearing my designs, asking them to pose for our studio research pictures. However in my heart I was silently, desperately, hunting for that rare and dying breed that is the ‘English eccentric’. Ascot has changed a great deal over the years, and unless you are lucky enough to be in the Royal enclosure there is a distinct lack of ‘true ladies and gentlemen’. Ladies day is famous for being the date in the race calendar when the society women step out in all their splendor… including the biggest and wildest hat possible. Many have their hats commissioned, and there are many hopeful hat designers to be found walking around handing out their business cards. It wasn’t a place for soulful moments… but it has given me three unexpected things…….

1) A new project –

I’m going to call it ‘God save the Queen’. As I sat in the sunshine and watched the entrance to the Royal enclosure with my camera, it struck me how I’m always complaining about the lack of interesting people to photograph in London, and just how wrong I was. When I look at the photos I have produced to date I would say that almost all of the ones I care about are from other countries, yet here I am in the capital of eccentricity. So my new plan is produce a body of work that celebrates my society, the best of British…. or be it the worst – I don’t mind! It will be difficult and will run along side other works, but I’m quite excited about being more focused on the idea of portraiture as I know it’s something I need to improve on.

2) The best picture I’ve taken?

Well maybe its too subjective to say…. but I certainly care about this picture more than almost all the others I’ve taken so far. The black and white picture above I’ve called ‘The Last Dance’ and I love it for so many, many reasons. The moment I saw this woman I felt a rush through my body, she literally stopped me in my tracks and melted my heart, broke my heart, made my heart jump …. and well made me act bolder than I have ever done towards a subject. Ascot is about ‘being seen’…… and there are far too many women who take this statement to the extreme. They are unbearable strutting peacocks, squawking and preening demanding everyone’s attention, ……… this woman was different, and in the most wonderful way. I found her sitting down with her back to the crowds, she was alone, and seemed to want to avoid all the attention, rather than embracing it like all the others. I caught a glimpse of her face and was instantly mesmerized. She looked like a fading flower,….. the creases in her skin although deep, still seemed soft and delicate. To some she may have seemed like an old woman desperately clinging on to how she used to be. But her eyes still shone, and although she looked slightly bizarre, with the paper roses in her hair and the white fur wrap…..  all these things spoke about who she was / had been. They hung from her like precious memories… her ‘finest things’. Who says you can be too old to wear what reminds you of being happy? I quietly sat down next to her, and asked if she would let me take her photo, I told her I thought she looked beautiful and we chatted briefly about how long she’d been coming to Ascot. I couldn’t take my eyes of her, I felt like I wanted to kiss her on the cheek for standing by who she was. Sometimes I find older people so fascinating, and so kind to talk to, it’s frustrating the way they are so often ignored in our modern society. After she had let me take a few shots, I said goodbye and walked away only to notice out the corner of my eye she had now turned to face the crowds and was smiling ……….

The picture isn’t a ‘beautiful one’, but by accident in the post editing I tried adding a texture to give it an old feel – This didn’t work, but just as I had erased almost the whole layer I realised the effect it had created. It was as if she was softly dissolving, fading like the flowers in her hair,…. like a memory. So I left it, it made the picture say more than I ever could have hoped. For me this picture sums up all I would love to achieve – it has a dark noncommercial beauty, is of somebody that moved me, and finally almost tells a little of who that person truly is… it was unexpected, but I’m quietly very proud of this one 🙂

3) Violent food poisoning!!!!!!!!

I’ll spare you the details, but trust me…. I have never in my life been so sick (oh dear god… IN PUBLIC)… In my whole life… ever ever ever…………. That’s all i’m saying, the memory is just too dreadful for words 🙁

So here are the rest of the pictures so far..I took loads, but have already jumped onto new things. I expect I will return to them when I get bored… but I have so many ideas at the moment there just aren’t enough hours in the day. I also forgot to mention these were all taken with my new lens….. its the size of my head and cost a fortune, but was certainly worth it!.