Bits & Pieces

Fine Art Commission ~ Illuminated Panels

Having worked and shot in Manchester for a period, I still have many clients there. I love to work in what I think is the UK’s second city especially for Fashion work. My work comes from many of the large agencies which have offices up there, and of course, it was and is really known for catalogue photography.

I have a few online fashion houses which I still on occasion shoot for, but mainly these contacts move around. Once such a client moved and got in contact with an opportunity to shoot 5 pieces of bespoke artwork to open a new chain of quality restaurants. I was up for the challenge and we headed up as TeamNader to set the scene. The Fine Art imagery was to take the feeling and type of the famous paintings by EDWARD HOPPER. The final pieces would be illuminated and backlit with light shining throughout them. I wasn’t sure, but when we met the Interior Designer, that’s what he wished for.

My approach to this shoot was.

Working in 2 locations across the city of Manchester

Location number 1 The Launderette.  Now the location was cool, but no one had booked it out for the shoot and so one of the problems was to be working around a working unit? Great, that’s not what I needed. However, it best just to dove in and get it sorted, so we did.

The location needed only a little lighting, and for this, I chose to mix the ambient light with an LED, which gives a cool metallic effect to the skin. I balanced this with the Fluorescent lights already in there and ran wight eh colour casts to create the effect. I worked around with Phil for a couple of hours, battling with the location and the people, but eventually, it started to clear by lunchtime, so we completed in good time. The client chose the model for his unique look.

Location number 2 1960s Cafe & Chip Shop.  This location I had shot in previously for an online fashion brand earlier that year. It is a fish and chip shop, and has an authentic interior design, a super place to shoot for me. Lighting was once again mixed available and ambient with 2 LED infills to create the look. Now the shot was bizarre for me initially but it worked in the final artwork. Have a look below, and you can see what I mean. The guy had makeup on and nail varnish, hair set like a lady and wearing female clothes. The look didn’t look fabulous, but the ed resell really worked well. It would take some time to realise the image, which was fine. Really it was trying to get the guy to believe in his role which he eventually succeeded in.

The model smoking a cigarette was not staged. He had, in fact, popped outside to smoke, I noticed this, and out of his 5-minute downtime, we created a completely new look. The look was very New York. In fact, Manchester as a city is very similar to Little Italy in New York, especially in some areas at the back of Piccadilly and a cool shooting destination for anyone looking for a unique look.

A Little About Spinningfields Manchester

In case you are in the area, please have a brief read about Spinningfields and the Neighbourhood review. The whole area is accessed via Deansgate, which in itself host many bars and restaurants.

Spinningfields is an area of Manchester city centre, in North West England. It was specially developed in the 2000s as a business, retail and residential development of Manchester, and is located between Deansgate and the River Irwell. Developed by Allied London Properties, the £1.5 billion project consists of 20 new buildings, totalling approximately 430,000 sq metres of commercial, residential and retail space. It takes its name from Spinningfield, a narrow street which ran westwards from Deansgate. In 1968 Spinningfield and the south area were turned into Spinningfield Square, an open paved area.

About Neighbourhood the Restaurant 

TeamNader managed to pop back and take part in the celebration of food that is Neighbourhood. We arranged to meet a celebrity hairstylist Vince Allenby in the venue to discuss a shoot with various Coronation Street celebs. Vince had worked with us recently for a shoot at Longleat with Lord Bath.

Designed by the award-winning designer Edwin Pickett. Neighbourhood blends are warehouse-chic with a touch of class. The cold metallic steel finish captures the New York City skyline’s essence, only softened by the low-hanging glass lights and sumptuous furnishings.
Neighbourhood has given it’s international menu a ‘Manhattan-style execution’, sparing no expense on bringing premium cuts of meat to the table. The flavours and ingredients are determined by the borough’s diverse gastronomic tastes combined with a European flourish.