The Faraway Tree.
Photography by STEVEN CHEE @ DLM
Styling and Props by CHARLOTTE STOKES @ DLM
Hair and Makeup by JOEL PHILLIPS @Viviens Creative
Model LOTTA @ Chic Management
Shot at MILLER SPRINGS, KANGAROO VALLEY
Reno Completion - A delayed update!
So, this is a well overdue post! We have been living in our completed apartment for a couple years now and absolutely LOVE it! Including the first plasterboard hole, from a couple posts back, to moving in took about 11 months.
Entry to Master Ensuite.
George Livissianis our Architect listened to all our dreams and requests and designed a plan to perfection while constrained to the shell of the two gutted adjoining apartments. I still marvel at the attention to the tiling and cabinetry design and how it all marries up perfectly. Thank you GEORGE!
Our builder Peter Kambos brought it all home, problem solving all the way through due to the existing build. He came up with a killer drain design that saved us a lot of time and pain. It might not sound exciting but it was a game changer! Go Pete. Special mention to Dave his foreman!
All travertine guest bathroom inspired from a work trip to Santorini.
Kitchen finished in Super White marble. Zipp Tap - Chilled. Boiling. Sparkling!
Storage for days! George came up with this design separating or entry from our living space. Conceals our TV and provides critical apartment life hiding places!
This is my favourite room. Light is beautiful and the big slabs of Super White give it scale and openess when combined with the mirrors.
Last light! One of the biggest assets to our apartment is the play of light through the day. I love the afternoon light the best. This picture was shot in the golden magic before the sun hit the horizon.
Its fair to say that the apartment doens’t look so minimal now that we have a lil treasure running around with a multitude of toys ‘decorating’ daddy’s travertine!
Girls. Lotta M
One of my favourite pics of Lotta I snapped while she was here I’m on a whirlwind trip from NYC. One of the shoots was during the Olympic gold medal game where Team Finland triumphed! Sorry you missed it Lotta!
Headed Home.
Ten days and counting.
After 8 months of renovating we are almost there.
Will be worth the wait!
Campbell Parade. Bondi Beach 6:38am
Desert Dunes
Had the best couple of days shooting over in the Wild West of Australia.
We were given the full aussie welcome and hospitality from local Tim, complete with bikini clad Swedish backpacker sun baking assistant. Couldn't have come across a better duo of info and help!
Setting up before sunrise
Our speedy dune transport.
Cherry Blossoms. Tokyo
Was very lucky to do a trip to Tokyo for work recently. We went for the Sakura (Cherry Blossom) season for all its colourful glory and timed our trip well. They bloom for about 2 weeks a year so can be tricky to time as it's not always the exact period year after year.
Bright Tangerine. Revolvr
Took delivery of my Revolvr last week and got to finally test it out. Definitely worth the wait for the guys to get everything just right. Beautiful build quality and so smooooooth to work with. Easily adjustable and customisable to many rig configurations. Happy customer. Robert and Clinton , Thank you.
Day One. Demolition Jaques
After a six year planning period the wait is over!
Girls. Maria
Shot this pic at the end of the day on a new campaign shoot for Mr Smith.
They flew her in from Poland. Magic move Freda!
I knew Maria's cheekbones and freckles were perfect for one of these B&W portraits. Glad we took the time.
Ostro, Auckland. NZ
Just the right amount of fancy. The ingredients were fresh and the dishes were tasty!
I had the steamed Snapper but the Duck Papadelle was just as delicious.
The restaurant is set on the second floor and looks out over the Auckland harbour.
Ostro is a new favourite, but if you're in town don't miss my old breakfast go to, Dizengoff on Ponsonby Road. Pastrami instead of bacon. Eggs as you please. Sides of mushrooms and spinach.
Best coffee in town.
Its recently been sold to new owners but all seems same same. Troy and Mark will be missed.
Hailey Baldwin for Gritty Pretty BTS Video.
I shot Hailey Baldwin at the very end of her trip down under just over a week ago. It was the quickest shoot Ive been on, it rained to make thing even trickier! She had to leave for the airport at 9am so you can imagine what time we had to get up.
Thankfully we had a great team and everyone brought their A game. Make Up by by Filomena, Hair by Renya. Big thanks to the girls from Gritty Pretty, Eleanor and Morgan!
Here's a behind the scenes look shot by Tom Stockwell.
Girls. Olivia A.
Shot this beauty yesterday. Skin perfection. Just six months in to her career and already a natural. Two Thumbs up.
Those eyebrows.
JESSICA . Personal Project
In between shooting for my clients I sometimes get a chance to put together a shoot of my own where I get to work with some faves and together we make the magic happen.
I recently shot this story with the bombshell, Jessica Lee Buchanan while she was out here from South Africa, and collaborated with Max May, Marina Didovich & MyViolet to create these shots.
We based the shoot vibe on my usual black and white portrait style but this time left the colour in!
Hope you love 'em!
ASILIO camisole
House of CB bodysuit
ASILIO dress, Cappellazzo Couture corset
Bordelle dress from Baby Likes to Pony
Pleasure State bra, Bordelle harness and knickers from Baby Likes to Pony
Bordelle knickers and garter belt from Baby Likes to Pony
Pleasure State robe & knickers
Bordelle bra from Baby Likes to Pony, Lonely high waist knicker
IRO tee, Vintage Jean Paul Gaultier dress from Cara Mia Vintage
Polaroid 665 Packet
Here's my shot that went into the Personal exhibition at Sun tonight. When my RZ67 was my work horse I shot a load of 665. It was black and white and produced a positive and a negative! It was amazing. Silvery blacks and FINE grain. Perfect for larger prints as the neg was almost double the size of a 6x7cm that the RZ produced.
I shot most of the 665 on my Konica Instant press. A beauty of a camera.
When the 665 Type was discontinued like most other polaroid I bought a bunch from B&H and had then shipped over ready for that special project. I stored them lovingly in my fridge for that day for years. When the time came I did a test run for light and to my dismay the polaroid burst apart when I pulled the tag from the polaroid back.....Dried, torn and broken.
Naively I tried the next one in the pack, same result. Opened another box. Same polaroid confetti!
So this shot is my last gasp effort at remembering that format I once loved so much. Ive still got the Konica so hopefully one day The Impossible Project will bring back the glory days.
This Time It's Personal
Exhibition. This Time It's Personal.
Got some pictures in this exhibition. Always interesting to see what people get up to in their own time under their own steam! Check it out from Thursday.
Setting Up
One of the many pluses of my job is the endless supply of new gadgets and gear I get to experiment with daily.
Moving slowly in to the motion area has opened up a new avalanche of gadget glory!
Here you see a 20 x 20 Foot scrim we are setting up ready for some sun shaping. Haven't ever used one before, it's basically a sail in the wind so more is more when talking about sand bags to hold it steady!
From the Air
If you ever visit Queenstown or Wanaka on the South Island of New Zealand you've certainly made it to one of the most beautiful regions in the world.
Ive been there three times for work. Two of those times I was lucky enough to go up in a helicopter to reach our locations.
The view from the air is SPECTACULAR. The terrain that you cover flying out to Milford Sound changes constantly and is like traveling over different worlds. The scale, textures and colours are beautiful.
Its not cheap to go above the clouds but it's worth every single cent. You will not be disappointed.
Marie. Fresh Faced. Wanaka NZ
Snapped this pic of Marie fresh off the helicopter after we landed at one of the deer hunter lodges on the Minaret Station. One of my favourite days on location shooting. Every element of an outdoor shoot in a remote cold location fell in to place perfectly, even down to the fact the guys from Minaret flew out there at first light to light the fire for us in the lodge. Amazing service!
