Bikram Yoga Richmond - studio shots

Following my earlier session documenting the training for the UK Yoga Asana Championships, the team at Bikram Yoga Richmond invited me back for some posed, studio-lit shots. A great privilege. To emphasise the extraordinary contortions, and add some drama, I used a dark grey paper backdrop, hard gridded rim-lights from left and right, slightly behind the subjects, and a softer fill light from directly above and behind the camera.

Many thanks to Kristin, Johnny and the team for this amazing opportunity.

I won't bang on any further as I feel the pictures speak for themselves:

Gethin Jones for the London Evening Standard

The Evening Standard commissioned me to take some photographs of the TV presenter, Gethin Jones.  He was being interviewed to publicise his new 'altruistic' ITV show 'Holding out for a Hero' where contestants play for prizes that will help change someone else's life rather than their own. As is usually the case with such jobs, I was given a time and an address, a bit of background info and fifteen minutes to come up with something.  So either a case of complete creative freedom (yeehah!), or a short-lived venture into the unknown (eek!), depending on your point of view.

Luckily for me Gethin was quite charming and completely at ease in front of the camera (...and his fine Welsh bone structure helped a bit)

All shot using natural light, using Canon 85mm f/1.2 and 24-105mm f/4

Here are some of the results.

Chris & Zoe's London Wedding

Wedding season is in full swing and Zoe and Chris were blessed with gorgeous sunshine for their London wedding.  Here are a few of my favourite shots. I met up with Zoe at lunchtime in Battersea for hair and make-up, sandwiches and champagne.

The dress is a gorgeous lace and bling number by Collette Dinnigan

A strong Scottish connection meant kilts were much in evidence.  The bridegroom and all his ushers were all dressed in dashing highland attire.

The mother of the bridegroom caught some rays in the church.  St. James' Garlickhythe is nicknamed 'Wren's Lantern' for its astonishing clear glass windows, which flood the place with light.  A photographer's paradise!

Confetti is seen less and less these days, but such fun.

The wedding party were piped from the church, the  200 yards to Skinner's Hall.  A pair of bagpipes makes a wonderful noise echoing around the deserted city streets.

Chris and Zoe were keen to have a few pictures together during the drinks reception.  Skinner's Hall presented a variety of excellent locations for that sort of thing.  We were back before anyone noticed we had gone. Chris and Zoe were great sports, and very relaxed in front of the camera.

Zoe defied convention and said a few words.

After dinner there was a ceilidh, and the Bride's mother put one of the ushers through his paces during the warm-up.

Bikram Yoga Part 1 – Training

I was lucky enough to be invited to photograph members of Bikram Yoga Richmond in training for the 2011 UK Ghosh Cup. It was astonishing to see the dedication and effort that went into their preparation.  Bikram Yoga is conducted in a humidified room, heated to 105°F to allow the muscles to stretch to their maximum potential.

Heat and humidity aren't great for cameras so I had to bag up my gear and allow a little time for it to adjust to the heat.

Boy, was it worth it, though:

This is just the warm-up :)

The camaraderie and mutual support was great to see.  This is serious training for a fiercely-contested tournament, so all the girls were seriously pushing themselves, but there was still time for lots of fun and laughter between poses.

Kristin is the co-founder, and head teacher, of Bikram Yoga Richmond.  She is also the reigning UK Yoga Champion, so particularly keen to defend her title this year.  She bends in extraordinary ways!

Here she is back-bending, whilst practicing for 'Wheel' - a yoga move which involves inverting the back and grabbing the ankles from behind, then straightening the legs.

Back (and mind!) bending stuff.

It was a real privilege to be granted access to the studio like this, and I genuinely enjoyed watching the mass contortions for a couple of hours.  Very pleased with how the pictures turned out.  Largely shot with 70-200mm f/2.8 lens, at maximum aperture, to isolate the subjects from the background.  Processed in b/w to eliminate distracting skin tones and differently-coloured yoga kit.

More on this subject to come soon.

Bouncing baby

I love photographing babies - their perfect skin and pristine, sparkling, inquisitive eyes make a photographer's work so easy. Poppy Grace Dixon-Lyon is no exception.  We spent a happy couple of hours in her thrall, so alert and bright, and perfectly behaved.  Apart from a little wee on the fur rug!

Here are some of my favourite shots: