A Few More Shots From the Art of Fashion Fundraiser

In late February we spent a couple of days shooting for Art of Fashion. They had asked us to be involved in a fundraiser whereby their designers would have access to professional photography services in order to get a professional head shot that could be used in promoting themselves  and their design collections.

For years we have noticed how many people try and promote themselves – and by extension their personal brands –  on social media channels and personal or professional websites with photos that they have taken themselves (the dreaded selfie), cropped from a larger photo, or in some cases photos that have been taken by a ‘friend with a camera’.  The result is invariably bad, bad, bad and only now are people generally starting to realize the value of a professional profile photo.  A poor photo can potentially create a poor first impression, especially in the creative fields, so with this in mind we agreed to help raise money for Art of Fashion while providing a wide variety of people (a much wider variety than just the designers) with a head shot that they can use to promote themselves.

From opera singers (two of them!) to business professionals, to actors and those there just for fun, we tried to create something that expressed a bit of what each person was about.

Above, a small sample of the photos we created.

Totally Waisted! by Katrina Mior: Photos by Light Monkey Photography

Once in a while – as a photographer – you are lucky enough to work on a shoot with a group of people who not only bring out the best in what you do, but are also a lot of fun to work with… such was the case with our shoot earlier this week during which we teamed up with Toronto fashion designer Katrina (Kate) Mior to shoot some promotional material showcasing her incredible corsetry.

Kate’s business – cleverly named ‘Totally Waisted! Corsetry’ – has been in existence for eight years and she is at the point in her career now of building a solid online presence for her designs. When construction on her website is complete you will be able to see samples of Kate’s corsets and contact her easily to place custom orders. Until then you can visit her Facebook Page, Pinterest, or Tumblr accounts to see the heirloom quality, hand finished, high end pieces this fabulous designer is capable of creating.

Kate herself is a fascinating person, she is a true artist and an established performer who tours the world for a good portion of each year.  She sources the best – and in many cases, antique – material for her one-of-a-kind corsets and painstakingly creates the perfect finished product for her high-end clients. Each piece is art in itself (witness the black and white swan corsets above, featuring real feathers!) and we – with the help of models Ari, Miss Fine Lines, Helen, and Stephany – did our best to showcase it in the very best light.

Clothing Design/Styling and Hair Styling: Katrina Mior

Make-up: Aisha Chacha – Chacha Cosmetics

Models: Miss Fine Lines, Helen Davis, Ariel Lunansky, Stephany Garcia

Location (Loft Space) Owner: Meghan Curtis

Home Fashion Office Shoot, Styled by Tara Wilkins

A few weeks ago we worked on an editorial type creative shoot that was pulled together to showcase a home office designed for someone in the fashion industry.  The stylist for this shoot was the talented prop and clothing stylist, Tara Wilkins.  Tara recently signed with Plutino Group – her website can be found here.

We really enjoyed this project and working with Tara was a great experience, we hope to have the opportunity to work with her again and again in the future.

A Good Use of Time

So… every spring the condominium corporation that runs the building that houses the loft hires people to come and wash the underground. Today was the the day they did that this year. As you might know (if you have been following us) we have started to take on more commercial and promotional work this year, which has meant honing different skills and coming up with creative ways to shoot new material. It is a movement forward in our work that we have really enjoyed – and so with a day ‘off’ so to speak, forced because we had to remove both car and truck from the underground for the day, we chose to take the cameras out and shoot for ourselves (rather than clients) to test some methods that will come into play in the work that we will in fact be doing for clients in the upcoming days and months…

And I was a model – or my very small footwear was anyway.

Above, some of the results from an hour or so spent by the lake on one of the first warm days of spring…  more to come… (photos AND warm spring days).

More From Our Loft 404 Creative Shoot

Above, a selection from our recent creative shoot at Loft 404. Our thanks again to the team – Rebecca, Victoria, and Michelle – you were fantastic to work with.

Fashion Creative at Loft 404

We were lucky enough yesterday to work with a new team in putting together a fashion creative, shot at Loft 404. The space at loft 404 has to be seen to be believed – one experiences a sort of sensory overload walking through the maze of rooms and hallways covered in eclectic scavenged goods from around the world. It is a space that truly inspires creativity.

Our model for the shoot was Rebecca Leung and she was a dream to work with, you will be seeing a lot of Rebecca in the future.  Her makeup was expertly applied by Victoria Fedosoff who took each description of the look we wanted and made it a reality, Victoria also served as our hairstylist for the day. The shoot was styled by Michelle Price who did a great job in making sure nothing was overlooked. It was energizing to work with such a fun group of creative professionals and we look forward to working with this team again.

Below, a few shots from the start of the day – Rebecca in one of Loft 404’s vibrantly coloured rooms.