Rick
“An act of contrition is a Catholic prayer that expresses sorrow for sins. It may be used in a liturgical service or be used privately, in connection with an examination of conscience.”
My latest visual art piece is themed around the Catholic Prayer “Act of Contrition” it is concerned with the cathartic progression from sinner to saint, the piece itself is a 10 photo editorial and 4min audio/video segment.
Each print is available in a limited edition of 10 prints, framed, mounted, signed and numbered and will be exhibited in conjunction with the Dublin Burlesque festival.
Model: Matylda Bajer
Assistant: Brian Dillon
Music: First Human Ferro
Cathy O’Connor’s life in the fashion industry has been both diverse and extensive. During her time as Fashion Editor of U magazine, Cathy styled and co-ordinated a number of fashion editorials. She has also styled music videos including Boyzone and Eurovision veteran Johnny Logan, and continues to dress some of the most stylish women in Ireland and now cathy teaches fashion styling via MakupFablicious.
As I myself work as a photography tutor at MakeupFablicious I have the privilege of working with a talented team of up and coming make-up artists, hair stylists and fashion stylists. Under the guidance of Cathy, the students of the Academy were set the task of styling 5 models to a look of their choosing. Art directing the shoot and working with myself to create a series of fashion images based on their look.
Here is a selection of images created for the course, a great combination of skilled make-up artists, hair stylists, fashion stylists and a photographer!
FULL GALLERY OF IMAGES CAN BE FOUND HERE
I was contacted at the beginning of November last year to create images for Kevin Grimes portfolio that would have a darker and more edgy fashion look as my work is more conceptual and fine art orientated than the average fashion photographer.
I wanted to portray him with a harder edge, Keven has some very strong features that are perfect for high fashion and high concept photography and we went along with a theme that I would call cyberpunk, a futuristic comic book concept which is a nod towards films such as Bladerunner and Mad Max, with the hairstyle (created by hair stylist Anna Curren) that is inspired both by the film Eraserhead and his brothers Jedward. The Jacket was Kevin’s own and the vintage military belt and WW2 flying goggles were my own.
Kevin was a natural in front of the camera and expressed himself with great ease, I would say he could diversify his image to great success in the modeling world, he was friendly and welcoming to ideas and seemed very down to earth. We had a good laugh on the shoot and his relaxed approach resulted in some great photos.
The Photos are currently being featured in Heat magazine in the UK 9 – 15th April 2011
My Team on the shoot were:
Hair Stylist : Anna Curren
Make-up Eimear Rea
Stylist : Seb Castrillion
Whilst at a friend’s Wedding recently I was given the opportunity to try out something a little different than the average Bridal or Wedding shoot, something I have wanted to shoot for a while now, a “Trash the Dress” shoot. This is an American concept that involves creating a shoot that would be “not the norm”, something a little different. The location of the wedding was an old converted Mill by the Lakeside and because of this the choice was obvious…… we just HAD to get into the water! Lucky for me the bride was totally up for this daunting prospect and before I could change the memory card of the camera she was wading into the lake…… maybe it was the alcohol still in the system from the actual wedding the day before …… or the fact that the dress had to go to the dry cleaners anyway…… who knows for sure….. With thanks to Mary Killen ( the floating bride) and Eimear Rea for the inspiration and dedication to the cause (My cute wedding Angel and make-up artist)…… here are the results….. enjoy.
FULL GALLERY OF IMAGES CLICK HERE
I recently shot alternative Tattoo Model Melissa Hayward for “Skin Deep’s Tattoo Vixens “” book and to try out a couple of concepts including a set called “Tokyo Royale” & “Persian Princess”, we shot at De Look Studios in Dublin ( a really nice and friendly set-up) and had the place booked for the day. I really wanted to try out various lighting set-ups and background rolls, shooting on a white & Pink Candy background with high key, low-key and single light set-ups allowing me to push the concepts in a few different areas. With us on the day was make-up artist Sara Tonin, who also did a great job with some really nice looks to complement the styling, we created some interesting images using a singular spot light with honeycomb grid, barn door & silver reflectors.
High concept fashion editorial shot for Soho Boutique in Dublin and for EVE Magazine in Northern Ireland featuring :
Model Laura Harris (winner of Elite Model Look Ireland 2010) now with Andrea Roche Model Agency.
The shoot took place on location in Lilli’s Bordello off Grafton St, Dublin. We shot in practically every room of the venue, including the Library room and main nightclub area and had 6 different outfit changes to create a new look for each, excellent make-up was produced by Michelle Anderson an Hair by Anna Curren with styling by Sebastien Castrillion.
After searching the length and breadth of the country Elite model Look Ireland found itself a representative for the world final to be held in China at the end of the Month, 16 year old Laura Harris from Dublin. Laura, who holds a striking resemblance to international model Lili Cole, was shocked and thrilled to win the final stage of the competition held in the wright venue last Friday night 3rd September.
She is now spending the next few weeks preparing for her trip to China to compete on a world stage and she stands a very good chance of achieving high at the show. I wish her the luck of the Irish, to bring the prize back home.
I first saw Laura at the Dundrum castings in Dublin and I for one recognized the potential for a striking model. When it came to creating the girls Portfolio’s Laura really shone through on the day and with a little direction her final images were the top of the group. It can be very difficult to find the whole package when it comes to high fashion modeling. You need the look, the attitude, confidence, personality and the camera has to love you! This may just be the case for our Laura………. time will tell.
Dublin Evening Herald
Paperazzi was my second high concept fashion editorial featuring reality TV star Hira Shah (Big Brother 10), and 3 male models playing the roll of press and bodyguards, it was shot on location at a underground car park in Dublin once again with a full crew of Make-up, Hair & stylist, with less post production than on the Toxic shoot but more creative lighting set-ups.
