Shoprite has been kindly donating to various organizations through a competition program. The winners receive Shoprite goodies ranging from bedding to electronics. We went to these organizations to see them using the donations and provided the photos back to Shoprite. The donations certainly do provide a positive impact in the many lives that rely on support from external sources.

This is a late entry but better that than never. About a month back, we were asked to do a fashion shoot for Candice. She owns the “Rock La Belle” fashion label and hosted her 3rd fashion show at the Bowls Club in Bedfordview. Yes, a juxposition of the old Colonial sport of Lawn Balls with the young trendy African fashion leaves a good smile on my face. The 3rd fashion show showcased Candice’s latest work placed in an a theme showcasing “trendy with a touch of sprinkles”.

I got to finally meet the winner of the Miss India Gauteng and Her name is Ayushi Chhabra. She also took part in the Miss India SA final and came in a close second. I got it touch with her and planned a shoot on the weekend. I started hunting for various locations and Sasank pointed out the Centurion Golf Estates. It turned out to be the perfect place to do the shoot for her. A simple plan really, doing the shoot with a white dress and then a white sari using the magnificent backdrops of the estate.

The shoot was done by Sasank and I using two slightly different methods:

Me: I used the zoom lens for variation with the external flash for light fill. The depth of field (DOF) was kept high (usually at 4 and then at 8 ) to have more of the background in focus with her. This also allowed for ultra-sharp focus to be possible. I used a polarizer filter to get more crisp colour as well.  I did not use the flash in all the shots where the natural fill light is sufficient.

Sasank: Used the fixed 50mm ultra-wide prime without flash to capture the natural ambience. This had a softer tonal effect and and provided the dreamier look. This had the best effect at close-up focus.

We used a gold reflector to add further light to add detail in the shadows.

This shoot came about when I had an idea of just doing a portfolio at the Emmerentia Dam in Johannesburg. This dam is at the Johannesburg Botanical Gardens and it was in ideal place to try out portfolio photography. I asked a friend, Ruby (Rubia Manuel) to do this using a fancy dress, a ball gown if you will. Unfortunately a ball gown was not available on short notice but none the less she took the effort, brought a fancy dress and did her hair up so beautifully as well! She brought a bubble maker, just to add to the fun. Good going Ruby! I won’t blame her if she uses this for her “Shaadi” proposals

I experimented with some colour filtering in these shots to somewhat match the dry grass we experienced at the gardens. It is winter after all, and thus we made full use of the dryness. Thanks to Emily and Smija for helping with the reflector lighting and the dogs! Here’s some of the photos from the shoot.

A shoot that I personally loved about a singer who also studies foreign relations. A singer named Sihle. His demeanour was of a person who is laid back and articulate. Thus a proper setting would be one of class and glamour.  In this one, the shoot was done in in a nifty cafe called Tribeca in Brooklyn Square. The setting inside was brilliant and made for a shoot with great ambience. The lighting was key to this one and tried a little variety with colour and black and white. It was pretty dark but the 5D Mark II camera with a wide aperture lens certainly helped me here and allowed me to be creative with low light glamour work. Two fantastic models joined us in this shoot, Portia and Sukena. The people were natural in their posing and certainly made my job easy. One only hopes his music is politically correct!

A Wedding Anniversary shoot that took place Saturday night in St George Hotel and Conference Centre in Irene. Rudi and Sylvia were celebrating their 15th wedding anniversary in style. They were eagerly waiting in the car for all the guests to arrive before they showed themselves. I then saw Sylvia for the first time walking up to the hall in a red dress and it was quite stunning. Always wanted to take photos of beautiful gowns and here’s the chance to take good ones. The wedding anniversary was a reaffirmation of their wedding vows and their lasting love. As it turn outs, the pastor was late for the event and in his own words, “I had to drive here at an ungodly speed”. That was funny indeed and it set the mood for a laid back celebration. As a surprise to me, Yvonne Chaka Chaka was a guest there too.

This is quite a late entry but I’ve finally managed to put up the post for the birthday we did on the 1st of May. This was a good shoot but getting there turned out to be the problem. The party was in a plot on the Hartebeespoort Dam road. We mistook this party being held at the dam but in fact, 15 minutes from Midrand. As it turns out, this plot was on the road to the dam but that’s pretty vague I guess. Luckily, we only drove 30 min extra, so no time was lost.

The Party was a fancy affair and it celebrated another 40th birthday, this time it was Slyvia. It was hosted at a conference centre which she owned and it had a Roman them all around. A formal party with a touch of pink was the order of the night. While snapping I couldn’t believe that Sylvia had achieved so much and Marjorie mentioned that’s the age when a woman get’s so sexually active! Many people offered to help with the problem to say the least Here are some snaps from the birthday.

I was called upon to do this shoot on Sunday night just 2 hours before it began. I called Sasank and luckily he was available too. We went to an estate called Irene Farm Village. I initially thought it was a little girl’s birthday. But it turns out it was a lady who turned 40. But then again, it was indeed a little girl’s birthday. To her, life was beginning at 40. The party had so many well dressed high heels. She was definitely an important person. Important to someone. It was a great shoot all in all and managed to get the gist of the whole party. Here are some photos from that shoot. The birthday girl in question is the one in feathers around her neck.