Just a little update on my denim design work. This is pair number two. Getting better, but not quite there yet. Still need to make a bunch of changes to the fit, but my construction techniques are getting better. Once I get this mens straight/skinny-leg design finished I’m going to start working on a women’s skinny jean. Progress!
It’s been a while since I’ve posted about music worth listening to, but I guess it’s just been a while since I heard anything worth writing about. For those that enjoy a little 80’s influenced electro, here’s something you might like that you probably haven’t heard before. Gordon Voidwell of New York.
Check out the video for his single: Ivy League Circus.
There is also a good little interview with Gordon over on the Huffington Post that you can check out here.
Last night Vancouver’s Boys’co on Robson had a party to celebrate the store and it’s evolving style. People braved the Vancouver rain, and the party had a great turnout. The party featured free barbering set up at the front of the store, a Dj playing some good house music, and booze and snacks to our hearts content (so good). I had an excellent time shooting photos of all the well dressed guests, and enjoyed a few glasses of good scotch while I did it!
Here are some of my favorite shots from the night (I make no promises of photo quality…I’m still working on it).
“Look into the eyes, try to find something deeper”- Lionel Deluy
French born photographer Lionel Deluy is considered to be one of the top celebrity photographers in the world today. He has captured the images of everyone from Angelina Jolie to Ryan Gosling, and he does so in such a way that his style is distinctly recognizable. His work can be found in Elle, Vogue, GQ, and in countless other publications, billboards, album covers, and in critically acclaimed exhibitions.
I first discovered Lionel’s work through a mutual friend, though upon seeing his portfolio, it became clear that I had actually seen his work many times before. I am always fascinated by people that have honed their craft, and are always pursuing creative excellence.
Beyond Lionel’s talent and creativity, he is a genuinely nice guy, as he agreed to be interviewed for this humble fashion blog. Over the last few days, we’ve corresponded with questions and answers, and I hope this interview gives you a better idea of Lionel and his approach to photography.
So, Lionel….
What are your fondest memories of growing up in France? I had a beautiful childhood in France and I was lucky to have a beautiful family, but I do not like to look back.
Where there any people that were influential in helping you get to where you are in your career? The only person who helped me get to where I am is myself, and some influences, yes of course. French photo used to be always on the side of my bed, all my dreams used to come from this magazine.
Do you have a process with your photography, or do you try different approaches until you get what you’re looking for? I never plan anything. Just wait to have the person I am going to photograph and going with the vibe, just like a marriage, a connection, for ten minutes, or a few hours.
What projects are you currently working on? I am working on a few projects I am really excited about, but I never speak about something until it happens. I may be a little superstitions.
Who inspires you and why? My wife, because she is beautiful and full of love and believes in me everyday.
Is there anyone that you have not yet photographed that you would like the chance to get to? Yes, sure. There is always someone you want to photograph. I love interesting people and I love to have a camera in my hands.
What was your experience like on America’s Next Top Model and would you do it again? Was interesting, everyone was really nice with me. I just did British Top Model a few months ago in France. I’m always open to something new.
Were there any people that influenced your style of photography? With time, you forge your own style. Right now, no I don’t have any influences.
If you could only photograph one more subject, who would it be? Really don’t know.
It is said that you are able to capture the inner truths of your subjects. How do you achieve this? I love the connection that a camera can give you. You can grab a lot from someone in a few minutes, just need to be close and to look in the eyes, try to find something deeper.
When you first started, how did you get the opportunity to be the photographer of such famous celebrity clientele? It just came by accident, I was not looking to shoot celebrities. I moved to Los Angeles and at the time the main photographers here was mainly shooting celebrity. One day someone asked me why I was not photographing celebrity. I said I was going to try, and I loved it.
Did you take any formal schooling for photography? I never went to any kind of school. I just learned everything by myself and when I start to assist different photographers. I think it is the best way to learn, to be on the field.
What advice do you have for aspiring fashion and celebrity photographers? Never give up.
How would you compare living in California and New York to France? America is home for me now, I have been here almost 20 years. I love this country and everything about it. I love Los Angeles, and New York. It has been so long that I don’t know if I could live in France again, but I still love the country where I was born.
Looking back to when you first became a photographer, did you see yourself where you are today? I was dreaming about it. Dreaming to be a photographer, live in California and when I look back…
Do you ever get start-struck? No, but there are some people you are happy to shoot more than others.
What excites you the most about your work? About your life? How lucky that I can make a living for my family doing what I love the most, photography.
What’s the strangest thing that’s ever happened on a photo shoot? There is always an anecdote, but the strangest thing, I really don’t know. So many things happen that it doesn’t seem strange anymore. Some of them you need to keep private.
Where do you see the rest of your career taking you? You never know what is going to happen tomorrow. Try to do my best today, we will see tomorrow. I still have a long road ahead of me.
What are you most proud of? I am proud of a lot of things, I am proud why my wife turns to me and tells me I “Did really well, my love”
Lionel, thank you so much for letting me and my readers get to know you a bit better. If you’d like to see more of Lionel’s work, please jump over to his portfolio here, and you can find him on Instagram here, and Twitter here.
Finally, I also found this great short documentary about Lionel from Maker Music which is definitely worth a watch.
So stoked! The t-shirt designs from Artist/Tattooist Garret Egles are finally here, and we’re going to take a pre-order for anyone that wants one! Only $20! Get on it!!
Just leave a message on our Facebook Page if you’d like one!
On Saturday night Jill and I headed down to Gastown Tattoo Parlor to check out the art show of Shannon Cowe, Mike Paulson, Clarissa Pond, Cassandra Klassen and Jordan Pond, three of the five representing Emily Carr University of Art. As usual, on top of great artistic creations, there were lots of well dressed friends to capture on camera.
Shannon giving me the one-eye, while others admire her work.
Patrick always looks fantastic – tonight in a hat from Goorin Bros, a great matching bow tie, and a perfectly complimenting dress shirt and suspenders. The mustache always helps too.
Another great hat. He also had a sharp vest and dress shirt going on, but I dropped the ball on getting a good photo.
This girl had a great Fall look, and I loved her tights by Actual Pain clothing.
I didn’t catch her name, but I believe this is tattooist Frank Grimes ladyfriend. That dress with her pink hair is fucking adorable!
I think the top photo is Mitch’s “god dammit Will, always with the camera in my face” look. Nice shirt, hat and vest. Jeans too, actually – Mitch always seems to have good jeans.
One of the presenting artists Clarissa Pond, with our good friend Jason. Jason and I enjoy trading sewing tips.
Typical stormy night in Vancouver. Good night for a party! Lots of artwork sold, drinks were had, so I’d say the night was a great success!
All black, but so much great layering, and all really flattering. Great contrast between the heavier leather biker jacket, and the light chiffon dress. The boots are perfect, and to top it all off, the big black bow in her hair really completes the look. The whole thing says Glam-Punk to me, and I love it.
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How great is that cape?! Also, the fact that she matched her head scarf to her outfit really ties it all together. What a great, unique look. Seen on Granville.
Love the three piece look with the dress shirt, vest and jacket. The shoes add some elegant colour and contrast the grey jacket nicely. I really like this look, I could see myself wearing something similar. Seen on Water St, Gastown.
I re-started a project this week. I’ve always wanted to design and sell my own denim brand, so I got out all of my old sewing equipment and design materials, and started working on some new denim designs.
I headed down to Dress Sew on Saturday and picked up all the bits and pieces I would need, and then wandered down to Atex Designer Fabrics on Cordova and bought a small bolt of denim.
Two years ago was when I first started working on denim designs, and I hadn’t touched it again until this week. I already had some patterns that I had previously designed, but I make some adjustments to update the look a bit.
I bought enough denim to make 5 pairs of jeans, and I am going to work on the cut and esthetic as I go. Here are a few photos of the construction process.
I have all my pattern pieces transferred onto stiff poster-board, so they are easy to chalk out and transfer on the raw denim. This is so much easier than pinning the tissue paper patterns that you get in the sewing stores onto the denim and then cutting around them.
Pockets are constructed, yoke is attached to the back leg panels.
Front pockets including liners are constructed, and fly and zipper are all done. I am going to buy a double needle and attachment for my sewing machine to get a better finish on the top stitching. I have to eyeball all of the double stitching with a single needle right now.
Not quite finished product. I need to get a serger to clean up all of the inside edges, and I will be embroidering on the back pockets, or possibly screen printing a small logo. I still have a bunch of adjustments to make to create a more professional product, but it’s a good start.
I’m sure I’ll have a few more pairs to show later this week, with some upgrades and improvements!
BTW, what do you think of the name Search & Rescue?
It’s Friday night, it’s been a long week. Jill and I have a few bottles of wine going, and I’ve got a big article for the Style Butcher coming out next week, so I thought for today’s post I would put together some of my favorite looks and photos from around the web this week. So come with me on a photographic journey….
c/o Le Blog de Betty – Florals, Skinnys, Studs. Everything that’s happening right now.
“The best fashion show is on the street, always has, always will be” – Bill Cunningham
One of the greatest joys in my life is walking the streets of Vancouver and photographing the people that surprise and excite me with their fashion choices.
When I first started out shooting people on the street, the first hurdle I had to overcome was just simply getting the nerve to stop people and ask them for a photo in as few words as possible, while still quickly getting the point across that this was for the love of fashion and not my own private collection. Usually people respond well, though I am occasionally turned down by the camera shy, or maybe if they don’t speak any English, which happens occasionally, being the tourist city that we are.
I soon realized though, that when you stop someone in their tracks, and ask for a photo, you’ve taken them out of the flow of their everyday life, and the shot can look awkward and forced. I wanted more beautiful, natural photos. So I just stopped asking. This led to a whole other world of challenges and confrontations. There is something nerve wracking about chasing someone down the street to take a photo while they are in motion, and hoping that their reaction is a pleasant one. Most of the time, people seem to get the feeling that I’m a blogger, and they take it as a compliment. I absolutely love it when no words are spoken, and as soon as they have a camera pointed at them, they smile and strike a pose. I smile back, the picture is taken, and we both move along and carry on with our day.
Sometimes though, someone will stop, get angry, and tell me off for trying to photograph them. I usually just apologize, try to explain if given the chance, and just shrug it off. I have to say though, it kind of kills your confidence for the rest of the day.
This is where Bill Cunningham comes in. He has been shooting street style fashion photography for longer than I have been alive, and he must have thicker skin than most. He rides his old Schwinn bicycle through the streets of New York, looking for what’s fresh and new in fashion. I recently watch the documentary about his life “Bill Cunningham, New York” and the thing that stuck with me most was his tenacity and ability to shrug off the occasional adverse reactions that come his way. Many people know Bill in New York, and are flattered when he dashes after them to take their photo, but he still has to let the occasional verbal assault roll off his back. And he does it all with a smile. I try remember this any time things don’t go quite as planned while out shooting on the streets. If Bill can do it, so can I.
Whether you enjoy fashion and photography or not, “Bill Cunningham New York” is an incredibly interesting look into the corners of the life of one of the most creative and influential people in fashion today. I wish we could all be a little more like Bill.
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The Style Butcher started out in 2012 as a street style and fashion blog. In 2015 most of the focus was on the current projects of my luxury workwear company Search & Rescue Denim Co. Now in 2016 I am turning the focus of this blog to a sort of entrepreneurial journal. I want to chronicle the next stages of building an international fashion brand and I think writing out my experiences will help me understand a bit more what I want out of this business, and this life. Thanks for reading!
Love this beautiful true blue coat!
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