The Centrefold (Climax series)

Sometimes I do surprise myself with my ability to make things. I have been searching for so many weeks to find a few fantastic stylists to work on the project with me, and have had all round positive responses, however the general thesis was that they were all too busy running around for London Fashion Week and were reluctant to help and not give their 100% - not the best timing! However these things are set to try us, as they say, and from it I have learnt that I am quite good at making things myself, which has given the project an even more personal touch.

Alexander McQueen - 2012

The last 'Climax' shoot was a few days ago which went really well. I took a lot of inspiration from Lan Nyugen's and Alexander McQueen's designs for this shoot in terms of dress design, makeup and composition. I managed to book a fantastic published model - Chloe Jasmine Whichello - who was a real joy to work with. Her positive energy really came across in the images and were perfect for the mood of the centrefold in the book. I spent around 6 hours yesterday with my tutor/professional retoucher Chris Overend working on the Climax centre series and found it very challenging, however with his expertise, I have learnt many new techniques and skills in PhotoShop that I never thought I would be capable of achieving. The real satisfaction when finishing the series is a great feeling, and I am very excited to see it printed in the book. I am hoping to create a pull-out section in the centrefold which will comprise of four A4 pages instead of two, giving maximum impact to the image.

We created 2 edits

Edit 1 - This edit has two extra figures seen on each end of the image. I wanted the image to look chaotic and full of dynamic energy which is why I chose to include more figures. Choosing each pose was very carefully considered as it is important to show a sense of flow and to tell a story through movement and expression. I had to flip some of the images in order for the flow to I particularly love the third figure from the left as she is not instantly recognisable, prompting the eye to look closely at the series.

 Edit 2 - This is a much preferred edit as I have removed the two figures at each end to allow for more space each side. I feel that this gives the image more of a refined finish as the hands on each end seem to create an invisible border.