Pussycat Dolls Perform at 02 Arena

I've been in Istanbul for a few days, which is why there's been a gap posting items. I'll try and add some general photos from the trip when I get a chance.
First job back was photographing The Pussycat Dolls at the 02 Arena, which went well. The lighting was all over the place - rapidly changing between being very bright and dark, which made metering tricky, but I adapted my settings where need be and was pleased at my set. Nicole Scherzinger, Lewis Hamilton's girlfriend, was the obvious source of attention and I spent a lot of our allotted time getting strong solo images of her.






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Camilla, Katie & Finley

A busy day today with three jobs all over town. I braved the rain to photograph Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall leading a charity dog walk in Green Park before travelling to east London for Katie Melua's performance at the O2 Arena. It was then back to Camden to meet some friends for a night at Koko, where Finley Quaye was headlining. He certainly lived up to his reputation by being a bit out it, but even during his ramshackle time on stage there were were still plenty of glimpses of the great talent and he was when he sang songs of his debut album 'Maverick A Strike'.

Bodyworlds, Trafalgar Square & The Streets

The Bodyworlds exhibition, 'Body Worlds & The Mirror of Time' was both amazing to witness and photograph. The man behind it, Gunther von Hagens, is no stranger controversy but I found his latest and biggest exhibit, which shows the body living through time – at its most radiant and as it changes, grows, matures, peaks and finally wanes - compelling and totally different to anything I've seen before. To think these are real bodies takes some getting used to as they look more like wax works, but the show as a whole shows a lot - not just about how our bodies function and age, but also about life in general.






Later that evening I had a busy schedule as firstly I clambered up in blustery and rainy conditions to the roof the National Gallery on Leicester Square to photograph an outdoor screening as part of the BFI London Film Festival.
I was taken up to the roof by security man who'd come out of retirement to continue his 20-year career at the National Gallery. He was a real gentleman, but it took him an age to get me into position on the roof through a host of reasons (lift not working, picking up the wrong keys, rambling conversations), by which time I was already late for my next job of photographing The Streets at the Roundhouse. I'd have begun to lose my temper if he hadn't been so a kind, aimable guy. I quickly got the shots from the roof of the outdoor crowd braving the rain to watch 'High Treason' on the huge screen before rushing back down to get more shots from ground level.




I made it with absolutley no time to spare to The Streets headlining the second night of the Electric Proms, so barely had time to set up my camera before Mike Skinner and his boys hit the stage. I still got some good results. Sometimes I think it's an advantage to have to start shooting with no preparation or thought about how you're going to photograph a subject. You just react to the situation and shoot from instinct.

Queen with Paul Rogers Play The O2 Arena

If I were to asked which band or artist I'd like to go back in time to photograph, Queen would certainly feature very high on my list. Freddie Mercury was one of the most iconic and spellbinding singers to photograph of all time, but sadly the Queen of the new millennium, with former Free lead man Paul Rogers fronting the band, cannot match the band in their pomp of the 70s and 80s (apart from Brian May's hair which remains the same as it has since the 70s).
Sure, Rogers can certainly belt out a tune, but he is a long way from matching Freddie in terms of exuberance and individuality. Perhaps that was the point when they handpicked Rogers, knowing that no-one could match Freddie. Some of the reviews suggested this seemed like a glamours tribute band to Queen and it's not far from the truth.
Of course the fans loved hearing some of their favourite songs again and I did really enjoyed shooting the show. I got some cracking photos, with the light being up to the standard you'd expect of the O2 Arena, and it was good to get some strong images of such a recognisable guitarist as Brian May.

Stevie Wonder Plays The O2 Arena

60 seconds. A single minute to shoot the legend that is Stevie Wonder - by far the shortest amount of time I've had to shoot an artist. Even Madonna gave us three songs.
To be fair I was quite grateful for the minute after missing out on photographing on his first night here yesterday, due to having a series of misfortunes.
Having had the advantage of seeing the photos from other photographers of the show, it became clear they couldn't get a clear shot at him at the piano, so we spoke to Stevie's brother, who was briefing the photographs and he arranged for us to get a higher vantage point to shoot from to capture him at the piano. 60 seconds actually proved enough time (if you can get a clear shot, it doesn't need much time to get some decent frames), but it was vital we got him at the piano, so in some ways it worked in my favor missing the opening night's show.