It was 4 years ago when I did the Middle Kid photoshoot, the first photoshoot that I had ever done.
This photoshoot was one that was such a blessing for both me and J’rome who founder of the clothing line Middle Kid with Rochelle. The shoot was done during my time at university. This photo shoot, while not compulsory for the module that I was doing, was needed to help with the project that I had chosen, and therefore benefited me. I was in luck because at the same time that I had started my module, J’rome & Rochelle, had recently started up a clothing line and was in need of a photographer to take a few photos which could then be used on their social media pages and also their website.
This was the first time I had taking photos with a Canon camera, I did have a camera before, a Panasonic DMC-LZ20, however this was very different to the camera which I had been using at university, instead I was using a Canon 700D, EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM.
Middle Kid was a unisex clothing line that focused on urban streetwear, the setting that we had for this photoshoot was an abandoned warehouse in Digbeth, Birmingham.
I’ll be honest with you, it was a little weird being in an abandoned building, however the graffiti on all of the walls, moss covering every part of the building and litter almost everywhere, made for the perfect atmosphere. Due to some parts of the roof having huge holes in, meant that there was a great deal of light that was able come through.
There was a lot of energy from everyone involved in this photoshoot, the guys were great fun to work with and there was constant laughter throughout. What many of you won’t know is that I also did a behind the scenes video of this photo shoot to add it as part of my project. This can be found on YouTube, Middle Kid photo shoot diary, the constant moving of the camera was purposely done to make it feel more rough and raw, however, looking back at the video now, there are things I’d do differently, because I didn’t have the resources then that I do now.
There are a lot more black & colour photos in this collection than I have ever done before. In fact at the time I had never edited a photo with a black and colour effect. Naturally this made the models and the clothing they were wearing stand out more but I also felt that in certain photos it gave the background an old feel to it, contrasting with the young, new, trendy, models and clothing. While also making some of the graffiti in the pictures more dramatic and suit the urban street look.
What made this photoshoot difficult was the fact that, due to the building being abandoned, it had clear evidence that people had been using it to squat in. There were areas that we couldn’t really go into for our own safety. There was broken glass and needles on the floor. Shots that could have potentially looked great, could not be explored without putting J’rome and his friends in danger. While daring shots do make for good photos, it is important to remember the safety of the models and yourself is first and foremost. If there is however, an alternative way of safely taking photos then feel free to exercise this.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
ExpressCreativity0121 