I Listen To The Wind

I just completed my edit for this editorial we shot on Thursday. So as I get ready to head out this Halloween, I thought I'd take a few minutes to share some of my location images as well as an out-take from the shoot. It was crazy windy and cold on Thursday and the location was this beach on the near north side of Chicago. The area we shot at juts out into the lake, and as you know, Chicago is "The Windy City" and the reputation didn't disappoint. Combine that with some chilly temps and lets just say when we knew we got the shot, we were done. Period. Next outfit. I did however want to re-shoot the first look, but in looking back at the images, my first instinct was correct. . . . . but don't tell anyone from the shoot that I prolonged their exposure to the elements for no reason, that won't be received well, trust me. Here are a couple shots from my location scouting trip, along with a blurred out-take/accident from the first look. My camera focused on the tall grass for a split second blurring out Michelle. It won't work for the story, but I thought it was kinda cool, so here would be a good place to post it.

When In Rome

In this case it has everything to do with the cliche and even more to do with the band! The lack of recent posts is directly proportional to the amount of visitors I had this past couple weeks. My friend Crystal was in town for the past month combined with an overlapping trip by my friend Beckett which resulted in many late nights complete with our own soundtrack! As many of you know, Shazam for the iphone is like the best invention ever! And no place do I put it to better use than at Tortilla Flats which (in my opinion) has the best soundtrack of any bar/restaurant in NYC! Crystal and I had our own theme music as we walked the Highline post Tortilla Flats listening to "The Promise" by, you guessed it, When In Rome! And yes, people did think we were nuts. By the time Beckett arrived late last week to style an editorial, our playlist for our time together was packed with songs by George McCrae, Betty Wright, King Harvest and Tommy James. Thanks again Tortilla! (although you do owe me one umbrella, but I'll let it slide since our table did dominate trivia Sunday night and your tequila reserve is no doubt a little depleted as a result). Here are some pics from our NYC adventures, and I'll add some songs to my playlist below. Notice the flame in that last image. Crystal wanted a drink "on fire", what was crazy about it was not the fact that she wanted a drink "on fire", but that none of us actually saw the flame with our eyes, but when we looked at the picture I took, the camera caught it as it quickly vanished into thin air! . . . . . . what, you're not amazed? well, I'm easily amused, what can I say.

Where Has Summer Gone?

The answer? It has moved to Australia, thus beginning my attempt to secure an apartment "down under" come Jan, Feb, or March. My goal is simple. Move to Australia for 2 months. Establish good connections with Australian agencies and magazines. Soak up as much culture and sun as one can. . . . . oh, and learn how to surf in the process. I would like to use my LA template to complete this mission. My LA template consisted of "life swapping" as I swapped lives with my friend Courtney for a month where she stayed in my apt in Manhattan, and I stayed at her place in Venice Beach. Both sides came out winners in the end. She was able to go on castings here in NY and not have to stay at a cramped models apt, and I was able to live a few blocks from the beach in LA and shoot in a nice warm climate with different environments as my backdrop. So, if you are a currently living in Australia (Sydney), and are looking to establish connections either in the photography or model industry here in NYC, (because that's really the only 2 places I can probably be of service) shoot me an email and I would be happy to discuss any and all of the particulars of a possible 2 month "life swap".

Jacked

Until Tuesday, I had never been to Jack's Studio over on the west side. An amazing space at the 601 building that brought me out again Thursday night for a photo exhibition/party. I thought the views during the day were great, but at night, they couldn't have been better. I took the first photo with my iphone using the Helge feature from Camera Bag. I shot it though the window towards the Empire State building, but something cool happened, it decided to partially reflect back into the studio giving this cool inside/outside effect. The other photo was part of the photobooth set up at the studio complete with a ringlight! I tell ya, when photographers have a photobooth they go all out.

Do You Have A Passion For Fashion?

Don't worry, that title was meant to sound corny. . . . but then again saying something "sounds corny" also sounds pretty lame. . . . whatever, let's begin again. This is the first season I elected not to document ny fashion week. However, this freed up all kinds of time to take part in all the festivities that I was always too exhausted to enjoy. Like Fashions Night Out, which meant hopping from shop to shop in Soho and enjoying a drink or three among individuals like Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang and Philip Lim! Or last evenings party for Metal magazine which brought out all the beautiful and funky people from Barcelona and Madrid! Too bad my friends Aina and Pol were back in Spain, I miss those two. (By the way, look for my portrait of artist Nick Cave in the next issue of Metal!) But it wasn't all fun and games. When I wasn't "out and about" this week, I was in front of the computer for hours on-end re-touching and finalizing Laila Azhar's lookbook shoot as well as a shoot I did with Dierdre from Elite. Above you will find a few samples from that shoot. I'm starting to work a little more in B&W these days. I find I can really blow out the whites and create some nice softness. Look for more black and white images in the next few months.

Alexandra For Laila Azhar

Alex was the first girl we saw at the casting for Laila's Spring 2010 lookbook. After she left I told Laila that if Alex had grown up in my neighborhood in Chicago, an 8 yr old Karl would have had the biggest crush on her. Then proceeded to tell her the story of how when I was about 6, I had a crush on this Italian girl from my neighborhood who was about 13 I guess. When she and her friends would walk around the neighborhood I would be walking with my mom and ask my mom if she could walk about 10 feet behind me so I would look "cool" walking all by myself. A few weeks later I wound up giving her all my dad's gold cuff links because they were shiny and had jewels in them. Her mom returned them the next day. I actually saw her a few weeks ago when I was back in Chicago and you know what, I think I still have a little crush on her. . . . . but don't worry, I didn't give her any men's jewelry, I learned my lesson the first time.

Now For Some "Me" Time

Generally speaking, my blog, (or journal as I like to call it), is a way for me to force feed the internet my ideas, photos, and a little behind the lens glimpse of my day-to-day. Rarely does the opportunity present itself that someone actually petitions this information from me. But such was the case when Shut Up magazine (how ironic) asked me to share my thoughts on their Talk Tuesday section. I was honored and obliged their request here.