The fashion industry and by association, modeling have been widely criticised for their lack of diversity. I’ve discussed the inclusion of more diversity around height and body shapes, especially among some prominent high-street retailers. However, people from other backgrounds and ethnicities remain underrepresented.
Bella was born in Portugal but has spent most of her life, in Norwich. I’d spotted her a while back and had been keen to work with her, but opportunity eluded us, for one reason and another. Bella knew a model I had worked with recently and was initially drawn to me, based upon her experience shooting with me. She liked my work and so we wasted no time comparing diaries.
Bella began modelling for her friend’s GCSE photography course and it mushroomed from there. We had discussed a few themes and settled on a mix of casual, dressy and lingerie.
Given the contexts and themes, I prefer models to select locations where they are most familiar and comfortable. Some consideration and self-awareness are obviously key when conducting shoots in public spaces. However, for the most part, remaining respectful, while being calm, confident, and owning your space means passers-by stay at a respectful distance.
We covered a decent amount of ground and are pleased with the results. I shot the majority of these with my faithful Sony A6000 and 33mm 1.4 lens, but I reached for my Fuji XT100 and 50mm prime for others. Cameras have attitudes in my experience and the Fuji XT100 and X100T tend to suit a less frenetic pace and reward with pin-sharp clarity, whether it's portraiture or street photography. Unfortunately, the SD card has been corrupted. Thankfully, I had only taken ten frames and hope to recover these.
