Pure monochrome and Shades and Monochrome and colour Commercial St E1

The sun was out, shutter speeds were high, nice clear images, loads of colour and the fashionistas were out in abundance on the move and on the shop. Retro and vintage and modern cutting edge types were around so a good mixture of shots here with the patrol route including Shoreditch High St, Redchurch St (unusually blanked here) Brick Lane, Commercial St, Spitalfields Market, Bethnal Green Road including Shoreditch High St Station and The Box Park and Hanbury St + others in the E1 and E2 areas along with Curtain Road EC2 and side streets.

Monochrome and shades with mega split having a puff Shoreditch High St Station E1

All shot from the hip with a Canon DSLR and wide angle zoom lens. This article is in two parts due to the sheer number of photos taken (normally limit one page tonine or  ten photos) Click on the next page link at the bottom for more shots on the day. 15 photos in total in about 4 hours. More than the West End in the same period! Shoreditch is my baby and where it’s at. Can’t wait to come back again!

Monochrome and Pink and Platform Trainers Shoreditch High St Station E1

Vintage Anti Monochrome Fashionista Commercial St E1

Monochrome and Tats and Street Art Brick Lane E2. Model on a fashion shoot??

The Paris Francais Mono chrome look. Box Park Shoreditch E1

The Cycle Messenger Fashionista Shoreditch High St Station E1

Pastel Blues and Shades and Heels Spitafields Market/Commercial St E1

Pastel and Monochrome and shades of brown Fashionista Shoreditch High St E1

More street style photos from Shoreditch and Brick Lane

Monochrome and Beige and Afro Shoreditch High St Tube E1

Punky Hair Monochrome and Colour Spitafields Market E1

Monochrome floral print, leather and big bag. Commercial St E1

Arty Monochrome Fashionista Shot Shoreditch High St E1

Monochrome Print, Little Bag and Shades Curtain Road EC2

All Yellow and Shades Cyclist Fashionista Shoreditch High St E1

Monochrome and Blue and Monochrome Onesie Spitafields Market E1

Monochrome, Green and Blue Hair Carharrt Shopper with Shades Commercial St E1

The post Shoreditch and Brick Lane Street Style Mid Sept 2015 appeared first on FJ Girls.

Non Monochrome headband and chunky platforms Fashionista Shoreditch High St E1

Shoreditch in particular definetly even now is where it seems to be at. So much so, this area could be covered twice in a month instead of just once. I would go as far as to say it just beats Camden in the fashion stakes, although the two areas seem to have very distinct and different characters. I call it punky V vintage!

Monochrome still rocks in this cutting edge area but there are early signs of monochrome rebellion on the streets as the fashionista above is demonstrating?

All photos taken this Tuesday 11 August 2015 with the usual Canon DSLR and  street wide lens and all shots taken from the hip.

Monochrome and Big Cat Print Dress Brick Lane E2

Monochrome and Multiple Tattoos Commercial St E1

Monochrome and Dark Blue and Shades Shoreditch High St E1

Long Pigtails and Monochrome and Tan and Green Hanbury St E1

Non Monochrome, Denim and Turquoise Commercial St E1

Monochrome and Tartan Box Park Shoreditch E1/2

All black and flat cap Brick Lane E2

The post Shoreditch and Brick Lane Street Style. August 2015 appeared first on FJ Girls.

Mega Close up Multi coloured hair, monochrome and leather and Silver Retro Necklace Brick Lane E1

Last time I was down here had a cracking session with my new what I call the “fashion” lens. Did I just get lucky and that was a one off, or will it be repeated?

Took in places like Hoxton Sq, Old St, Curtain Rd and side streets, Shoreditch High St, the infamous Redchurch St, Bethnal Green Rd, Brick Lane, Hanbury St, Commercial St and back streets near Petticoat Lane and Spitalfields Market.

Red Hat and Red and Black Dress Poppies Fish and Chip Shop Fashionista Spitafields E1

This area is renowned for artists with names such as Tracey Emin, Polly Morgan and Sue Webster having either studios or studios/homes in this area. It’s also famous as a Banksy stamping ground. Used to live here myself just off Redchurch St many moons ago before the hipsters moved in. It was different then…..way different although some things are still unchanged. The infamous salt beef/bagel bar top of Brick Lane being one of them.

Monochrome and See Thru Mesh Top Mid Riff Fashionista Shoreditch High St E1

The agenda was fashionista spotting but also to get some slightly different shots what I call “slice of life” pics and trying to get something different than the monochrome look although that is easier said than done.. A mixture of full lengths, portraits and close ups or just plain characters/interesting women. In short capturing the Shoreditch VIBE as seen through my eyes.

As always I try to capture the fashionista in question and get what they are all about and also the environment they are in. Not easy when you don’t know them but get it right and it adds an extra undefinable dimension to the photo.

All photos as usual unposed and taken on the fly with a Canon DSLR and 70-200 zoom I call the “fashion” lens. No shots from the hip due to the size and focal length of the lens. Never said a word to any of these women! The results of my Shoreditch escapades below.

Monochrome and Stripes with a dash of Baby Blue Redchurch St E2

Pure White and Sneakers Shoreditch High St E1

Oriental Retro Bike Mega Wicker Basket Platform Shoes and Hat Redchurch St E2

Monochrome and Colour Splashes Hanbury St E1

Black and Blue Fashionista Spitalfields Market E1 + dogs

Monochrome, Drape and Textured Stripes Old St EC1

Monochrome Retro Cyclist Commercial St E1

Canary Yellow Hair and Floral Print Brick Lane E1

The post Shoreditch Street Style. July 2015. Photos appeared first on FJ Girls.

Red Head and Red Bow Vintage Fashionista Hanbury St E1

I call this the land of the Beards and this part of London is renowned for having it’s own sub culture. Brick Lane is chaos on Sunday but has a different vibe during the week with slightly less tourists and a bit more space to get shots when using a big zoom. This area is similar to Camden in many ways but then again Oh so different. Alternative but less of the punky.

Again the “fashion” lens delivered the goods even got a couple of smiles with a sort of “yep he’s a fashion photographer, he’s OK” sort of look in their eyes. Some cracking shots here and in sheer quality and volume absolutely light years ahead from my last visit which was more of a test run visit to see whether this area had any fashionista spotting potential.

Monochrome Print and Vape Fashionista Commercial St E1

Another mish mash of anything goes but you gotta be interesting and jump out from the crowd. I think one of these in this collection is a model. Again not a word was said and all photos are not posed or staged.

All photos Canon DSLR and 70-200mm lens dubbed the “fashion” lens.

Monochrome and coloured vertical stripes. Dray Walk E1 (model?)

Monochrome stripes with explosions of colour Redchurch St E2 (slight blur)

Blonde and Monochrome Brick Lane E2

Oriental Leather? Monochrome Brick Lane E2

Monochrome and Colour carrying ??? Commercial St E1

Monochrome and colour print plus hat and shades. Commercial St E1

Red Head and Bold Floral Print and Shades Commercial St E1 (blurred but good)

Street Art Redchurch St E2

The post Fashionista Patrol London E1 and E2. June 2015 Edition appeared first on FJ Girls.

This particular fasharazzi, fashion patrol and street style article will start with this quote:

“Street photography is like gambling, you get lucky or you get nothing” Markus Hartel Street Photographer.

How true it is!

Monochrome, shades and DM’s Upper St, Islington N1. Canon DSLR

Taken from a superb book called “Street Photography Now” featuring some of the current best street photographers out there at present that was browsed whilst at my local Waterstones the other day. An inspiration that proves that I have much to learn.

So far most of the streetstyle fashion shots have been taken in Central London in the Zone 1 tube area or in touristy areas such as Camden Market and Portobello Rd in Zone 2. These areas are relatively easy to find street fashion shots and relatively easy to get those shots because you can get lost in the crowds. There’s also lots of people with cameras so you just come across as just another tourist which is handy.

SO as yet another experimental test shot saga I thought it was time to move away from the safe haven tourist areas for a couple of days for a challenge and try the more ordinary, urban, gritty and hardcore London areas where there are few or no cameras on a weekday. Pastures new as they call it but areas with a bit more authentic character.

Platinum Blonde on a Boris Bike. Old Street Roundabout EC1. Canon DSLR

Over two days (Thurs, Fri last week) I hit the Post Code areas of N1 including Islington, Upper St, Highbury Barn, Essex Road, Angel and Chapel Market, Silicon Roundabout including Old St and Hoxton and the land of beards and fixies and the bitcoin currency that is Shoreditch taking in the tourist area of Brick Lane and the land of the banksy but not on a Sunday so the tourist factor was non existent.

In short I was shooting in residential urban areas, tech head and creative type land on the edge of the city. A lot of real Londoners here who are pretty sharp and not keen on having a camera thrust in their face. This was going to be a tough call.

I wasn’t expecting high glamour here. Confidence was initially high but I have to say I struggled on those two days like I never struggled before but managed to get more on the second day than on the first where my Oxford St aggressive tactics just were not working. Not even 1%. A change of tactics on Day 2 produced better results. I call it the softly softly approach.

Obstacles that were enountered included Police at Kings Cross, heavy police presence around Angel, a cracking shot on Upper Street of a fashionista (headline shot material) that promptly asked me to delete her photos (A First) that took the wind right out of my sails. Tons of Charity Fundraisers in the hotspot areas ruining prospective shots (you know the ones). This was clearly tear your hair out territory. It was not looking promising.

Islington is hard with lots of mums and prams during the day. 1 or 2 exceptionals amongst hundreds were spotted at the busier lunchtime period. Loads of women but not much in the head turning fashionista department. That’s during the daytime but if you went there in the evening with all the bars and restaurants on Upper Street it would be a different story. Something that will be looked into when the warmer weather arrives.

So after 2 days this is all I managed to get. Not bad considering. These test shots are a bit more wide angle showing more of the gritty street surroundings and the odd graffiti and banksy as a backdrop. It’s as much about the street as it is about style. No pretty smoked out backgrounds here.

Despite the struggles this looks to be a new stamping ground. Hackney, Dalston and London Fields is another area being considered amongst others. Real local London Zone 2 stuff with a realistic urban vibe.

Latest urban street style shots from two days of hard struggling below.

Green and Black brunette fashionista. Commercial St E1. Canon DSLR

Brown, shades and boots. Ely’s Yard off Commercial St/Brick Lane. Canon DSLR

Leather Mini Skirt and flats. Old St Roundabout EC1. Canon DSLR

Big bag brunette Pitsfield St N1. Canon DSLR

Brunette, Red tights and flats. Old St Roundabout EC1. Canon DSLR

Red head monochrome and white sneakers. Old St Roundabout EC1. Canon DSLR

Monochrome and Shades Redchurch St E2. Canon DSLR

Blonde and shades Old St EC1. Canon DSLR.

The post Fashionista Chronicle April 2015. Islington, Hoxton and Shoreditch Edition. Test shots! appeared first on FJ Girls.