Was going to take the weekend off but Friday was a good day so decided to try again on Saturday to see if the lucky run would continue. I’ve gone with Laura from Russia below for the headline shot.  The Queen of the crop with Roses as a crown. She’s got it “going on” and I like her style. Her friend is just as good and is further below.

Laura from Russia. Black and shiny silver and red and lace. Golden Sq W1

Used the LFW HQ known as the BFC Show Space as the patrol base with The Brewer Street Car Park and Golden Sq with all streets surrounding and in between which seemed to be producing the goods yesterday.

On Saturday names such as Julien Macdonald, Sibling, Holly Fulton and Gareth Pugh were being showcased at the Brewer St Car Park LFW central area. Certainly enough names there to pull in the fashionistas. Could have easily photographed 50 in the 3 or  so hours I was there but in my opinion these 10 were the cream of the crop and something I wouldn’t see everyday whilst walking around the streets of London. Gone with quality rather than quantity, don’t see the point otherwise considering what I do week in week out!

Extreme Monochrome and Leather and Monochrome and Red. Brewer St Car Park W1

Criteria as usual was eye catching or something different with hair,bags and shoes along with colour usage being the predominant things being looked for. Of course beauty edges into the mix as well and sometimes can knock an average look into the stratosphere

Jamie  O’Hare of ISSA was asked “What does great style mean to you?”. The answer was

Great style is about confidence. I can see a T Shirt and jeans as being stylish as an evening dress if it is worn with conviction. I think people who understand and embrace what suits them best tend to convey the best style

Courtesy London Fashion Weekend Mag.

My interpretation of who was “stylish” on Saturday below. Some shots included are general shots whilst away from the LFW area and are the normal “from the hip” style.

Day off on Sunday, back at LFW on Monday and Tuesday

Fii of Sheffield. Monochrome and Lace and Clutch. Lexington St W1

Eva of London. Monochrome and Cream and Flats. Brewer St W1

Shiny Monochrome and Hat Soho W1. Shot from the hip

Sophie of London. Monochrome, Faux Fur and Yellow Mega Flares. Lexington St W1

Denicia from Romania. All white and Faux Fur with adash of pink. Brewer St W1

Pauline from Russia. Black and shiny silver and shades. Golden Sq W1

Monochrome and Shades of Brown. Piccadilly Circus W1. Shot from the hip

Andini of London. Lime Green Dip Dye Hair Tan and Colour. Brewer St W1

The post Top Fashionistas LFW SS16 Day 2. Arrival Photos appeared first on FJ Girls.

Sophie of London. Blonde and Cream Fashionista Golden Sq W1

This section includes full length shots and a lot more portrait and head shots and some crazy shots taken from the hip to give you the vibe and lowdown on what is happening in the Soho area.

There were two options to get these photos. Option 1 stand like a lemon outside the Brewer St Car Park with the masses and wait for fashionistas to turn up and join the scrum to get some photos with the other fasharazzi OR Option 2 pass through the area but also catch fashionistas on the fly as they approach Brewer St Car Park and no other photographers are around in that area, approach them and get the shot. As you guessed……..I chose option 2.

Wasn’t going to shoot this weekend but have the weekend off and shoot Monday and Tuesday. Thinking about going on Saturday after the good results today though. Still thinking. Hmmmmm?????

Sophie of London. Blonde and Cream Fashionista and Platform Sandals Golden Sq W1

Jill of London Shades of Blue and Shades of Brown. Lower James St W1

Rachel of Devon. Monochrome and Pastel Blue. Brewer St W1

Sheeva of Manchester. Faux Fur, Monochrome and Colour. Brewer St W1

Nina N of Scotland. Blonde and Monochrome and DM’s. Lexington St W1

Shades of Brown and Shades Brewer St W1

Sharlene of Singapore. Monochrome and colour and hat. Brewer St W1

Big Round and Blue Shades Brewer St W1

Psycherdelic purple dip hair fashionista speeeeed blurred Brewer St W1

The post Top Fashionistas LFW SS16 Day 1. Part 2 Arrival Photos appeared first on FJ Girls.

Was there from about just before ten till lunchtime when it started chucking it down so called it a day as it didn’t look like it was going to improve.

Mamin of Barcelona. Monochrome and dip dye hair and shades Brewer St W1

The Felder Felder show was broadcast live on screen in Golden Square. Had a quick watch for ten minutes. Black and Pink featured strongly throughout that show.

A drastic cut down on which fashionistas are being photographed this year. You’ve got to be good and bringing something different to the table that I don’t see on the streets of London that I can photograph any day of the week. Either that or there is something exceptional going on in the looks department or both.

Fashionistas Name and where they are from included with the photo where available. All shots shot with the camera to the eye as in normal with a couple from the hip just to see the difference in quality that it makes to a picture when you can line everything up, take your time and get them posing just right.

Mamin of Barcelona. Monochrome and dip dye hair and shades Brewer St W1

Lucy Monochrome and Colour, Shades and Pink Hair Shaftesbury Avenue W1

Marsha of London. Shades of Red and Pink and Hat and Shades. Brewer St Car Park Soho

Lisa from China. Monochrome and shades of brown and Red. Brewer St W1

Urban Pigtails Soho W1 rom the hip

Monochrome “This is not a Moschino Toy” Fashionista Brewer St W1

Glasgow, Lithuania and ? Fashionistas Brewer St W1

Caroline of Manchester. Shades of Brown and Red Paisley  and Hat. Brewer St W1

The post Top Fashionistas LFW SS16 Day 1. Arrival Photos appeared first on FJ Girls.

Was looking for a punky type in Camden Town for the headline shot,found her in the end in touristville Piccadilly Circus of all places.

Punky Fashionista rockin Piercings, Dog Collar, Cats Eye Bag. Monochrome with bite. Piccadilly Circus/Shaftesbury Avenue

California Print Monochrome and Hat, Gt Marlborough St W1

A very quiet day at Camden Market with the August school holidays and the bank holiday a week or so away. Reasonably busy with tourists but a bit thin on the ground when it came to Fashionistas and Punky types. Managed to get just 2  which is unusual!

The West End is also VERY VERY quiet in fashionista terms out there at present. With the school holidays in full swing and the August Bank Holiday fast approaching combined with a distinct lack of sunshine for August, I think a lot are on holiday elsewhere. Loads of women on the streets but it’s obvious they are predominantly tourists which makes it a bit of a fashionista spotting challenge. I can normally find a dozen in a few hours in the West End, that’s pretty much guaranteed. Had to go back a second day just to find half that! That’s the August effect.

Oriental Monochrome Ripped, Beanie Hat Oxford St W1

Will probably be the same next week.

Results below all Canon DSLR with Wide angle zoom “street” lens and shot from the hip with one shot taken shot backwards whilst walking and looking  forward

The Russia at War Fashionista Monochrome and Yellow Bag Piccadilly Circus W1

Monochrome,Denim, Phonebox Top and matching Shades and Gladiator Sandals Marble Arch W1

Monochrome, Ripped, Shades and Hat Oxford St W1

Oriental, Pleated Skirt, Butterfly Brooch Camden Tube NW1

Cyber Shades Camden Market NW1

Multicoloured floral leggings and white Oxford St Selfridges W1

The post Fashionista Spotting Camden Market and West End. Mid August 2015 appeared first on FJ Girls.

Kat from Eastenders?? Monochrome Shawl Fashionista and Gold Sandals Charing Cross Station/ The Strand

Had a good session down here on my first visit. Was that just a lucky day or could it be repeated?

With the school holidays officially started this is the peak holiday season. There must have been thousands upon thousands of tourists, so quantity wasn’t the problem but finding some decent Fashionistas was proving a bit of an issue getting beyond the jeans and leggings brigade.

Tried to get beyond the monochrome look as well but this is firmly entrenched in the London streets and is showing no signs of waning yet. This website is all about what is happening on the streets in fashion terms, so you’ve just got to go with the flow……….so monochrome it is!

All photos taken with Canon DSLR on Wednesday 29 July with my street lens (wide angle zoom). All shots from the hip/knee and shot at ISO 1250. It was a gloomy day so the photos are a bit grainy. Every single one of these women knew what I was up to and as per usual I never said a word. I got to hand it to them they clock me these days in a nano second!

Red hat and leatherMonochrome spots  fashionista. London Eye, Southbank SE1

Non Monochrome! Air Stewardess or Shrek Adventure Fashionista London Eye SE1

Monochrome with a dash of red and Non Monochrome dash of Faux Fur and Extreme Ripped Denim Tourist Fashionistas Westminster Bridge SE1

Denim,  Tartan, Piercings, DM’s and Tattoos and Monochrome Pure Black Boyfriend Southbank SE1

Monochrome, Drape and Fishnets + Big Buckle Boots and Shades Westminster Bridge SE1

Turquoise Hair and Monochrome London Eye, Westminster Bridge SE1

Monochrome and Cream Oriental Fashionista St Martins in the Fields WC2

Leather and Lemon Dress and Trainers London Eye SE1

Monochrome and Flats Fashionista Victoria St SW1

The post Fashion Patrol Victoria and Westminster. July 2015 appeared first on FJ Girls.

Roller Girl on a mission Granary Square/Kings Cross N1

After the trial run with the new 70-200 zoom lens in the West End with head scratchingly good results and a sort of thumbs up from the women on the London streets, it was a return to the harder streets of London N1 to see what this lens dubbed my “fashion” lens can really do. If it can crack it here it can crack it anywhere in London.

My last visit to Islington was an epic disaster but not one for giving up easily I went with the view of getting 1 or 2 miserable looking shots at best. But the “fashion” lens delivered the goods and shocked yet again although Islington is a hard nut to crack. Would not have got the vast majority of these shots with the small wide angle lens. No way no how.

Extreme Read Head Denim Dress Kings Cross. Flip Flop Bottom Left?

Interesting was the agenda for the day rather than drop dead gorgeous looks. A real mish mash of photos here, extreme red heads, roller girls, Orientals, hoops and purple hair and more. Ended up walking in the middle of a fashion shoot or something near Hoxton Sq and rattled a couple of shots off although as you can imagine they were not impressed. Result!

Tried to capture as much of the urban environment in each frame as possible but when shooting a long lens it has a tendency to compress and blur things out in the background. That’s just the nature of the lens.

All photos Canon DSLR taken by yours truly. Not a word was said and all shots unposed and not staged which is the signature look of FJ Girls. Real, raw natural shots as it happens.

Purple Hair and Hoops, Laceless sneakers and Rainbow Socks Kings Cross N1

Smoking All Black Oriental Granary Square/Kings Cross N1

Models on a Fashion Shoot? near Hoxton Square N1

Monochrome with hints of brown. Shoreditch High St walking past Tesco’s

Monochrome and Shades Vertical Stripes Old Street Roundabout (Silicon) EC1

Monochrome print and shades and flats. Old Street Roundabout (Silicon) EC1

Monochrome Brunette  and heels Executive look Essex Road Junction with Upper Street, Islington N1

The post Fashionista Patrol London N1. June 2015 Edition appeared first on FJ Girls.

Monochrome and Shades Bruton Street, Mayfair, W1

FJ GIRLS NEWS
Some interesting developments at FJ Girls. Acquired yet another new lens, this one is a telephoto zoom of the 70-200 order. Again the size of a house, it’s bigger than my 300mm telephoto which was a big thumbs down with the London Fashionistas. Women did NOT like that one at all, although I still have the lens it will be used more for celebrity work. I got the message loud and clear!

This zoom lens is bought more for celebrity work and it got christened this week by taking photos of Lady Gaga leaving her hotel. Thought I’d take it out for a test spin in a fasharazzi capacity thinking you’re going to struggle with this  just like with the 300mm lens the size of a semi detached but WORSE you’re going to have a rough day. It’s going to be daggers, venomous looks and “stalker alert” looks in my direction even if I am 100m down the road.

How wrong I was? The approach I used is what I call the cards on the table approach. I’d just stand in front of then 20m down the road raise this huge camera set up to my eye (as in photo above) , make a meal of focusing it, some would see me, even look thinking “what the h#ll” but here’s the strange thing NO daggers. Not one? This was on Wednesday. Went home thinking this can’t be happening let’s try again Thursday you just got lucky. Same results again on Thursday as the photo above proves taken on that day! It has to be said quite a few are looking at their mobiles but a lot are not.

All Black Brunette and Shades Oxford Street W1

Much scratching of the head and analysing why this was the case the only conclusion that could be reached is.
1. I was not so far down the road that I was in the stalker category, I was visible and making it pretty obvious what I was doing. But I wasn’t so close that I was in their face.
2. The size of the lens screamed PRO and maybe they were thinking “this guy is a fashion photographer taking street style shots or shooting for a magazine or newspaper or something” and they behaved completely different as if they are on the catwalk but acting naturally pretending there’s not some bloke standing in front of them with a lens the size of the Park Lane Hilton.

VERDICT: I will be using this zoom lens in the future, the women seem to sort of give it the thumbs up. But the wide angle lens I normally use stays it’s better for more up close and intimate shots and shooting from the hip which gives an unusual angle. This zoom lens gives a good look but the downside is it’s  heavy and the shots just look a little detached but it has to be said some of these shots wouldn’t look out of place in Vogue or similar. Will use both lenses mixing them up from shoot to shoot. The wide angle lens gives a more urban street photography look whereas the zoom lens gives a more fashion catalogue/magazine look. My dinky wide angle I now call my “Street” lens and my massive tele zoom I call my “fashion” lens. Both  have their uses.

Brunette Shades and Monochrome with colour and shades Oxford Street W1

Totally bizarre. Results below. I’ll let the photos do the talking. Please note I’m new to this lens, some shots are sharper than others!

Model on a Fashion Shoot Covent Garden Piazza WC2

Big Black Hat, shades, snaekers and multicoloured Marble Arch W1

Blonde Shades and Monochrome stripes. Oxford Street W1

Extreme Lada Gaga Fashionista? Charing Cross Road WC2

Purple Hair and Leather Biker Jacket Mobile Phone Analysis Covent Garden Piazza WC2

Shades and Green Hyde Park London W2

Purple Streaked Hair and Monochrome. Old Compton Street W1

Blonde and Neutral Heels Reflection Hanover Square W1

The post The Fasharazzi Photo News June 2015. West End Edition Part 2 appeared first on FJ Girls.

Shades and Tattoos Inverness Street Camden Market NW1

The Camden Street Style Special. The June 2015 edition. The plan was to hit Camden Town on Thursday and Friday, shoot over 2 days but with the weather looking unpredictable on Friday, that day was abandoned so the result is just a few shots from Thursday.

Shades and Abstract Camden High Street NW1

You’ve got to be in a creative mood when you go to Camden and you have to immerse yourself into it’s vibe otherwise you come away with shots from the outside looking in instead of “shots from the inside”.

A quick half hour walk around and not much was happening in fashionista terms as it was getting busy with tourists in their tourist uniform in abundance.. Desperately needed some inspiration.

Shades Street Art Camden Town NW1

Then out of nowhere saw this street art (above) painted on the side of a house. Literally the size of a house. . Shades my man try Shades it screamed!!!!. Shades and head shots it is with the emphasis on sunglasses, funky hairstyles and hats shot landscape style to capture a bit more of the urban environment. Of course with a dash of the regular full length shots in portrait style to add a bit of variety.

An Alice in Wonderland tourist style last shot (they are there everyday) to finish the proceedings. This collection is Part 1. Will be heading back to do a Part 2 later this month.

NB in the true spirit of street photography all photos are as is, as in unposed moments. Not a word was said on my part to any of these women.

Finished this 3 or so hours photo session by sitting down on the street with a growing crowd listening to a busker that was incredibly good at Camden Lock.

All shots Canon DSLR and wide angle prime lens.

Cut off shorts Camden Market NW1

Hatty Camden Market NW1

Punky Blonde Camden Market NW1

London Baseball Hat and Dungarees . Camden High Street NW1

The Smiths, Big Boots and Shades Monochrome. Camden Tube NW1

Big Hair Camden Market NW1

Checked and shades Camden Lock NW1

Classy shades and monochrome Camden High Street NW1

Selfie Shades and Baseball Hat Camden Tube NW1

Shades and buses. Camden Hight Street NW1

Shades and Monochrome. Camden Market NW1

The post The Camden Street Style Special. June 2015 Edition appeared first on FJ Girls.

This is the slightly weirder and arty farty part. Headline shot for me is this picture taken at a pedestrian crossing outside Harrods. Saw this girl with a yellow top and psycherdelic leggings that looked possibly Brazilian earlier thinking there’s your headline girl but she was on the other side of the Brompton Road, not an easy road to run across. Damn

Yellow, Black and Heavy Print Leggings. Brompton Road near Harrods SW3. Canon DSLR

Luckily saw her again an hour later as I was just about packing up for the day and dived in and grabbed a manic all or nothing shot but with the camera in landscape view not portrait. Result she’s eyes down, she’s not full length, it’s slightly blurred, it’s a bit manic looking, but there’s just something gritty about this shot I like. I call this my revelation or eureka moment shot. It’s not your ordinary somebody walking down the road style photo. It’s a confused jumble of people and steet furniture but within that confusion the girl in the yellow top is definitely the focal point amongst all that chaos. It’s a street shot, you can really feel and smell the street here to quote a Bruce Gilden line. Could be more shots like this in the future.

Further fashionista fasharazzi full length photos along with some experimental shots which I call “fashion bits” taken in Sloane St at Jimmy Choo and also some bizarre shots that are “photographer errors” or bloopers which are a result of shooting from the hip which seems to produce more natural shots but of course without the camera to your eye you really are half guessing what’s in the frame.

Monochrome Sloane Square SW3. Canon DSLR from the knee

When you get it wrong the results can sometimes be hilarious as above and are interesting photos in their own right. Shooting from the knee is a new technique I’m using which seems to produce some startling results with an unusual view point although again trying to compose a shot this way is challenging to put it mildly. The alternative is to practically lie down on the street in front of these women to get the same angle of shot which as you can imagine is going to look just a bit bizarre and will probably have them running in the other direction screaming “nutter”

Disaster shots I normally delete but a couple have been included and appear below. They are too good to miss!

Headphones and Shades and Boots Fashionista Draycott Place SW3. Canon DSLR shot from the hip

Mega Heels South Kensington Tube. Canon DSLR

Blonde, Shades, Monochrome and Neutral. Sloane Street SW1. Canon DSLR shot from the knee

Blonde Faux Fur? or Crushed Velvet? and Flats. Kings Road SW3. Canon DSLR shot from the knee

Black Faux Fur Gilet Close Up Bromptom Road SW3. Canon DSLR shot from the hip

Cycling Fashionista Sloane St SW1

Blonde Shades, Tan and Monochrome with Neutral heels. Canon DSLR shot from the hip

Shades and Cara. Brompton Rd SW3

Monochrome shades and flats motion blurred. Harrods SW3. Canon DSLR shot from the knee

Monochrome Jimmy Choo Shoes Close Up Jimmy Choo Store Sloane St SW1. Canon DSLR

Green Jimmy Choo Shoes Sloane Street Store SW1. Canon DSLR

The post The Street Fashion Times Knightsbridge Edition. May 2015 Part 2 appeared first on FJ Girls.

This is the Kensington & Chelsea and Knightsbridge edition. Posh and swanky fashionistas. Covering the areas of South Kensington, Knightsbridge including the Brompton Road and Sloane St and the Harrods area plus an added bonus of some shots taken on the all NEW for FJ Girls, the Kings Road in Chelsea which proved pretty productive. This could become a regular now the weather is finally changing.

Faux Fur and Shades and  Monochrome Leggings Kings Road SW3. Canon DSLR

This lady above grabs the headline spotted on the Kings Road SW3. She was quite happy to play up for the camera. i never said a word!

Flats, faux fur gilets, shades, hats, pastels, monochrome, flats, blondes, brunettes, bags, denim and much more.

Included a vast array of women here and their responses to me just stopping right in front of them and making a big deal out of taking their photo. Some frowns, some smiles and some the usual London indifference. These make for interesting viewing alone.

Generally the reactions were positive although one cracker did tell me in no uncertain terms to “F@ck Off” which was a bit of a shock on the Kings Road in Chelsea. Is she here? You bet! Not saying which one though!

All White Brunette on the Brompton Road SW3. Canon DSLR

Still haven’t been slapped yet but trust me it’s on the cards sometime in the future. Or maybe a quick whack over the head with a large heavy lethal handbag.

All photos as per usual are unposed (really hate posed shots with cheesy grins), natual, candid and of the moment. Usual criteria applies to appear on this website. Did they catch my eye 100m down the road, stand out from the crowd and most importantly did they have “SOMETHING GOING ON?”. Maybe they just gave me a nice smile. Either way that’s a snap from me and an appearance at FJ Girls. Must have seen hundreds of also rans that day, so to be here you have to be something special. All shots as far as I can remember were camera to the eye as in viewfinder shots and none shot from the hip!

Blue Shades and Monochrome Kings Rd SW3. Canon DSLR

Nice Smile Shades and Sandals South Kensington Tube SW7. Canon DSLR

Monochrome and Green Bag Brompton Rd SW3. Canon DSLR

Eyes Down but smiling Bow and Print and pearls? Brompton Rd SW3. Canon DSLR

Monochrome and pleated skirt and white shades Sloane St SW3. Canon DSLR

The Black Hat Gang Kings Rd SW3. Canon DSLR

Faded Denim and Baby Blue Kings Rd SW3. Canon DSLR

Pigtails and bold print and Shades Brompton Rd SW3. Canon DSLR

The post The Fashion Express. Kensington, Chelsea and Knightsbridge Edition appeared first on FJ Girls.