Monochrome and  Funky Shades with Blouse Collar over Jacket Fashionista Old Compton St/Dean St Soho W1

All photos are raw, from the street and as is, taken Thursday 30 July 2015. All shots from the hip with a Canon  DSLR and street lens (wide angle zoom). All shots high ISO at 1250 so some are pretty grainy. All unposed shots bar the model who was posing for somebody else.

Tried my damned hardest to get some colour………….. but monochrome is where it’s at!!

Blonde Model Fashionista “Think Only”?? on a Fashion Shoot Soho W1

Monochrome and Shades with a dash of Orange Oxford St W1

Monochrome, Leather and Dots Covent Garden Tube WC2

All black skintight dress and Mega Heels Piccadilly W1

Monochrome Skate Boarder Girl Soho W1

Fringe and DM’s Blonde Fashionista Carnaby St W1 (motion blur)

Painter/Decorator Fashionista?? Regent Street W1

Mini Turban and  Biker Leather Casual Fashionista Soho W1

The post The Street Style Informer. West End Late July 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.

Decided to take it out anyway for a spin and a test drive today to see if it’s a keeper just for a laugh to see what this lens can do and more importantly see how the women react to a lens the size of a house pointing in their direction?

Monochrome and stripes. Outside Selfridges Oxford St W1 Canon DSLR 300mm lens

The results were interesting to put it mildly but I wasn’t getting as many smiles as with my small dinky wide angle lens. Come to think of it didn’t get any smiles at all. Tension was definitely in the air. As soon as that camera was raised they notice even when you’re 100m down the road. Frosty stares are the result. How do they do that!

Despite the lens getting the general thumbs down and a frosty reception on the female front on the streets of London, it gets a thumbs up from me producing some nice arty blurred backgrounds (bokeh). Makes a change from the wide angle shots. Bokeh is not really my thing when shooting on the streets as what you gain in arty smoky backgrounds you lose in Street vibe. Street vibe is more important to me but these shots sure do look pretty.

Leather Biker Jacket all Black Look Regent St W1. Canon DSLR 300mm lens

This lens may get used from time to time for street style shooting but standing half mile down the road and popping a shot is not really my style, I prefer the more intimate in your face approach. The shots look more connected and I think the women prefer the cards on the table approach rather than the sly hand tactics that scream stalker alert.

Shots are from Oxford Street, Regent Street, Soho and Covent Garden taken today 21 April. Some of these are full length and others are portraits or what I call beauty shots. If these shots generate interest there will be more in the future. The lens passed the test bar some flare issues when shooting into the sun. See photos.

Meat and Smoke. China Town W1/WC2. Canon DSLR 300mm lens

Checked and Denim Covent Garden WC2. Canon DSLR 300mm lens

Shades and Stripes Covent Garden WC2. Canon DSLR 300mm lens

All black and shades. Soho W1. Canon DSLR 300mm lens

Lady Gaga? White Shades and Red. Oxford St W1. Canon DSLR 300mm lens.

Black hat and Tan Oxford St Selfridges W1. Canon DSLR 300mm lens

The post Fashionista Spotting with a new Telephoto Lens Central London appeared first on FJ Girls.

Mobile and Big Bag Fashionistas on a shopping mission in Regent Street W1  Canon DSLR

London Fashion Patrol January 2015 Part 3. Bringing you the latest street and fashion styles from the streets of London. Normal everyday women that have something going on, have their own style, are attractive and stand out from the crowd for all the right reasons.

No posed shots, all taken on the fly in Central London by pounding the streets. Bringing you the more candid look. With casual, smart, grungy and urban fashion styles all making an appearance with full length or closer portrait shots but trying to capture as much of the London Street environment that they are in as much as possible. I call it Fasharazzi..

All Black Layered Fashionista Cambridge Circus WC2  Canon DSLR

All shots in Part 3 are from the Regent Street, Oxford Street and Covent Garden and Soho areas as usual. This seems to be the hot zone. With some decent light appearing over the last couple of days it’s been a case of literally “making hay while the sun shines”

Fashionistas that appear are tourists and others are locals. All taken with a Canon DSLR and shot from the hip “streetstyle”. I call it freestyle minds eye subconscious shooting with no constraints of viewfinder or LCD screen. Put simply it’s No big black box in the way. Others call it “spray and pray” but that technique doesn’t produce consistent results like this. Good old natural shots as if I wasn’t even there. Some of the more perceptive women do clock me though especially with the DSLR but if they are neutral or give me a half or warm smile then they are here. If it’s otherwise then they are not.

Purple Hair and Pierced Nose Fashionista Oxford Street W1  Canon DSLR

Pushing the creative boundaries with fashionistas running, closer shots, two or three in one shot, juxtapositions and some pre planned shots where the lighting is a bit more cutting edge giving the photos a bit more bite.

The results of my latest endeavours below.

White Faux Fur and Chanel Bag Mega Shades Fashionista Regent St W1  Canon DSLR

Top Shop Fashionista opposite Top Shop Oxford Circus W1  Canon DSLR

Grey and Denim Booted Fashionista Bryanstone Street W1  Canon DSLR

Mega Faux Fur Fashionista running in Hanover Square W1  Canon DSLR

The post Fashion Patrol Central London January 2015 Part 3 appeared first on FJ Girls.