Campervan, Sunny Manchester & Failure

Reblogged from PSHIKOTRA Photography Blog:

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So 3 weeks ago I returned from travels ( ah-mazing times were had ). Its taken a while to find my feet again and settling back into the UK life has been. well, challenging! I must admit I already am itching to jump on a plane and jet away.

At the end of 2010 – I set myself the challenge of ‘travel travel and do some more travel’.

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Revisiting some of the shoots from this year

A hummer, cakes and a deathhawk

Reblogged from PSHIKOTRA Photography Blog:

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Yesterday I delivered a styled photoshoot – in the nitty gritty streets of Manchester.

I have seen plenty of love shoots with happy faces and bright colours and all lovey dovey aspects of it. My camper shoot here is a fine example. That’s what plenty of people associate with love. But what about the dark side? Am I wrong in thinking people are scared of love?

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Revisiting some of the shoots from this year so far

Album artwork. Faith.

Tags

albums, bands, burning man, dr seuss, EP, location shoots, LP, music, music photography, natural light photography, pshikotra, pshikotra photo, rubys, studio, the rubys

A quote I came across today.

Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

This quote couldn’t have been more close to the truth. You’ll read that and it will mean different thing to you.

I came back from travelling in December of last year. I’d quit my day job at Apple which was pretty stable. I left with a bag with the basics. Came back with a bag with my life in it from the last 10 months.

I had a sense of what I wanted to do. No, I figured out what I wanted to do. A clear goal.

How do I get there though? I’m still figuring that out. The last few months have been a whirl wind – ups and downs. And plenty of obstacles. Heck I aint ever had as many obstacles thrown at me in such a short space of time. Work related obstacles and personal life.

I have a goal. I don’t know how I will get there. It’s trial and error for me at the moment – a massive leap and a massive learning curve. But the journey has started. I’ve taken the first step. That’s most important to move forward.

It’s easy to lose sight of the goal though sometimes. We are only human after all. But then something happens and it smacks you in the face and you WAKE UP and smell it – This is what happened this past weekend.

‘Limelight Parasite’ from The Rubys

The Rubys dropped their first album ‘Limelight Parasite’. The shots from the location shoot back in January, the shots from the studio covering the last 8/9 weeks, their finally down physically in front of me. THIS for me is a huge achievement. And it’s one of the first steps. It couldn’t have come at a better time. Seeing this,  was pretty over whelming.

Be sure to have a listen / download / buy the album over at Rubys Bandcamp - They have done an outstanding job and its just the beginning for the guys. Show your support you music lovers!

If you have taken your first step – career wise, personal, whatever area. You have made the hardest / biggest decision. When you lose sight, look at how far you have come and keep on going. Don’t give up on your dreams.

Have a scout at this video Oh the places you’ll go.

Your on your way.

Happy monday

Project Rubys, Future Perfect Festival & Limelight Parasite

Tags

bands, concert photography, future perfect, future perfect festival, lighting, limelight parasite, live music, music, photography, portraits, pshikotra, pshikotra photo, the rubys

So for those of you who have been following me know I have been working with The Rubys for the past few months.

It’s been a GREAT opportunity & I have developed as a photographer ( i feel ) massively. It’s given me the chance to experiment and find my own style of shooting and documenting visually. It’s been fantastic to see music making from a whole different point of view too. As a music lover – I’ve been to so many gigs and shows and brought heaps of albums. But to actually be there and see it first hand was just amazing. SO much hard work, dedication and time – Kudos to these guys and other artists out there.

I have come away with tonne of images and the guys have a visual journal of their journey from pre-production right through to their very first album launch. Keep your eyes peeled in the coming months as we have plans in the pipeline and I’m super excited to see what’s next. I’ll be doing a blog post real soon showing the journey from pre-production which started on in March!

#projectrubys has been my baby for the last few months & I would like to say a massive THANK YOU to Dave, Barry, Tat, Mike, Lee & Phil aka THE RUBYS for the opportunity. Thank you for being patient & I hope that the visual journal is all that you guys hoped for and MORE.

Their album titled ‘Limelight Parasite’ is being launched this Saturday 19th May & there’s an album launch taking place at The Ruby Lounge here in Manchester.

Head on over to their website by clicking here. You can see them live over the next few months before they head on over state side at the back end of this year.

It’s going to be exciting to see where the guys end up – their on the way up no doubt about it and I wish them all the success in the world!

The guys played Future Perfect Festival here in Manchester this past weekend. I was there to capture their set through a lens. The festival helps raise money for a great cause – Christie’s Cancer Hospital – You can find out more about the festival here.

Enjoy!

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They’re people. Like You and I.

Tags

canon, photography, pshikotra, pshikotraphoto, streets, tokyo

They’re people. Like You and I.

Rehana & Khurram

Tags

bridal, bride, cakes, canon, manchester photography, manchester wedding, photography, pshikotra, pshikotraphoto, wedding, wedding photography

At the back end of last year I booked my first wedding. It was a referral from a good friend of mine ( thanks Clare!)

The wedding came round quicker than I expected it to – it took place on the 22nd of April here in Manchester. Boy was I nervous.

Let me tell you. Gig photography is what I am use to. Wedding photography is a whole new thing!

It was great to be a part of Rehana & Khurram’s big day. The traditional ceremony had already taken place and so this was a reception which took place soon after. Thanks to the Akhtar’s for booking me for the big day – It’s my first wedding and I’m super happy that you guys are happy with the results. So very thankful for the opportunity!

I have heaps of stuff I have taken from my first wedding – things I would change and things I would / wouldn’t do. I’ll save that for another post.

Here’s some shots from the day

 

Project NYC

Tags

fashion, portraits, editorial, pshikotra, pshikotraphoto, cannon, fantasy, reality, projectnyc, avatar, nyc, new york city, twitter

I’ve been working on a project for a while. As per the blog post title…I’ve tagged it as Project NYC. #projectnyc on twitter.

I was out in NYC for 6 days. The week was insane and every obstacle I could think of was thrown my way. Thankfully, the girls I went with – LOVE YOU LOTS – kept me sane. Just about.

Project NYC was completed. I can’t give too much away just yet. However I am eager to get it out to people over the next couple of months. So do keep checking back or give me a follow if it looks of interest to you. Hashtag #projectnyc and user handle on twitter is @pshikotraphoto

Here’s a shot to let you in on it a little.

Reality VS Fantasy

Backstage at the Manchester Arena

Tags

art, bands, i <3 mcr, live music, m.e.n arena, manchester arena, manchester evening news arena, manchester music, manchester photography, music, photography, pshikotra, pshikotraphoto, striplight butterflies

At the back end of last year I submitted an entry to a competition- it was titled I <3 MCR. It was in in conjunction with SMG Europe and Manchester Arena. I received an email in December whilst sat in a hostel in Tokyo, telling me my shot had made it through. I was pretty ecstatic about it – Manchester Arena is a biggie for me – I’ve seen some of my fave artists play live there whilst growing up.

The guys held a unveiling event in April – the photographers were invited in for the event to see the pieces up in the dressing rooms at the arena. Didn’t know till the night but my shot had been put up along with one other in THE dressing room. The biggest swooshiest of them all. Stoked!  Few days later an article was published in the newspaper.

Definitely a highlight for me so far.

Here’s some photos…. excuse the quality we had sipped too much wine

Swooshiest of them all

Definitely the swooshiest!

Yours truly with my piece

The yellow star with the purple dot by it – ‘Star Dressing Room’ – That’s my shot right there. STOKED is an understatement!

Shot was taken at one of my first gigs – if not my first gig i shot at. Thanks Striplight Butterflies & Tom with your shoes!

 

 

Catching up & Zavvi

Tags

live music, manchester photography, pshikotra, music, manchester music, the dunwells, zavvi, bands, hmv, ritz, blog, cannon

Seems I have lost track of time. Last post was posted Sunday the 1st of April. It’s now May the 7th. The last few weeks have been a massive blur – I’m catching up with things and getting back to it all. My lovely followers – Apologies when your inbox is bombarded with updates of new posts!

First off. I posted a while ago some shots from The Dunwells live at HMV Ritz in Manchester – You can see them here . They made it on to Zavvi’s blog where the guys album was reviewed. You can take a look at the review by clicking here.

Thanks Zavvi & The Dunwells!

The Dunwells live @ HMV RItz in Manchester – Their album ‘Blind Sighted Faith’ is out right now. Check it out!

Daystar Live @ HMV Ritz 29/03/2012

Tags

band photography, daystar, given to sound, giventosound, hmv ritz, live gigs, live music, manchester music, manchester music photography, simon monaghan, the rifles

I had the opportunity to work with Daystar again this past week. They were performing live at Manchester HMV Ritz supporting The Rifles. The last gig I worked with them at was Dry Bar in Manchester. ( Great little hidden gem down Oldham Street, you should check it out if your around ) This time round it was from soundcheck through till the first 4 songs of the show.

The guys are lovely to work with and the goal of the night was to make Simon look gorgeous. Did it work?

Be sure to check them out over at http://www.daystarband.com/ if you haven’t already.

There’s an interview with the lovely frontman, Simon Monaghan over at http://giventosound.com/2012/02/24/daystar-in-demand/ so go and have a peek!

P.S I don’t generally post B&W and then coloured versions – However – I have posted a few colours too for you lot to feast your eyes on this time.