Cape Town - Reflections

Recent shoot in Cape town…well, West of Cape Town to be precise, in the rolling sand dunes that dot the area inland from the coast. Sometimes you get an idea in your head and for this one I just wanted to build a huge massive mirror box. 

The sand dunes are protected from an environmental perspective so shooting on them comes with a number of restrictions and safeguards to ensure nature is protected. Shifting a huge and heavy box of mirrors around also involves jumping over some rather large logistical hurdles, including using specialist sand vehicles to move around the undulating dunes.

The wind on the southern cape can be fierce, so we shot at first light before the breeze had time to pick up. I wanted to create lifestyle images with an edge. A nod to tech, a nod to fashion but most importantly just something that stopped people in their tracks. The interplay between the blue of the sky, reflected in the mirror and the blue styling palette. 

I have included a few from the final set and behind the scenes below. You can see the full lifestyle set HERE.

Award Win

Last year I was named Food Photographer of the Year for my work on candy floss sellers in India at the Pink Lady Awards. Here are just some of the over 170 articles and press pieces featuring the work. Everything from The BBC, Der Standard, TimeOut to Bored Panda. Kudos to the food awards team. Lovely to win this award, even more pleasing when I consider myself an advertising and lifestyle photographer rather than a food photographer.

Here is a link to the full set: The Candy Men

Drinks Photography

Some new drinks photography shot in sunny Cape Town. With these lifestyle images I wanted to capture some real moments of connection. With these sorts of shoots it's all about setting the stage and bringing the right mood to set so people are genuinely relaxed and having fun. You can’t fake it. We shot on a rooftop as the sun went down so we had all those lovely warm hues; sundowner, sunset colors to play with. 

The window of shooting was tight as that sun sets faster than you would have imagined. We shot big spritz glasses and used some hard shadow lines to add interest and shape. Keeping the drinks looking at their very best is a key challenge in the heat. Ice, ice and more ice.  

As a lifestyle photographer shooting drinks you can’t really ask for more than what Cape Town has to offer. 

Shokz - Headphone Lifestyle Shoot

Some new lifestyle work for headphone brand Shokz. The headphones sit outside of the ear allowing you to hear the music without shutting off all external environmental noise. Kind of neat. The client wanted a range of lifestyle photography, showcasing the product but also alluding to the transformative design features. 

We shoot at a number of location sites across London - from a disused shopping mall to the roof at Big Sky. As a lifestyle photographer I love capturing the moment so I like to shoot in a simple, nimble way; capturing those little moment in between.  

Grolsch

Here is a recent shoot for global beer brand Grolsch. Shot in London the company wanted an entire bank of images that they could use across a wide range of platforms from out of home advertising in North America to a website refresh. Keen to push the beer's association with live music we spent a huge amount of time reccying London's live music venues to find the perfect location …..and then essentially putting on a gig. Shot over two long days at two locations. As a lifestyle photographer working in advertising all the elements are controlled but it's then a matter of allowing and coaxing those genuine moments of interaction to occur.

Win

Delighted to share this press release: 

An intensely powerful portrait, The Candy Man, by UK photographer Jon Enoch, has won the overall prize of Pink Lady® Food Photographer of the Year 2023, the world’s leading celebration of the art of food photography and film.

The photograph was taken in the streets of western Mumbai near the candy floss-selling grounds of the beaches and fairs. It is part of a wider series of images of the sellers, which capture the unique ways used to display the candy goods in the hope of attracting a buyer.

“This is a magnificent picture,” says Caroline Kenyon, Founder, Pink Lady® Food Photographer of the Year. “For me, it evokes the great late 18th and early 19th century portraits of Reynolds and Gainsborough - the gaze, the full-length figure, the subject’s position in the frame. The man in the picture may have a humble way of life, touting his wares of toxically-coloured candy floss, but he himself is splendid. Dignified, confident, direct, he is anyone’s equal in a society riven with division and caste differences. This image shows us beautifully the universal truth, we are all the same.”

“I’m ecstatic to receive this award, it's a real honour to get this recognition in such a prestigious competition laden with wonderful imagery,” says Enoch. “The winning image was part of a personal project - a huge amount of time and thought went into capturing it so it's great to be recognised by such an esteemed panel of judges. Ever since I first saw the candy floss sellers I was drawn to the shapes, colours and juxtaposition of the candy and the urban environment.”

The winners of the 36 categories were announced by acclaimed chef, author and television presenter, Nadiya Hussain MBE, in an exciting Awards ceremony at BAFTA, London on Tuesday 16 May 2023. The announcement was also streamed on the competition’s YouTube channel and was watched by an audience across the globe. 

This year’s global judging panel, tasked with assessing the thousands of entries submitted from over 65 countries across the world, was chaired by legendary food photographer, David Loftus, and included: Fiona Shields, Head of Photography, Guardian News & Media, Chef Ian Kittichai, Restaurateur, Author & TV Host, Ella Ravilious, Curator, The V&A Museum, Nik Sharma, Cookbook author, Photographer, Columnist and Rein Skullerud, Senior Photographer, Photo Editor at the United Nations World Food Programme. 

The exhibition of the 2023 Finalists will be premiering at The Royal Photographic Society, one of the world’s oldest photographic societies, in Bristol. The exhibition runs from Saturday 20th May. 

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Here are a few of the wonderful bits of press coverage the win has received including from The BBC, Guardian and China Daily. I see myself as an advertising and lifestyle photographer but food is such a large part of the human experience its impossible to work as a photographer and not shoot it.  

Too Good To Go

I love working for purpose driven brands and none come with greater ambition than Too Good To Go. The company matches consumers with restaurants and grocery stores to sell unsold food.

A technology company at heart, it operates across Europe and North America to tackle the enormous issue of food waste. Up until this point a lot of stock imagery had been used, leading to a fragmented style. We shot a bespoke collection of images and video to place the consumer at the heart.

Working with their wonderful in-house team, we shot in London. Creating lifestyle photography assets with a fresh spring feel (despite shooting in London in March) to serve their consumers in a wide range of territories. 

Rollover - Lifestyle Photography - Jon Enoch

Recent photo shoot for food producer Rollover. The company sells on-the-go food, most noticeably hotdogs and burgers at a vast range of outlets across the UK - from football stadiums to garages. I was tasked with producing an image library that could be used across their marketing assets. Key to the shoot was reflecting the brand's sense of fun and authentic shared moments.

Shooting in London as a lifestyle photographer this was a great shoot to work on . I love working with brands and bringing their ideas to reality….and yes we ate hotdogs for lunch.

Dr Hannah Fry - World Gold Council - AKQA

Mathematician, author and broadcaster, Dr Hannah Fry, shot here as part of a recent commission for the World Gold Council. These stills were to accompany a wide ranging documentary series, which Fry presented, exploring the vast and various ways gold is used…from race cars to telecommunications. As a portrait photographer I love the challenge of working around film projects - utilising moments between takes to capture stills and having a highly tested lighting structure that talent can jump into at a moments notice.

Molly Renshaw - Swimming

A recent shot of olympic swimmer Molly Renshaw in action in the pool. Shot in a freezing (almost literally) unheated pool in South London just before christmas. A rather complex lighting set up to colour the water and freeze the motion. A touch shoot as in water time was very limited for fear of death by frost bite. below are also some behind the scenes images of the set up. As a sport portrait photographer i love these kind of shoot: where the technical mixes with the conceptual. Big thanks to Molly who needed to stand under the hot showers for about 40 minutes after the shoot to regain use of her fingers.

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Daniel Ricciardo - McLaren

Was lucky enough to spend the day at McLaren with Daniel Ricciardo. Shooting for new sponsors Party Casino. For anyone who follows F1, Ricciardo is exactly how you would expect him to be and how he appears on screen. As a sport portrait photographer I have shot sports stars from every discipline and Ricciardo was a joy to work with.

Huel

Been enjoying shooting for Huel of late. It's always great to work for a brand you love. Shooting lifestyle imagery for a whole host of uses; showcasing their entire product range. For those not familiar with the brand Huel is a nutritionally complete meal replacement. I have included a very small selection of some of the hundred of images I have shot for them over a few days of shooting in London. The images are predominantly lifestyle and shot as people go about their everyday lives. Below are a selection of some if the lifestyle images produced for them.

Huel shoot in Herne Hill * not my copyright

ASOS

Lovely shoot I shot over the summer for ASOS. The ASOS design team created Paralympics GB’s opening and closing ceremony looks. Our focus for the shoot was all about what it means to be *extra* and how each athlete goes the extra mile in everything that they do. As a portrait and lifestyle photographer is was great working with sporting talent Ashley Facey-Thompson, Amy Conroy, and Thomas Hamer.  

St. James Quater

Some new work shot up in Edinburgh for the newly opened St.James Quater. The 1 billion pound, 850,000 square foot development houses retail and lifestyle attractions as well as residential. The building is home to a new W Hotel which provides previously unseen views of the city. The unique swirl shape of the building providing a new shape to the famous skyline. As a lifestyle photographer it was a great fun shoot up on the high roofs - and the weather played ball too.

Lifestyle Tech - London

A recent shoot for consumer electronics brand Mobvoi showcasing their new TicWatch.

Shooting with numerous models in numbers locations across the city to capture the wide versatility and features of the watch. We shot some sports set ups as well as more everyday, out and about, life in the city concepts. A classic lifestyle shoot, we used a nimble team to work quickly maximising the end options for the client.

JBL Advertising Shoot - London & Liverpool

New work for global audio brand JBL shooting Virgil Van Dijk and Jesse Lingard of Liverpool and (currently) West Ham as well as a number of lifestyle models. The shoots took place in Liverpool and London on consecutive days. The campaign will run throughout Europe and is Virgil’s first as a global brand ambassador for the audio brand. Below are some of the multitude of assets created as well as some BTS from the shoots. As a London advertising photographer it’s always a pleasure to work with such talent.

Aston Martin

Shoot for Aston Martin Formula One. Shot is a vast East London factory space where we were tasked with heroing the new F1 teams appraisal range. Working with Driver Lance Stroll and his girlfriend Sara Pagliaroli alongside other models.

We shot in various cavernous locations within the factory setting. Incorporating nods of colour to the brand identity. We handled all aspects of production on the stills shoot. As an advertising photographer working within the sports industry it was great to incorporate more formal portraits and more candid lifestyle images on the one shoot.

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Pension Wise

New work of the UK Government’s Pension Advice Service ‘Pension Wise’. ‘The Power of an Hour ‘ campaign is to run across the UK to draw attention to the pensions advice information on offer. For most people, their pension is likely to be one of the most valuable assets they hold. It’s very important for people to make the right decision around how and when to access their pensions pots. As a London based advertising photographer its great to shoot something that with such a important message. We shot on location around a TVC produced by The Gate.

Lingard for APG

Recent shoot with Jesse Lingard shot up in Manchester. Jesse is a brand ambassador for APG and they were keen to use the time available with him to capture some key visuals and a short video piece. After he had finished training at Manchester United I shot the stills and directed the moving image piece. We looked after all aspects of the shoot production. As a sports portrait photographer it's always great to work with talent like Jesse. A few of the stills below as well as one cut of the moving aspect.

Dr Rupy Portraits - lifestyle Portraits

A recent commission for Waitrose to shoot these fun portrait images of Dr Rupy Aujl. Armed with a stack of veg and a willing participant I really enjoyed making these fun images. Shot at Dr Rupys west london creative den where he makes a lot of his recipes and lifestyle content.