For the second time in as many months, CHRIS FLOYD shoots GARY LINEKER, this time for a wonderful commission for NEW STATESMAN.
Lineker, the man who “seems to live in the Daily Mail’s head,” was photographed at his home in south-west London, in front of a huge wall-mounted section of an artist’s paint spattered studio floor that he had bought from a condemned building. His rescue dog Filbert dozed at his feet.
The NEW STATESMAN commission CHRIS FLOYD to shoot BILL GATES.
With an exceptional ability to swiftly engage and direct his sitters, Chris captured these striking and compelling portraits within the confines of a 5-minute sitting with one of the most famous, wealthy and philanthropic individuals on the planet! #billandmelindagatesfoundation.
Such fabulous work Chris and huge thanks to the NEW STATESMAN for this wonderful commission 🙌.
Please scroll down for Chris’s somewhat breath-taking review of the shoot! 👇
“The shoot is due to start at 5.55pm. I have 8 minutes to get a cover and an opener. By 5.45 we are ready. Time to test the lighting. Tom turns off the room lights. Ten seconds later they come back on again. Damn, there must be a motion sensor in here. The room lights are as powerful as our photographic lighting. We try several more times but the same thing happens. We will have to trust our judgement that we have the power relationship between the four lights right.
Now it’s 5.57. No matter what, he is leaving at 6.03pm. At 5.58 Bill Gates and New Statesman editor Jason Cowley emerge from the interview. Jason enthusiastically bigs me up to Bill, tells him I’m great….quick. Being quick is the ultimate compliment in this landscape.
The adrenal state at this point is off the chart. I dread to think what my blood pressure is at.
I had been told in advance to not try and engage him in conversation: ‘Don’t even bother.’
I open with, ‘I’ve been told to not even try and engage you in conversation.’
He does not reply.
I begin to direct him. Being free of having to talk meaningfully is liberating. Simple directions. Lean forward, lean back, turn this way, move that hand etc. When photographing people who wear glasses you’ve got to pay big attention to the danger of reflections. You’re managing so many variables and challenges and trying to communicate with the subject AND trying to get a portrait that’s good enough for a cover.
We begin. A few seconds later I turn to one of his people and ask, ‘Can you give me a two minute warning when we’ve got that much time left?’
‘Sure.’
She then looks down at her phone, ‘Oh…actually you only have one minute left.’
In my head, I’m screaming at myself to get something from him that displays a hint of character or individuality.
She is counting me down. ‘Twenty seconds.’
With 15 seconds left I exhort him to ‘Give us a wave before you go, Bill!’
His face lights up into a warm and playful chuckle. His hand comes up to do an almost cartoonishly over the top wave goodbye. Then he is up and gone.
Tom looks at the metadata on the images and declares:
‘Four minutes fifty seconds. 103 frames.’”
MEET THE MAKERS 🙌
PHIL FISK shot this lovely series for OBSERVER Food focussing on "the artisans who help make eating out magical".
Beautiful lighting and sensitive portraits as always, captured on location with ROB WOOD c/o Music Concierge, ceramicist SKYE COREWIJN and tanner JACK MILLINGTON of BILLY TANNERY.
IT’S A WRAP!
Thrilled to share these delightful winter warmers captured by KELLIE FRENCH for the GUARDIAN “Winter Is Coming” Special.
Huge thanks to all the team including stylist SAM DEAMAN, and to HERDWEAR for huge piles of cosy woollens (field to knit within 150 miles and all plant dyed 🌱💚).
🙌🔥❄️🙌❄️🔥🙌
ETX commissioned JOSEPH FORD to shoot a campaign for ADP / PARIS AIRPORT GROUP, shot on location over several days at Charles de Gaulle, Orly and Le Bourget airports.
Joseph as always brings colour, style and a sense of playfulness to this wonderful shot!
CHRIS FLOYD shot this wonderful series of portraits for ESQUIRE focussing on GARY LINEKER and his co-founders / hosts from the GOALHANGER / “THE REST IS…” podcast series.
GOALHANGER has become “the number one (and number two, and number five, and number nine and number 12) name in British podcasts”.. which is a considerable accolade..!
Huge thanks to all our team and to Esquire for the fabulous commission 🙌. Please scroll down to see the full series.
CHRIS FLOYD recently photographed a certain “bear of little brain” in his studio, commissioned by the good folks at ESQUIRE.
PADDINGTON was due to impart some of his duffel coat expertise upon the winter issue... He was an absolute delight to work with, however his enthusiasm for marmalade sandwiches did get a little out of hand…
HUGE thanks to Esquire for art direction and the wonderful commission, and to all our lovely team, with a special shout to Framestore for bringing a touch of ursine magic 🐻✨
Beautiful portraits from PHIL FISK’s recent shoot for OBSERVER with actor HARRIET WALTER.
Star of stage and screen, she has had roles in shows ranging from Succession and Ted Lasso to Killing Eve and on stage is one of few female actors to play both a king and queen of England.
Harriet has now also published a book entitled “She Speaks! What Shakespeare’s Women Might Have Said”.
CHRIS FLOYD captures the spirit and stories of the tailoring companies of Savile Row, in this lovely commission for DUTCH FINANCIAL DAILY.
The doors of Anderson & Sheppard, Huntsman, and Banshee, were opened and Chris was welcomed, “with such warmth and bottomless pots of tea, as well as the occasional sip of something stronger”.
In Chris’s words, “My favourite little artefact (last picture): From Anderson & Sheppard’s ledgers, Marlene Dietrich’s 1937 measurements and order for a man’s suit. Notice that in the column on the left the customer is asked to write who they were referred by. In Ms Dietrich’s case the referrer was Douglas Fairbanks Jr.”
The second in a series of a short films by PHIL FISK entitled INSIDE OUT, showing the perspective of people’s inner lives on one side of the window and that of the outside world on the other. The films are deliberately shot in portrait format to fully frame the window.
ANNIAH is a young aspiring actor, who Phil found through a local theatre group - this was her first time acting on camera.
Thanks also to Martin at The Lemonade Factory and Vic Twyman for props and set dressing 🏏!
Introducing a series of a short films by PHIL FISK entitled INSIDE OUT, showing the perspective of people’s inner lives on one side of the window and that of the outside world on the other. The films are deliberately shot in portrait format to fully frame the window.
The first features TINA, Phil’s friend and a podcaster who talks a lot about mental health, so this vignette is in harmony with how she lives her life.
Thanks also to Martin at The Lemonade Factory, Vic Twyman for props and set dressing and the amazing make skills of Corrine Robinson for Tina’s extra sparkle ✨!
CHRIS FLOYD recently captured these wonderful portraits of SIR MARK CAVENDISH KBE for MEN'S HEALTH.
In the words of his yellow-jersey-wearing pal, Olympic gold medallist Sir Bradley Wiggins, 'This fella is the GOAT.' The British cyclist made history in his final Tour de France this year, with a record-breaking 35 stage wins.
In Chris’s words.. “The man gives it everything, no matter what he’s asked to do. We wanted to do one final shot at the end: the old long exposure light painting trick with a torch. Mark offered to draw a man on a bicycle and despite several acceptable attempts in the first few goes, he insisted on carrying on, believing that he could do a better one. So great to work with someone who’s willing and wants to give to the process.”
CHRIS FLOYD recently captured these striking, iconic portraits of British actor RUPERT EVERETT for YOU Magazine. Styling by Joanne M Kennedy.
‘I’m like a bicycle without brake pads now. I’m careering down the hill and I’m putting on the brakes and nothing’s happening. The older you get, the more shrill and anxious you become. You become more fearful about everything.’
First glimpse of a stunning new commission captured by PHIL FISK for SALT THINKING for a worldwide campaign for a blood cancer treatment. Shot over 2 days with 3 models, we created a contemporary, positive visual language for the product launch. Colour and gradations all caught in camera to ensure perfect synch with the moving image sequences.
We are really proud of this beautiful body of work 🙌.
Huge thanks to ALL our wonderful team including stylist Vic Twyman, DOP / editor Adrian Wolfson and Ela Calin for her awesome retouching.
And also to Perma Collective for another fabulous, low impact production. (They also helped us to visualise the emissions generated by the shoot, which worked out at just 6% of the industry average.)
Phil Fisk shot these gorgeous portraits of "celebrated musician and all-round creative powerhouse" Neneh Cherry for Observer, describing her as "a whirlwind of energy and good vibes that infected the whole studio". Phil is "still reeling from the hugs"!
Neneh's memoir “A Thousand Threads” is out now.
Huge thanks to Observer for the commission and fabulous styling - and to hair and makeup artists Shamara Roper and Hila Karmand 💫
"The secret service asked to see my footage. I left the same day"...
The Observer commissioned Phil Fisk to capture these compelling portraits of documentary-maker Ibrahim Nash'at, who was embedded with the Taliban after US forces fled Kabul in 2021, whilst creating his fly-on-the-wall documentary, Hollywoodgate.
Described as “a darkly comic, damning insight into the regime", this astonishing documentary has been a hit at film festivals - featuring scenes of the Taliban exploring some of the “$7bn worth of equipment left behind in Afghanistan when the US made its hasty departure … everything from tactical fighter jets and M16 rifles, to a fully equipped gym and a fridge loaded with Jägermeister and Johnnie Walker Red Label.”
As always, Phil captures thoughtful and beautifully poignant portraits of his sitter.
In the words of Ibrahim, "The power of the camera I’m holding is as strong as the weapon they hold in their hands, maybe even much stronger."
KELLIE FRENCH beautifully captures the experience of #anhedonia aka inertia, joylessness, or generally feeling a bit flat... for GUARDIAN.
CHRIS FLOYD shot 23 year old Welsh rugby winger turned American Football receiver LOUIS REES-ZAMMIT in his home town of Penarth for the new issue of MEN'S HEALTH.
LRZ recently made his pre-season debut for the Kansas City Chiefs in a game against Jacksonville Jaguars. Good luck to him in his future #NFL career.
Congratulations Chris and team - such a great series of portraits 🙌
Phil Fisk captures gorgeous summery tones in this recent commission for OBSERVER featuring chefs SARIT PACKER and ITAMAR SRULOVICH (aka HONEY & Co.) judging picnic foods, food journalist / restaurateur RAVINDER BHOGAL tasting ice-creams, and sommelier HONEY SPENCER rating rosés. Whilst chef/author/activist/TV presenter Ravneet Gill "rates offbeat crisp flavours, from haggis to oyster and vinegar"... 🦪.
Sunshine styling by Vic Twyman 🌞🙌.
Delighted to share these portraits of Italian film director/producer LUCA GUADAGNINO (Call Me By Your Name, A Bigger Splash and the recently released Challengers) - captured a little while back by PHIL FISK for OBSERVER.
