It’s always lovely working with Monica Galletti - even if it is a shoot at the end of a full day of filming, at the back end of a ‘red eye’ flight. She’s a true pro that always delivers. This shoot - a commercial shoot for Singleton Whisky - allowed me to step into the film set and shoot her in the surroundings that had already been used for the moving imagery. More from Monica and her collaboration with Singleton to come.
Shot for Bridge Studios/Singleton Whisky
This Anna Jones shoot took place about a year ago, but I never got around to posting it before now. As we’re in January, all struggling through the New Years resolution to get a little healthier and help the environment, I thought there would be no better person to start the year off with than Anna Jones. As far as I am concerned, Anna has written the bible of vegetarian cooking “A Modern Way to Eat”, a book she has followed with her “One Pot, Pan, Planet”. The latter is a book that does not only encourage vegetarian cooking but also how we can cook in a more environmentally friendly way. This shoot was to support an OFM article about Anna Jones and her work as one of UK’s most cherished vegetarian cook book writers.
Shot for OFM
It is always a pleasure getting to work with the team from Cook Magazine in Italy. We have been on many trips and photographed many of the world’s best chefs together. However, this time I was commissioned to photograph the team behind the magazine having Christmas dinner. The dinner consisted of a meal that each member of the magazine associated with Christmas.
For this shoot I arrived in Milan late on the Sunday, Monday morning, bright and early, we took over a section of the exclusive Ginori Chinaware store and got to work dressing the Christmas table. A full team of set designers, flower arrangers, hair and makeup and food stylists were there to help create this feast.
Everyone sat down and I started to photograph. I wanted to suggest that they all raised their glasses and said ‘cheers’ - and I got some blank expressions back. I repeated myself a couple of times before I realised that they all thought I was saying ‘cheese’. The look of disappointment, ‘What has this pandemic done to the photographer - reverting to the good old classic cheese phrase?!’ A look of relief came across everyone’s faces when they realised that I was just trying to get everyone to raise their glasses. Glasses were raised and laughter washed over the uncomfortable quiet caused by the one minute confusion.
A large group shot, 6 individual portraits and 6 plates later - I jumped in the taxi and headed for the airport, back to London….
Shot for Cook Magazine, Corriere Della Sera
Clare Smyth is one of Britain’s best chefs. Her restaurant “Core by Clare Smyth” in Notting Hill has three Michelin Stars and is one of London’s most sought after restaurants. She has been named the World’s Best Female Chef by the World’s 50 Best Restaurant, been the Good Food Guide’s ‘National Chef of the Year’, She got a perfect score by the Good Food Guide. She’s won the Chef Award and she was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire - to mention a few of her achievements. Clare is basically “Da Bomb!”
This shoot was a cover shoot for Observer Food Monthly Magazine. A real pleasure working with her and her restaurant.
Shot for Observer Food Monthly Magazine
First time I worked with Rav was for a mothers-day shoot. I was commissioned to photograph her, her mum and her grandma in one shot. When they turned up I did not only meet very nice, fun and friendly Rav, but her mum and grandma were great characters too. Such a great trio! I have to admit that there was a slight language barrier between Rav’s grandma and me - but somehow the humour and a sense of understanding each other was definitely there.
So - it was with great pleasure that I received a commission to photograph the trio again. This time to coincide with Rav’s new book release - as well as the celebration of light day, Diwali. Rav had also brought some friends over to help enhance the feeling of festivity.
In order to give an impression of us celebrating Diwali - I wanted to create a dark and atmospheric room with candles and food decoration. I was sent props to use and the shoot was to take place in Rav’s place. I was given 2 hours to setup and shoot, but Rav was happy to extend the time a little when I got there. 2 hours was tight, but especially as I got there to see a 3 meter diameter glass dome above the room we were shooting in, and it was a bright sunny day. One thing is to expose the daylight away with flash, but I also needed to bring some atmosphere out with the candles. I took what blankets I had, ripped off the paper backdrop and got ready to cover as much of the glass dome as I could. However - the glass dome was 6 meters above me so the only way to get to it was to climb through a tiny window, in the top end of Rav’s bedroom window, to get to the roof. I am already not a very flexible with my almost 2 meter height, seeing me climb through that window was a sight to behold. (I never knew I could get my knee behind my ears - a move I had to perfect to get out.). I covered what I could of the window and got on with setting up the grand Diwali celebration table with the props I had. We managed to create a setting that had some of the intended atmosphere. Rav’s friends and family were not only lovely to work with, but managed to look and act relaxed and festive.
Rav comes across as a nice and friendly person when on TV. Having met Rav on several occasions now, I can truly vouch for her being the friendly, fun, and a sparkly, kind person. Having met her friends and especially her family, also gives a depth to understanding who Rav is, and she is exactly as you would hope from seeing her on TV.
I hope to work with Rav again, and if her mum and grandma is there too then that’s a-ok with me. Maybe next time we’ll get them all posing as Charlie’s Angels. I can especially see Rav’s grandma Biji getting into that…
Shot for Waitrose Food Magazine
I have too admit that the introduction to this trip to Padua didn’t bode well for an amazing meal. We rocked up to a roadside hotel on the side of a semi industrial district of Padua, Sarmeola di Rubano, at about 11pm. The hotel, only a few hundred meters from our final goal and objective of the trip, the acclaimed restaurant Le Calandre. The hotel had closed and we had to call and wake up the staff to come and let us in. There we were met with a hotel that felt like Miami Vice on a budget. I eventually got to my room quietly hoping that the Le Calandre, a couple of hundred meters down the road, would be considerably better.
When I first saw the restaurant from the outside it didn’t look like we were up for much of an improvement. The restaurant entrance and windows looked good, but the building looked more like a mix between a South of France building estate and an industrial warehouse. However, as soon as we walked into the bistro that is in front of the restaurant itself, we realised we were somewhere special. Le Calandre restaurant is run by the two brothers Massimiliano and Raffaele Alajmo. Max (Massimiliano) is the chef and took the restaurant in 1992 and took it from one to two Michelin stars in 1996, making Max the youngest ever chef to get two Michelin stars at the age of 22. At the age of 28 Max gained the restaurant its third Michelin star, making him the youngest ever chef to get that accolade. The restaurant has maintained its three Michelin stars ever since and Chef Alajmo has been given the nickname “Il Mozart dei fornelli” (The Mozart of the stoves).
The restaurant is a family business run by the two brothers Max and Raf. The adjoining bistro is run by their sister Laura. The restaurants were previously run by their parents Erminio Alajmo and Rita Chimetto. The family now run several of Italian and international restaurants as well as having a bakery section that supplies food to external shops, bistros, restaurants and cafes.
So - when a chef like Max, receives me with open arms and insists that it is a true pleasure to be photographed by me, then it is a true sign of his humility and generosity. We did not only get to eat the taster menu at Le Calandre, which was exceptional! - but we were also invited to dine in the Bistro and their new restaurant on St Mark’s Square. For the latter we were transported on a wooden speedboat, not unlike what you see in a James Bond Movie.
The restaurants run by the Alajmo family do not only provide excellent food, but also an experience that makes you smile and laugh, makes you excited and stimulate all your senses. So - to call Max the Mozart of the stoves may be an understatement.
Shot for Cook Magazine
Just over 2 years ago I got a call from a man who called himself Gavin Ambani. He said that he was a big fan of Honey and Smoke, and the founders and main chefs, Itamar and Sarit had recommended me as a photographer. He claimed to be a part of the wealthy and influential Indian Ambani family and was looking for a photographer to take some portraits of himself, in a few selected restaurants and with a few selected chefs. He was the man behind the instagram page ‘Purebytes’ and was making himself out to be an influencer in the British and American food industry.
His initial email didn’t make much sense to me. He wanted to commission me to have some pictures on his instagram page? I said that it was not a job for me, but he suggested to come to near my studio, and buy me a coffee to discuss this further. I agreed. He said he wanted to have several of portraits and I could just name my price.
I therefore gave him a quote that would make it worth my while. He immediately agreed and we kicked off with two shoots with only a couple of days between them. One was done at Honey and Smoke and the other one at Xu Teahouse and Restaurant in Soho, London. Gavin arranged for the shoots to take place and I came up with the concepts of the shoots after having been given a few key points that he wanted to come across. The first shoot at Honey and Smoke was to show how they are a symbol of breaking down cultural barriers. Gavin wanted to be a part of this as he said he felt that the Honey and Smoke team were like a family to him. (I have recently realised that this was a feeling that was not reciprocated). I came up with the idea of having a large table and people breaking bread. The large table was to represent religions and culture, and the bread was to represent the breaking down of barriers and making peace. To make it playful and give a sign of family, I thought of the idea of pouring flour and water on Gavin.
The second shoot was meant to deal with the issue that Gavin is gay and was bullied when he was young. He said that tea was what gave him comfort when he returned home from school. His mum would always serve him a cup of tea and make him feel at ease. He also said that the instagram posts and success was a way for him to gain his parents recognition: a way for them to become proud of what he has achieved. I therefore suggested rainbow coloured tea streams to be poured into his cup, creating the colourful symbolism of being gay. Another shot I did was him floating mid air with a cup of tea, making the tea into something that allows him to escape the real world and find comfort.
Time and effort was put into these shoots. I also had expenses. “Gavin” also tried to commission me for a 3rd shoot, but after discussing the ideas for this third shoot, I said I needed to get paid for what I had already done first. This started a process of him stalling and delaying payment. He talked of, and sent emails from his “aunt” based in California. He promised several of times to pay me but never did. The excuses boarded on ridicules. I had my suspicions then that Gavin Ambani might not be who he said he was. One part of me thought that his name might not be Gavin Ambani, and he was not a part of the Indian Ambani family that he had claimed to be. I google searched Gavin Ambani, and although there were many images of the Ambani family, “Gavin Ambani” was never present. I called Itamar at Honey and Smoke once to ask if he was able to get his name from the bank card he pays with when going there to eat. But I was told that this was not possible. When I explained to Itamar why I asked, Itamar was furious with “Gavin”. Itamar, (without me asking him to) contacted Gavin and asked him to pay me. (Gavin said - although this may be completely untrue - that Itamar had called him a lot and shouted at him to pay.) “Gavin” was then furious with me for breaching a ‘confidentiality agreement’ that should supposedly have been between him and me. (Anyone who knows me knows that I keep any bad experiences of shoots to myself at all times, even without an agreement in place.) He said he was close to committing suicide due to this experience, blaming me. I had lost my patience with Gavin and had to leave it all for a while as it was making my blood boil.
I started to think of reporting him, but soon figured that any law enforcement would just brush this off as insignificant and ask me to go to small claims court. I considered taking him to small claims court, but having done this before I knew that this could be expensive and would be stressful. In return, if his name was not Gavin Ambani, he could just slip away and I would end up with more frustration and expenses. 10 months after he commissioned me I then contacted him again with a last desperate attempt to get my money. I said I was in touch with a journalist and we were going to write an article about my experience of dealing with him. The images I had taken of him would serve as supporting images. He then asked me to give him 3 weeks to get the money together. I never heard back from him again.
I never received any money from him. I left it, and considered it to be a loss of income and expenses. But in October 2020 I get a call from an American journalist called Josh Dean. Together with another journalist, Vanessa, they have created a podcast called “Chameleon: Hollywood Con Queen”. The podcast is now a 10 part series uncovering a con artist who has conned people in the Hollywood film industry since 2011. It is revealed that this con artist has managed to make people believe that he is a multiple of characters; woman, man, American, English, Indian, Indonesian, Chinese and the list goes on. He has been a film producer, production assistant, screen writer, actor, director and more. As Josh and Vanessa slowly expose this character, it becomes clear that he has also been an influencer in the UK, fooling people in the hotel and restaurant industry. I was contacted as they told me that this man was the man I knew as Gavin Ambani, and they wanted to hear my experience of dealing with him in order to help expose him.
The investigative journalism of Josh and Vanessa makes an incredibly good listen and I recommend you all to check it out. This has also made it into a big story in Vanity Fair where my images of Gavin Ambani, a.k.a Hargobind Tahliramani were used. He is now arrested in teh UK and awaiting extradition to the FBI in USA.
https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2020/11/how-we-unmasked-the-hollywood-con-queen-suspect
Published in Vanity Fair
Last time I went to Moscow I was about 16 years old. A very different place, but also a very different experience. Back then I was young, on a trip with other international students and youngsters. This time I was on a trip for the Italian food magazine Cook, Corrier Della Sera to photograph the twin chefs behind the restaurant Twin Garden. Last time I probably ate crisps and cheap sandwiches, this time I ate exclusive Michelin star food and crabs with champagne.
The idea and process of traveling to Moscow is more intimidating and different than actually being there. Apart from a taxi service on the airport with drivers aggressively approaching you, trying to trick you into paying extortionate prices, (which can remind a little of traveling to a country that relies on tourism,) apart from the blatantly apparent class difference, and apart from the size of the buildings, Moscow actually reminded me a little of Norway. It was a cold December week, but as there was no snow, it was dark most of the time. People tend to wear similar outfits to what we wear in Norway - practical navy, grey and black winter clothes. Although the architecture was grander than in Oslo - it had the same colouring and texture.
We were well taken care of in Moscow by the team behind Twin Gardens. The Michelin star restaurant (19th best in the The World's 50 Best Restaurants awards) served up vegetarian taster menus (a first in Moscow?!) with wines made from Mushrooms, tomatoes, beetroot to mention a few. Although I have to admit that the wine is not the type I would enjoy on its own whilst watching a long film, the small tasters of it served with accompanying meals - worked perfectly. Oh - and the tomatoes! Grown locally on their farm Twin Farm - they were so tasty they even made the Italians give an impressive nod.
Impressed by the restaurant in Moscow, we had a second day where they took us to their restaurant on the outskirts of the city. In the middle of a Luxury shopping mall - (and by luxury I meant LUXURY Russian style,) was the twin brothers Ivan and Sergey Berezutskiy’s second restaurant Crab and Wine. This restaurant serves only crabs and wine/champagne as indicated in the name. Here they had a large crab aquarium in the restaurant (as well as several filled aquariums with crabs in the basement). The aquarium in the restaurant was probably around 2m tall and 8 meters wide. Here the guests could get a PS4 remote to control a claw, and pick their own crab using the remote (as if out of a James Bond villain scene in a James Bond film). We were served 7 different types of crabs, on three tables pulled together to fit them all, and champagne to accompany. An experience you’ll find hard to replicate.
The chefs Ivan and Sergey were identical twins by looks, but were very different in behaviour. Sergey was the more introvert, softly spoken and didn’t speak much English, and Ivan was the opposite. (That Sergey also had the flue when we were there made it easier to know who was who when I spoke to them - not always easy when you don’t know them well). They were extremely hospitable and introduced us to the modern and traditional Russia through food. As many surprises as expectations were met.
Shot for Cook
