Final Post for 2007

I've just completed a two day mission through the city of Johannesburg and through Gauteng province for a Thnkyvrymch (A company I work with occasionally) pitch for the re-branding of the province.

Below is one of the pics taken on a platform in Park Station in Braamfontein Johannesburg.

I hope whoever gets to see this before the new year has a great one.

C

True Love Babe Mzansi Flavaro Shoot

Below is my first full Fashion Editorial done with True Love Babe. It is styled by one of my favorite young stylists in JHB, Khaya Sibiya. This guys gonna be a rockstar one day. Hope you like it.

C

Black Coffee win the South African Fashion awards

Yesterday Black Coffee was shocked to win the True Love South African fashion awards at Park Station. This is the highest acclaim in the Fashion Industry. I have posted some backstage photography that I did at the rehearsal the day before the awards. C

Alexandra Township

On Saturday the 24th of November I went to take some images in Alexandra Township. I was taken to specific places of historical and current value. I was shooting for the title sequence of a new documentary pilot which has been shot in Alex called Alex Tonship. It was an enlightening experience and opened my eyes to the fact that Alex is so close to other areas in a total different reality. It is also a over populated area in need of desperate development.

A Soccer game outside the mens hostels in Alex.

Kids playing cricket

Revlon towels hanging in block of flats in Alex.

A house and bussines in Alex, there are no walls around properties in the townships center.

Another shot of the inside of someones property in Alex.

Chickens and dogs are a huge part of the community in Alex and in general in South African township society, you find them everywhere.

A portrait of an old man who was born and bred in Alexandra Township.

3 regular sites in Alex, a hearse, a women selling mealies and a general dealer.

The back stoep of an original house in the Alex community. The people in Alex say that the new RDP houses are very poorly constructed and the old Apartheid ones are much stronger.

The original movie cinema in Alex that played cry of a beloved country and was bombed shortly after. The original owner Mr. Mohammed stills owns the cinema and rebuilt it with his family.

The orginal projectionist who still runs the cinema, he has worked all around the world and is one of the best at what he does.

Night of 1000 Drawings Images (2007)

I thought I'd put the images that I hung and shot for the Night Of 1000 Drawings exhibition this year. The first shot is of a man called Connie that lives in downtown Johannesburg with about 50 other people in an abandoned mechanics shop, he is sitting on his make shift bed. The second is of a anonymous man that I met who Paballo helped when he fell in a fire and burnt himself really badly, he is sitting on the pavement near where he sleeps. The third is of man named John who lives in the inner city, he is an elderly man that Dave knows very well and has built up a relationship with for many years.

The exhibition was a great success and I enjoyed the event immensely.

Chris

Shots Magazine (UK)

I recently shot 2 shoots for the UK based Shots magazine. It is a magazine mainly targeted at the commercials industry. I did one shoot with a director from Velocity films called Jeana Theron, she was also a Cover Option for the magazine. The Other shoot was with Paul Warner, the Creative Director from Metropolitan Republic. Both Shoots where super fun and it was great getting to shoot in the middle of Hillbrow for Jeana's shoot and to orchestrate grannies for Pauls.

I have taken Jeana's shots off the page for now, they will be put back on shortly after publication.

Check out Shots at http://www.shots.net

C

The Sovereign Academy

The Sovereign Academy are known for their awesome parties, the last one been the amazing Halloween party at the Gem Theater in Troyeville. They are playing at Woodstock 9 and needed some photos to accompany their profiles for the event. Below are Three of the guys in the group.

Absolute Pornography

Well this is definitely not the normal way people would interpret this idea. GQ asked a whole bunch of photographers to submit photographs for a Absolute Vodka calender. My photo was an idea inspired by Arthur Malan, the fashion editor. It is Pornography concealed through an absolute vodka bottle.


I have put some of the individual shots on the blog. The shot that I submitted to GQ is only the Collage shot though, as I thought the upclose and personal ones are a little too in your face.


Love or hate, here they are.

C

Night of 1000 drawings

Above: Last years Paballo (Night of 1000 drawings) book. Which had numerous of my images in it.

above: the second of a line of people that represent the different aspects of paballo.

David Chong (soup driver volunteer guy),
zodwa( medical student, helps with distrubuting basic medical care and medicine every wednesday)
ndai |(director of paballo)
paul a homeless person from zimbabwe that used to stay on plein st.. but now behind the taxi rank by the nelson mandela bridge.

Night of 1000 drawings is an exhibition for charity organisation paballo, which happens once a year. This is the second year of the exhibition and we are hoping for it to be a great success. They are struggling for funding and they need as many people as possible to get together and help find it.

David Chong runs up the project and if you can help in anyway, including using your skills. Please email him on 1000drawings@gmail.com. Also visit their blog at http://1000drawings.blogspot.com/.

I will be doing a new documentary shoot with them tonight and it will be up on the blog soon.

Thanks
Chris S 2007

Have City Will Play

Shot after the Kin:be:Jozi (Anthea Moys) 'Have City Will Play' event in Newtown last weekend. The shot is of Nina Barnett dressed in Santa Clause outfit that looks like it should be on the grim reaper. Find it quiet ironic. I also think its gonna make an awesome stencil. The Second shot is of Anthea Moys after event, doing her jumping umbrella trick. The event was a great success and I have added a link on the right to kin:be:jozi so everyone can keep up to date with what they;re doing.


Another shot done at the Have City Will Play event hosted by Anthea Moys in Newtown. This was one of the games in the race where by people had to sing into cups with strings and take instructions from the person on the other end on what to do. This whole event was great fun and extremely well organised.

CTS 2007

Team Uncool!

Got some great news, I am now part of team uncool. Check out the team uncool website.
C 07

Erica

Here is a portrait of a friend Erica. I am starting a series on androgynous looking people. Here is the first in the series. C

Black Coffee 2007

Here are three shots from the new Black Coffee shoot that I have just completed. They where shot at Constitution Hill on the great steps. The shoot was done for the shows press kit. Enojy and comment please. Chris S

Europe Europe Europe

I have just returned from a 3 1/2 week trip to Europe where I got to travel through Greece, Turkey, Paris & London. I documented the whole experience and thought that the best way to tell the story would be through the images below.

The Journey began in Rhodes Island Greece where I hopped on a a traditional turkish Yacht with friends new and old from around the world and we began a week long trip along the Turkish coastline.

(The Backpackers in Rhodes, Greece)

(An interesting building in a very old place like Rhodes Greece)

(Africa in Rhodes island, Greece)

(Pegs)

(Little Lu)

(Christophe Durand cutting hair on board)

(The Captain)

(The kind of beauty taken for granted on a trip like this)

(French Yacht Aerobics)

Paris was the second leg of my journey. I spent alot of time walking through this amazing city. Paris has mass amounts of street art and a very specific persona. I have never found so much to take photo's of in such a short time.

(The Metro at night)

(Urban Gaming is huge in Paris)

(Reminded me of bank teller crime in South Africa)

(Belville Chinese flyer madness)

(The dark heart of Paris)

(Can you see the fly, 10 points if you can)

(A interesting looking character in Belville blowing his nose)

(A skater outside the Palais de Tokyo)

(A Portrait of a Rabbit in Paris)

(A cool stencil of a hoodlum next to a notice which talks all about a lawyer who screwed someone around)

(Below Montmartre you can find the prancing horse, you've got to look hard to spot it though)

I then travelled to England where I stayed in London for a week and I got to hang out with my fellow photographer and friend Jeff Barbee in Brighton, he has just finished an amazing adventure where he sailed from Cape Town to Dakar. I took some shots at a closed fun fair at night and around London.

(Brighton at night)

(At night in the fair in Brighton)

(A business man on his cellphone on the beach in Brighton)

(A really cool building close to where I was staying in Ladbroke grove in London)

Chris Saunders 2007 (CTS)