New life.

No sooner were we home and it was straight back on the boat again.
This time to shoot for an old client, Richmond – in and around the greater London area.

Richmond are a refurbishment company who specialise in injecting new life into disused and old buildings – turning old Cinemas, for example, into modern day Churches.

So it was great to see how they had transformed these places – like this one in Camberwell…

.. or this one in Wood Green…

.. where shooting the entrance was actually the biggest challenge…

.. as a lot of additional light was needed for this one…

.. but we very pleased with the result in the end…

.. as was Richmond too.

The Gaumont State Theatre in Kilburn…

.. with the it’s amazing Wurlitzer organ…

.. was also very impressive.

Then there were some smaller ones, like this one in Haringey…

.. to this huge one in Barking:

From the pulpit at the front…

.. to the toilets at the rear…

.. Richmond do it all.

So James and I had the pleasure this week, of recording this company’s amazing talent, of injecting new life into these old places around London – which was really great to see.

Copyright © 2011 Ashley Morrison, all rights reserved.

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Into the light.

Is the title of our latest published work in the May 2011 issue of 25 Beautiful Homes magazine…

.. on pages 30 to 35 – featuring Marie and Alan’s 1920’s semi in the Cherryvalley area of Belfast.

“Serial renovators Marie and Alan dusted away the decay to create a bright, airy home.”

Which we talked about shooting here: The French Connection.

The lead feature this month too – so a HUGE congratulations to Marie & Alan once again – because that’s some achievement in a magazine of this standard.

25 Beautiful Homes is one of the most successful magazines in the homes market. Its enduring popularity is thanks to the fact that it provides readers with 25 stunning homes to browse through in every issue. With page after page of wonderful photography and fascinating stories, the magazine is full of ideas that readers can transfer to their own homes, making it both an entertaining read and a useful sourcebook.

We felt at home from the first visit !

Is the title of our latest published work in the May 2011 issue of GoodHomes magazine…

.. on pages 76 to 82 – featuring Mandi Millar and her husband Gary Grattan’s 1980s bungalow near the market town of Ballyclare in County Antrim.

“Mandi Millar and her husband Gary Grattan used a consistent colour palette to transform a tired bungalow into a bright and welcoming family home.”

So a big Congratulations to Mandi, Gary and their son Christy here…

.. your BB, as you call it, looks fantastic.

Classic Elegance.

Is the title of our latest published work in the May 2011 issue of Ireland’s Homes Interiors & Living magazine…

.. on pages 60 to 72 – featuring Margaret and John Morgan’s detached new-build house near the village of Hillsborough in County Down.

“Margaret and John wanted timeless style but needed instant practicality – and achieved both in their wonderful detached home in Hillsborough.”

So a big thank you to everyone involved – the quality as always in this magazine looks amazing – which is always lovely to see after all the hard work has been done.

Stunning !!

From Marie, Mandi & me @ ampimage.com

The roof rack trip…

.. which is what I think I will remember this one most for.

This was the first really long trip in the old Land Rover – and it sure was a trip to remember – as we covered a lot of miles over the last 10 days.
Other than the rear suspension acting up a few times on the first day, it was wonderful.
Left with a box on top and came home with a roof rack too – after placing a bid on eBay a few days beforehand, which I never thought I’d win.

So we picked that up on the route; however, it took me a few days to figure out how to get both home, as the box was slightly longer than the rack – plus I still needed the bars, to hold the box in place. But as you can see it all worked out great in the end – so I now have a full width rack, should I need to throw more gear up top – and the big box too, which usually contains a full backup lighting system, as well as other bits & bobs, which we occasionally need when shooting on location.

Anyway, what a great trip – and I can’t wait now for the next one.

The Art of Trompe L’Oeil…

.. near Bodmin in Cornwall.

Trompe L’Oeil, pronounced ‘tromp loy’, means ‘trick the eye’ in French and refers to the particular style of painting whereby the artist creates an illusion of space and paints an apparently three dimensional image on the wall within the context of the surrounding architecture.

So maybe that was what I was looking at here…

.. an illusion of space…

.. in this second home which James had lined up for us – a converted barn, owned by a very talented artist, Janet Shearer…

.. who specialises in scenic art and teaches the art of Trompe L’Oeil.

Everyone sees things differently and sees different things when they look at a picture…

.. and very often Marie would say to me: “Trust me Ashley”

Will I did and I must say, even though it looked a little daunting at first…

.. this one turned out to be a beauty.

Trust me on that – because just like with the art of Trompe L’Oeil, a photographer and his team can create an illusion too…

.. using a camera, some lights and a wee touch of magic

Anyway, I would just like to say a big Thank you to both James & Janet here, for not only making us feel so welcome during our time in Cornwall but for also allowing us to shoot your fabulous converted barn.

From Marie & me @ www.ampimage.com

Camelot cottage

After the last few days shooting in the south of England, it was over to Rock – a coastal village in Cornwall near Wadebridge. To meet James Ram, a young photographer based in that area, who was keen the learn the ropes.

James had lined up 2 homes for us, the first was a converted cottage…

.. which was owned by Tanya Leech & Graham, who among other things, have a mutual love for sailing.

Tanya is also a very talented seamstress – so she and Graham decided to set up a curtain making business here in Cornwall, to help finance their dream of sailing the world. They bought these two badly converted holiday cottages, and over a period of almost 3 years, they have completely gutted, unified and transformed the cottages into what we photographed today…

.. Camelot cottage…

.. as it is now know.

Beautiful…

.. and a great story too…

.. which we are all looking forward to seeing in print real soon.

So big thanks to James here…

.. for all his hard work – and to Tanya & Graham too, for inviting us into record and tell your amazing story.

From Marie, me and the rest of the team @ ampimage.com.

Two in Period Homes…

.. and Interiors magazine, in the May 2011 issue.

The first is titled: ‘Practically Perfect’…

.. on pages 38 to 43 – featuring Paul and Vanessa Arran’s Victorian semi the County Down town of Bangor.

And the second is titled: ‘Countryside Living’…

.. on pages 48 to 54 – featuring Tracey Annison and Andy Rosser’s cottage near Checkendon in Oxfordshire.

Period Homes & Interiors magazine – formerly Period House – is packed full of inspiring real homes and decorating ideas, plus informative restoration features and practical expert advice.

So Congratulations to both Vanessa & Paul and Tracey & Andy for making it into this very stylish new magazine – which is now being run by our good friend Rachel, who we had a great night out with a few weeks ago, while we were working in the south of England.

Marie, Mandi, Paul & me @ ampimage.com

All go in Hove…

.. as the ladies pushed, shoved and rearranged things throughout the day…

.. in this amazing Victorian semi…

.. which was a massive refurb job for homeowner Kiya Salim.

Marie & I both loved what Kiya had done here – and with some help from her friend, Charlie Davis, a budding young Interior Stylist…

.. who would love to do more of this type of work – we all had lots of fun with this one 🙂

So it was all go in Hove…

.. as there was some great ideas and features in this home – including the kitchen work top…

.. which came from the old Brighton pier and wooden flooring…

.. from old scaffolding planks !!

A truly amazing home – so a big thanks to everyone involved – and we will keep you all posted once we hear back from the various Editors.

Added Note on the 26/4/2011: 25 Beautiful Homes magazine have said Yes to this home – so all the images produced, should be appearing in it sometime later on this year.

Added Note on 5/7/2011: Out Now and worth waiting for.