Dancing in the Dark...

As you all know I LOVE fashion... obviously.. But what many of you may not know is that I have another love in my life which dates back to my early childhood. I have always been fascinated by dance. In fact, if I were to believe in past lives, I would definitely say I was a ballerina. When I was little my mum used to take me to see the ballet regularly and although as I grew older the visits became less regular, the fascination remained. My mum always says that she would have loved to learn how to play the piano because through music you can express your emotions no matter what they are. I believe the same is true for dance...

In this little photoshoot I wanted to capture not just the beauty of dance but also a certain bitterness and sadness that accompanies it. The world of dance is ruthless and the hard work and the long hours do not always result in major parts or a big career. But most people who do it don't do it for a big name.. they do it for the love and the passion... it is a love hate relationship - you cannot live without it but at times you work so hard you end up hating it.

My model for this shoot - Diana - is a professional dancer and she kindly agreed to spend a couple of hours dancing for me. We put some music on and off we went - she moved and I snapped as much as I could. I didnt have any complex lighting or equipment for this - a couple of softboxes for side light and my trusted 50mm lens.

Model: Diana
Make-up: Anna Busygina

xx