A WORK IN PROGRESS

My New Blog At Wordpress

2010-08-30T19:57:00.005+01:00

I have created a NEW BLOG . Please come and have a look.

Claudia Leisinger

Isla, Oisin and Ness

2010-07-12T20:28:00.007+01:00

Last week I visited my friend Ness and her two amazing children Isla and Oisin to take some photos. Unfortunately John was working otherwise the family would have been complete.

I had such a great time running around, being shown favourite treasures and most of all playing with the hose in the summer heat.

Portrait of Peter Leisinger 2010

2010-07-09T19:44:00.006+01:00

This is my father in Salzburg where his latest exhibition took place. He creates sculptures out of wood with a chainsaw.

This exhibition was different in that he created this one long line/caravan made of many sculptures (horses, people ...) winding through the whole three story house (Berchtoldvillla).

Along this line or procession other sculptures stand and witness the caravan. There are cafe scenes, a woman hanging out the washing on the top of her house, birds hanging from the ceiling, people watching ....

The caravan travels up the stairs, through the rooms and once they even have to cross water until ...

... everything come to a halt at the border point.

Story of the Bee and the Poppy

2010-06-24T00:08:00.003+01:00

This is a very simple story of a bee and the poppy flower in my garden and my fantastic new 50mm 1.4 lens. We will have to leave this garden behind very soon because we are moving and so I indulged in it while the sun is out.

Playtime

2010-06-21T17:18:00.000+01:00

Early morning walk

2010-06-08T21:49:00.004+01:00

The other night Harper could not sleep and so I couldn't either. Some time around 4:30 I was done chasing the elusive. i got up and took Harper for a walk so she would finally fall asleep in her buggy. The sun was coming up and there was this mist in the air, the birds were singing like mad in our garden and it was just beautiful.

And then with Harper sound asleep we walked to Brockwell Park...

...and then she woke up and we went home for breakfast.

ARTURO & THE AMAZING FLYING PIGMENT teaser trailer

2010-06-06T23:16:00.002+01:00

So here it is, finally ready, dvd's are burnt, trailer here for you to watch - and next week the first viewings in Salzburg. Let us know what you think.

Can't wait to announce a screening date here in London.

Sleeping

2010-06-06T22:27:00.005+01:00

Help with choosing an exhibition poster

2010-05-03T15:16:00.004+01:00

Taeglich neue Karawanen
(New Caravans Everyday)

My father has an exhibition in Salzburg opening on the 11th of June, where we will also show our short film "Arturo & The Amazing Flying Pigment"! yeah, can't wait to hear what people think of it.

But first we have to decide which of these shots shall be on the invitation and the poster for the exhibition. Your comments are very appreciated.

And let me know if you would like to come to the exhibition opening.

Homework for Jan

2010-04-07T18:26:00.003+01:00

Jan on the sofa trying to escape from homework. Horrible dictations. I hated them too.

This is Matilda

2010-04-01T18:52:00.003+01:00

Karawane in Sils i.E

2010-03-12T08:25:00.008Z

Karawane
by Peter Leisinger

Looking back on the past month I am amazed. We have had the biggest change in our lives - the birth of Harper and she has totally taken over but somehow we still manage to travel around and do quite a bit of work and that makes me very happy. Harper is a brilliant traveler.

Two weeks ago we left for Switzerland to record the German voices and mix the sound for our film. While Leigh worked in Bern together with Fabian Gutscher (Sounddesign) on the sound I took photos for my father for a coming book.

This sculpture is called Karawane is currently in Sils im Engadin.

A work trip to Paris

2010-02-04T15:15:00.013Z

My birthday + a job in Paris + an 8-week old daughter + a wonderful husband = An amazing and unforgettable trip to Paris.

Here a photo taken with my phone while traveling in the Eurostar.

Getting our heads around it ...

2010-02-04T14:28:00.013Z

We have been parents for 7 weeks now and it feels like months, no years. Time flies like never before, actually it feels more like time has taken on another meaning entirely. It has become even more precious - of course I am talking about the time we spend with her while she is awake, but also the little time that is left in the day to hastily do the very top two things on a ever growing list. As always when one goes through a big change in life, people give you advice, warnings and share their experience with you. Here I have to say, everything anybody has told me is true - for at least a fraction of a second, precisely because becoming a parent is as complex and fluid as life itself.

Getting to know and looking after Harper has overridden everything. But what amazes me most is that even though the days are filled with essentially the same tasks - feeding, sleeping, changing nappies, bathing, going out - each day feels quite different and very eventful. It is amazing how much she has already learned and wonderful to see how she discovers the world.

Going out with her is like attending a summer garden party. People constantly come up to us to chat and smile at her. There is an entirely new world I've seen but not paid much attention to and obviously was not part of it until now - the parents. Now I see them everywhere and I have noticed that I have become invisible to other sections of our society like teenagers and young professionals. My world right now could not be further apart from theirs.

As adventures go, this one feels pretty big and challenging; but also enormously rewarding.

A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR TO YOU ALL

2009-12-30T12:10:00.008Z

This is our first daughter Harper Lily, born on the 18th of Dec. So far it has been an amazing journey, a real adventure and we are only at the very beginning of it. What a great way to start a new year.

I wish you all an amazing New Year and lots of adventures.

Portrait of an Old Lady in Paris

2009-12-12T10:49:00.008Z

Walking through Paris in October, I saw her sitting outside in one of the street cafes. She reminded me so much of my father's aunt, whom I liked a lot. Aunt Henna was flamboyant and so different from anybody I had met as a small child. She was very tiny, had bright red hair and when she talked her hands moved wildly around. Her house was full of mysterious things.

My New Favourite Place

2009-12-09T20:17:00.005Z

One (admittedly there are only a few others) of the great things of waiting for the little girl to finally arrive, is the walks I take every day and one of my new discoveries is Wimbledon Common. It's an amazing place.

Arturo & the Amazing Flying Pigment

2009-12-05T21:43:00.009Z

Here are some stills from the short film "Arturo and the Amazing Flying Pigment", which I shot over this summer.

The story is about a young boy and the sketch of a winged camel that comes to life. Leigh wrote the script and directed the film, my father Peter Leisinger built all the sets, the wooden masks and hands for the human characters and the puppet of the camel. My nephew Jan played the young boy Arturo.

I shot it on full HD on the Canon 5D Mark II, which was quite an adventure.

We are currently in post-production with the plan to complete it next spring. Watch this space!

Jen & Mike's Wedding

2009-12-04T19:51:00.016Z

Jen & Mike's wedding was my last wedding of this year.

There is 100 years difference between the great-grandmother and Stanley.

Jo & Al's Wedding

2009-12-04T19:16:00.007Z

Jo and Al's wedding was a lot of fun. Here some moments of their great day.

Mobile

2009-12-01T21:00:00.008Z

This post is not really photography related but has got a lot to do with my current state. Tomorrow is the due day of our first child. I wanted to share this mobile with you - a joint effort. My father Peter created the paper animals and we, Leigh and I, did the rest. It is all for the little girl who should be coming any day now. I hope one day she will be dancing like a little mouse.

Portrait of Jan Herrador, october 09 in Malans

2009-11-24T18:40:00.007Z

This is Jan, the 11 year old son of my sister. He played the main actor in the short film "Arturo And The Amazing Flying Pigment" we shot over this summer (more about it here soon). Despite not having ever had any experience or ambitions to act, he did a brilliant job. I love what he does with his hair right now.

One night in Paris

2009-11-24T18:33:00.003Z

From my hotel room window - entry to the gare de l'est. The wet cobblestones with the reflected light on them look a bit like exotic fish to me.

The gare du nord - I will always love these old grand railway stations.

Photo Booth Improv

2009-11-11T18:35:00.010Z

I was about to shoot a wedding in Switzerland and the bride and groom wanted to have a photo booth for guests to take their own pictures. It was, however, not possible to hire lights and bringing them from London was out of the question. So we scrapped this plan, until I had the idea of a slimmed-down version of a photo booth. I planned to use my flash and to reduce the actual booth area. In order for people to be able to do it themselves I had to give them an idea where the light area is going to be - and that is how the picture frame came in.

My father, Peter Leisinger (www.peterleisinger.com in photo above), built me a magnificent golden cardboard frame with which I traveled though Switzerland on the train. If you ever want to have a fun journey take a big golden frame with you. You will be amazed how many reactions you get.

The framed, slimmed-down version of a photo booth, was a great success. Here some of the shots:

Andrea & Mario's Wedding

2009-11-11T18:15:00.005Z

Cat-napped

2009-11-10T21:37:00.004Z

We have been adopted by a cat. One day he strolled into our living room walked right through it, meowed, and settled somewhere on the floor. We were conquered, overthrown. Now he spends most of his time either in our house or in our garden, demanding attention, food and entertainment and a bit like a teenager he goes in and out.

We call him Mr Cabbit - a amalgam of cat & rabbit - rabbit because in his sleep he tends to have his legs up in the air - looking a bit like an upside down turned rabbit in a mid-air-jump.

We have spoken to his rightful owners and they did not seem to be worried or upset. He is in for quite of a shock in about a month time when our real teenager-to-be, admittedly in many years but nevertheless - will arrive.

But it is quite amazing how some things just suddenly move into our lives.

Portraits of Noriko

2009-11-05T19:09:00.005Z

A few months ago we were in Switzerland shooting a short film and my dear friend Noriko came from Japan to stay with us and help us out a bit. We had a great few days and as always we only wished she could have stayed longer. On our way to the airport I shot these few frames with my Rollei.

Back with the end of summer

2009-10-27T17:48:00.004Z

I am back in London and ready to slowly put photos and film snippets up on my blog to show you what I have been up to.

I will start with one of the last things I have done, which is a portrait of Warren Fitzgerald, writer and musician living here in London. He needed a photograph for the back of his latest book "THE GO-AWAY BIRD"published by Blue Door (HarperCollins) in May 2010. We had two sessions.

The first one with natural light and on film.

On the second session we wanted to create something darker, moody with lights. Here some of the photos we got out of it.

It was great fun playing around with the lights and then later experimenting in photoshop.

And because I love environmental portraits we also went to a location I have had in mind for a while.

I am part of the Foto8 Summer Show - COME AND PARTY WITH ME!

2009-07-22T12:58:00.002+01:00

Hello

how about celebrating Friday & summer whilest looking at photos? I have one image at the Foto8 Summer show which is opening this Friday 24th July - from 6:30 onwards.

All information should be in the image below.

If not, go to http://www.foto8.com/home/content/view/352/191/

I would be delighted to see you there.

Published photo story in The Big Issue - This is how it looked like.

2009-06-26T11:42:00.007+01:00

This is how the story looked like as an article in The Big Issue June 22-28.

Published “SEPARATE IS NOT EQUAL”: SAME-SEX COUPLES ON PROPOSITION 8

2009-06-23T22:28:00.004+01:00

My story on the effects of Proposition 8 - “SEPARATE IS NOT EQUAL”: SAME-SEX COUPLES ON PROPOSITION 8 (see earlier entry) is being published in this week BIG ISSUE magazine.

This is a story I and many of my friends have been following over the last year as it unfolded and we were stunned by the outcome - not only in November '08 when the Proposition 8 passed, but also this year in May, by the California Supreme Court's decision.

I strongly believe in equal rights and I am very pleased that this story got published. To me the question if adult couples who want to commit to each other should have the right to marry and gain equal rights though that process, is an absolute no-brainer. Even more so now, having met all these loving couples, their children and community.

But please read more about the story in the article itself in The Big Issue June 22-28.

Check it out if you can!

claudia

FOTO 8 Summer show entry

2009-06-23T22:21:00.003+01:00

This image has been selected to go in the Foto 8 summer show - the exhibition is starting Friday 24th July at HOST Gallery, London.

Yeah, it is quite exciting.

AOP Open 2009

2009-06-21T15:01:00.004+01:00

this images has been selected for the exhibition and catalog of the Association of Photographers Open Competition 2009. yeah!

Portrait of Riz Ahmed & Danny Mays

2009-06-03T20:04:00.001+01:00

Riz Ahmed (Britz, Dead Set), musician 'Riz MC' and lead actor in Shifty.

Daniel Mays (The Bank Job, Plus One), also lead actor in Shifty.

Shifty is a film really worthwhile seeing, written and directed by Eran Creevy here you can see a the Shifty - Trailer.

Portrait of Zoe Stewart, film producer, March 09, East London

2009-06-02T12:55:00.006+01:00

I photographed Zoe for the Film & Festivals Magazine

I made the mistake to get my negs processed by Snappy Snaps in Streatham - it was Saturday - I needed to have it done - never ever will I do this again. They royally screwed the negs up - fingerprints, scratches and some weird coating that looks like petrol spilling on a wet street.
I think a one-cell organism coudl have done a better job.

I saved what was to safe - a shame because it was a really nice and lovely shoot with Zoe.

Snappy Snaps in Streatham is on my dark red list!

Paige and Leigh

2009-06-02T12:50:00.004+01:00

This shot was taken at the end of a beautiful valley just north of San Francisco. Paige who lives relatively close brought us there. It was a great little walk down to the sea and up the hill where they, Paige and Leigh, looked out onto San Francisco standing on a weird bunker with amazing wall paintings inside. On our way back to the car we even encountered some turkeys. Such funny creatures.

Portrait of Carol in Brazil

2009-06-02T12:48:00.003+01:00

I am a bit on a portrait mission right now. I personally am intrigued by portraits. What is a good portrait? Why?

Again there are many different statements that can be made. For a long time I was adamant that its main message should be about the subject photographed but now I think this idea is far too narrow. There is so much more to it and my aim is to explore it. So it is good that my next two projects are portrait based.

“SEPARATE IS NOT EQUAL”: SAME-SEX COUPLES ON PROPOSITION 8

2009-05-25T21:22:00.005+01:00

Separate Is Not Equal - Proposition 8 - Images by Claudia Leisinger

On May 15th 2008 the California Supreme Court declared that gay and lesbians were a minority group and would therefore be entitled to the same legal rights to marriage as heterosexuals. That made California the second US state after Massachusetts to allow and recognize homosexual marriages.

18 000 same-sex couples married between June and November 4th 2008 when Proposition 8, an initiative outlawing gay marriage and supported by, amongst others, the Roman Catholic and Mormon Churches, passed with a small majority (52,3 % vs. 47,7 %). Proposition 8 changed the California legislation to only recognize marriage as a term to be used for heterosexual unions.

The next day, 5th of November, numerous lawsuits were opened by same-sex couples and government entities, questioning Proposition 8's legality and its effects on existing same-sex marriages.

The Supreme Court votes imminently on whether or not to uphold Proposition 8 and the fate of these 18 000 homosexual couples and families who have already been legally married in California. These couples now wonder both whether their marriages will be annulled or if they will be the few lucky ones legally entitled to stay married while all other prospective same-sex couples are denied that same right.

For this story I have photographed and interviewed at length six married same-sex couples (three gay, three lesbian), old and young, some with children some without, from various parts of California, both rural and urban.

They discussed their thoughts and feelings on their recent legal marriages; how Proposition 8 has affected them, their relationships and their communities; and how they see the future for gay and lesbian rights in California and the US itself.

The decision day is tomorrow, Tuesday 26th of May!

I wish them all good luck and all the best.

If you want to know more check out

www.dayofdecision.com

www.couragecampaign.org

Equality California www.eqca.org

www.gayfresno.com

While editing a wedding ceremony

2009-05-21T11:55:00.002+01:00

On The Brink. Curitiba. Brazil 08

2009-05-17T19:38:00.003+01:00

This was an amazing place we went to with Carol while we were in Brazil. The sun was shining, we swam & jumped from the rocks - not from the highest. Then the rain came, everyone left but him standing at the top still trying to sum up the courage to jump.

Family at the harbor in Manaus

2009-05-17T18:17:00.003+01:00

This was one of the golden moments in Brazil for me. We were in a group of people just came from the meeting of the waters on the amazon - had to hurry to catch the plane and i was in one of the most interesting places in Manaus and all I wanted to do is linger and take some photos of the people waiting for their boats. When I saw this family and took the shot I was so excited and could not wait to see the result. But the film get cooked - literally - by the machine. So it took me a while to play around. And here it is, still one of the best photographic moment I had in Brazil.

Steady, Ready, Go!

2009-05-15T16:27:00.006+01:00

Train station in Queens, NY

I have been on a trip to the US where I shoot unbelievably much and all on film. The drawback of film is the time it takes to digitize it. And even tough I have tried various labs offering that time consuming & sooo boring part of scanning, I have not found one yet that I think is actually really good. Above image was scanned by a lab and I will have to definitively rescan it. And so I had to come home to scan hence my long pause.

Ground Zero building work & reflections

We went to NY to visit some friends and family, then to Petaluma California for the wedding of our friends Paige & Arann, which was amazing. Then stayed in San Francisco for a couple of days. I started my project on the effects of Proposition 8, the initiative outlawing same-sex marriages last year in California (the whole story with photos and interviews will be up here soon).
American clean-up truck

This project brought us from Pescadero to Fresno and then to LA. Part of that journey we spent on a Greyhound bus - forget all old American movies which make these busses look so romantic - there was none of that in our bus. But still I thought again how much more interesting it is to travel with a project in mind.

LA was interesting and amazing in that I met a lot of new people but also reconnected to some of my friends form the MAPJD, yeah yeah Hubert and Kevin!

The last leg of our journey was Nashville where we meet up with family and enjoyed a relaxing few days

All along the way I shot my project but also just for fun. Much of which will be shown here soon. get ready!

love that wall!

2009-03-23T20:21:00.003Z

East London March '09

What do I do if I can't sleep?

2009-03-13T14:14:00.003Z

Full moon hanging over London. 12.03.09

He makes me smile - everytime

2009-03-13T14:11:00.001Z

Sculpture by Peter Leisinger.

Really Clever

2009-03-06T18:14:00.003Z

Through Leigh's work I have seen Riz perform a few of his songs a couple of month ago. I think he is amazing but have a look yourself at his talent.

Back to tidy up

2009-03-04T11:41:00.004Z

I have returned from my trip to Switzerland and even though I can not wait to put my exciting plans and ideas for the future into reality, I need to tidy up just a little bit more. I have to finish off work I shoot a month ago, like this portrait of David Miliband.

a few portraits of my grave diggers and even some last frames from our Brazil trip. Then I shoot quite a bit of snowed under Switzerland - that will have to wait I think. I always wonder how other people manage to fit work, free time and all the bits in between like shopping for food or buying a new bicycle because the old one has been stolen, under the 24 hours umbrella? to stay with the bicycle shopping for example, takes hours from sitting at the police station, to filling in forms to making endless phone calls... I often get stressed at around mid time while doing things - like halfway through the shopping for food I get this vision of myself dropping the half filled basket and just leaving - does anyone have that too? I have never actually done it though.
But now I have reached halfway blogging and I will leave it here and come back later - good bye.

One of my favorite images of my Brazil trip

2009-02-02T15:40:00.003Z

I have to figure out how it happens, but every now and then my Rollei only gets 11 and 1/2 frames onto a 12o film - it cuts the 12th half way through.

This is one of this half cut frames.

4. Photos of Brazil - On the Urubu river

2009-02-02T15:31:00.002Z

3. Photos of Brazil (december 08)

2009-02-02T12:29:00.003Z

Village church in the Amazon region.

A side street in Manaus.

The inside of a favela in Rio.

2. Photos of Brazil (Dec.08)

2009-02-01T13:48:00.007Z

This Sunday morning, sunshine and snow are playing outside my window. The news online and in the various newspapers I have scattered lying around me tell stories of our interesting and complex world. But before I attempt to finally read all of it - yes back to back (no sports)- I will upload some more images of Brazil.

1. Photos of Brazil (december 08)

2009-01-15T10:03:00.010Z

We have been back from our amazing trip to Brazil for what seems to be a lifetime but is exactly one month. We had an amazing time full of adventures, meeting new people and discovering places. I was so excited shooting street scenes and whatever I thought worth keeping a memory of.
I almost only photographed with my Rollei and once I came back I processed my films on an old crappy, mean spirited (as I found out during the day) machine that did quite a lot of damage - kept the film in the developer tank too long, made weird stripes on the negs... you name it - it is there.

That evening was a very unhappy one and I vowed to myself never ever to repeat that mistake again. Anyhow I have moved on and am excited to share a few first photos here.

Primary forest in the Amazon, 150 km northwest from Manaus.

On the road to the harbor (Amazon river) in Manaus, a guy was cooking his lunch on the side of the street.

Waterfalls and lakes in the countryside in Southern Brazil near Curtiba.

In a village along the Urubu river.

Curitiba.

MY NEW WEBSITE

2008-12-03T15:53:00.002Z

I am launching my new website.Yeahhhh!

To have a look go to www.singer-leisinger.com click on claudia leisinger

or go to http://archive.singer-leisinger.com/c/claudialeisinger

I am always happy to get feedback.

Thanks

claudia

Exhibition PHOTO 08 in Zuerich 27-30.12.08

2008-11-29T11:43:00.005Z

This year in December my Grave Digger story will be part of PHOTO 08, an exhibition showcasing current Swiss photographers. The exhibition takes place in the Maag EventHall, Hardstrasse 219, 8005 Zürich from the 27th-30th of December.

For more info go to this website www.photo-schweiz.ch/08/prog.html

The photos will be exhibited on white blocks, 4m long and 1 meter wide, the prints displayed like on a table.

My photos will be mounted on aluminum and here is my layout:

There will also be a portfolio of my work.
Unfortunately I won't be able to be there -I will be in Brazil (juhui) however I plan to go the Switzerland in the beginning of February 2009.

Burned Bridges - Iraq Refugee Crisis

2008-11-28T22:49:00.013Z

This is a report on the current Iraqi refugee crisis and the treatment of asylum seekers in the UK which Leigh (text) and I (photographs) have contributed to The Big Issue. This Iraqi refugee situation is something that we believe needs urgent attention.

Please find the full text at: http://www.singer-leisinger.com/leigh/bigissue-iraqirefugees2.html

At the end of the article there are some websites and organizations to check out if you are would like more information.

I hope to be able to photograph and record more individual refugee stories soon.

Autumn Nights

2008-11-28T17:05:00.004Z

It is cleaning up time, I am planning 2009 and tiding up loose ends. Hence I spend a lot of time indoors researching and thinking but every now and then I just have to get out and photograph to stay sane. Sometimes I don't get very far - these are photos taken on my street on a really cold autumns night - but I like them.

Halloween and a fun night out shooting

2008-11-27T15:19:00.011Z

I find it so exciting to just go out and shoot, it does make me feel alive and an injection of that feeling every now and then, is vital to keep me going for the bigger picture. Many thanks to Mario for walking through half of London and sharing this adventure with me.

View on my way home

2008-11-27T15:16:00.003Z

Peter Leisinger 2008, the new book of his sculptures

2008-11-26T21:17:00.031Z

It was great and inspiring - as always - to work with my parents, Peter and Maria, on this book. I love my fathers creations that so directly come out of my parents life, sketches on paper and chainsawed in wood, raw and true - but then again I am certainly not unbiased.

Here are a few pages:

On the way from Italy to Switzerland, we stopped of at Sils, where Peter had an exhibition, so I could take some photos of new sculptures for the book. On the way there we saw these three guys enjoying their lunch break.

I enjoy working with other people on creative projects, exchanging thoughts and ideas, driving each other on to try better, witnessing someone else work ethic, these are all elements I really like but what I like the best is the lightness of it - working never seems to be that playful on my own as it is with someone else.

Apart from photographing the sculptures and paintings - or as in the case above both in one- I enjoyed doing the layout for the book, going to print with it and playing with the colours for so long until they were right.

If you want to see more of Peters work do so on www.peterleisinger.com

Italy 2008 - more walking

2008-11-25T12:54:00.014Z

Faenza.

Peter Leisinger drawing. www.peterleisinger.com
More of his work in my next entry on his book 2008.

Inside a church the donor's family name is inscribed in the bench.

Impressions on a walk through the Emilia Romagna - Italy 2008

2008-11-25T10:31:00.019Z

I love the idea of visual memories on gravestones or inside chapels, of the people who once lived here - it makes them so much more real to me. I like visiting cemeteries anyway, but in Italy where many of the graves have a photographic memorial, it is that much more of a walk through history.

The horse of my childhood dreams.

I can not yet resist rusty signs nor abandoned vehicles.

I had my negs scanned in in Switzerland just to try out a professional service. So far, I have always been scanning all my negs myself, but it is such a time consuming and utterly boring process and I hoped for a pleasant surprise and the end of my scanning. The quality in general was really bad, though it added an interesting canvas kind of look to some of them - like the landscape at dawn above or the Madonna in the cave below.

Ginny and Nick

2008-09-30T13:56:00.002+01:00

This is Ginny and Nick on their amazing wedding day. Yeah!

See you soon

2008-09-30T12:50:00.016+01:00

I have been very quiet recently because I had a mammoth editing mountain to climb - the amazing wedding of Jude and Dick. Now I just finished it in time to head to Italy tomorrow. And as always when there is lots to do, jobs come finally flying in. I am looking forward to upload some of the photos I have taken in the last couple of weeks but it has to wait until I have finished the book my father and I have been working on for a while. His sculptures and words - photographed and then laid out by me. It is going to nice to focus entirely on this for two weeks.

But before I leave here some shots:

The breakfast.

The dress.

The bride.

Getting ready.

The groom and the best man.

The cermony.

The photo-booth experts.

The end.

but more to come at a later date. Thanks to Jude and Dick.

Paranoia Project- the results.

2008-09-04T18:21:00.006+01:00

Thomas and I have finished our co-operative project on "Paranoia". The brief was to come up with scenes to illustrate some of the feelings described in the book "Paranoia: The 21st Century Fear" written by Dr Daniel Freeman.

Over the next posts you can view the photos we selected.

Many thanks to Ed.

Photos copyright Thomas Ball & Claudia Leisinger 2008

Paranoia - Feeling small

2008-09-04T18:13:00.006+01:00

Paranoia_Why exactly does every moment need to be recorded onto CCTV? Who is watching and who will use the information for what purpose?

2008-09-04T18:09:00.004+01:00

Paranoia_Are they talking about me?

2008-09-04T18:06:00.004+01:00

Paranoia_No sleep

2008-09-04T18:02:00.003+01:00

Paranoia _If there's something strange in the neighborhood, who you gonna call?

2008-09-04T17:52:00.006+01:00

This is what I sing when I feel followed. I might as well go smiling.

Paranoia_Is there anybody out there?

2008-09-04T17:50:00.002+01:00

Paranoia_A daily dose of fear anyone?

2008-09-04T17:45:00.004+01:00

Paranoia _Playing with shadows is fun but it is harder then it looks

2008-09-04T17:16:00.006+01:00

Paranoia - One project finished yeah!

2008-09-04T17:01:00.012+01:00

This scene shows a man passing two women laughing in the street, feeling that they shared a joke on him.

In serach of MODELS for THURSDAY 21st of AUGUST, 10:30 -13:00

2008-08-18T12:00:00.006+01:00

Thomas and I are currently working on a series of images to illustrate a book written by a Doctor Daniel Freeman at Kings College/The Maudsley Hospital with the title; Paranoia: The 21st Century Fear.

And we need models - not paranoid models - but models representing people "the person with paranoid feelings" is looking at.

We have a shot with the following scenario: a person enters a public place(the pub) fearing that everybody in the pub will look up and stare at the him/her.

So we need models to sit at tables or stand at the bar and look up. Yes we are looking for people with an excellent stare!

The date would be this coming THURSDAY 21st of AUGUST, 10:30 -13:00t.
Location: the RAILWAY PUB in Tulse hill (just next to the station).

We would start in the morning around 10:30 and be finished by one o'clock.Unfortunately we can not pay anybody. but hopefully it will be fun.

This photo will be amongst 9 others illustrating similar scenarios described by people with paranoid feelings and will or won't be used by newspapers to promote Dr. Daniel Freeman's book, might be also used in an internal exhibition.

have a look at the existing shots:

If you have time and are interested please leave a comment and we will get in touch.

Rollei shots of Jackie & Willie's wedding

2008-08-17T20:37:00.005+01:00

My choice for now:

2008-08-12T22:12:00.014+01:00

if it could hand in 11 - thsi woudl be my 11th.

Choosing images for a short edit - Would you like to join in?

2008-08-11T18:01:00.009+01:00

Another photo award has made me look at most of the photos of my Bhutan project again and apart from reaffirming my strong wish to shoot another in depth story as soon as I can, I have also found some new images and some new combinations I quite like. Now I have been looking at them for quite some time and before I go for a run to air my head, I wondered if you could give me your opinion.

keep or kick? 6 to 10 images are allowed - I hope you are ruthless.

first one is the opener, then 3 rows of 3 and then the maybes.

Thanks

Sleeping stray dogs early in the morning in Thimphu, 2007

Definitively either or? or none?

No_ 2

2008-08-11T17:56:00.004+01:00

no 3 (maybe some help with choosing)

2008-08-11T17:52:00.006+01:00

no 4 - the maybe's (maybe some help with choosing)

2008-08-11T17:44:00.008+01:00

Glastonbury 08 still for Paige

2008-08-05T09:52:00.005+01:00

I am adding these photos one by one - it takes a while to de-dust them and I have only time for it in the evenings if I am free. I am redesigning my website at the moment and researching new stories but I am very impatient and can not wait to have this mountain of solitary and very stationary work behind me. so while I dream of moments filled with bubbling life- here some photos of such past moments.(at least for me)

This 800 iso film came out very strange - Carol and Murillo while it was raining in their tent.

Looking out from my tent, the shadow on the tent wall looked like the drawing of a flying which on one of my children's books cover - so I took it just for fun. it could be a flying which couldn't it?

Especially for Paige

2008-07-31T08:48:00.003+01:00

To celebrate our wedding Leigh and I went to Glastonbury Music festival this June. I was really excited to experience it, as I have heard so much about it ever since coming to England six years ago. I brought my Rollei along to the event to document some moments and some special people.

The Nigerian President at the Royal Society of Arts for Chatham House

2008-07-28T21:04:00.011+01:00

On 17 July 2008, HE Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria spoke at the Royal Society of Arts for Chatham House.

I like the shot of the obedient policeman best.

This shows a typical gesture of politicians to me, leaning in speaking quietly o each other.

In Search Of A Midnight Kiss

2008-07-14T10:58:00.013+01:00

In Search of a midnight kiss is a film, directed and written by Alex Holdridge staring actors Sara Simmonds, Scoot McNairy and Brian McGuire. (in photo from left to right)

Wilson (Scoot McNairy) is twenty-nine-years old and has just had the worst year of his life. He is new to Los Angeles, has no date, no concrete plans and every intention of locking the doors and forgetting the last year ever happened. That is until his best friend, Jacob (Brian McGuire), browbeats him into posting a personal ad on Craig's List. When Vivian (Sara Simmonds), a strong-willed woman hell bent on being with the right guy at the stroke of midnight responds, a chaotic, hilarious, and touching journey through the black and white streets of L.A. begins. In the waning hours of the year, emotional vulnerability and bitterly honest humor are waiting around every corner.

Portrait of Noel Clarke

2008-07-12T11:17:00.015+01:00

These portraits were shot to accompany a piece on Noel Clarke (British actor, writer, director), who played the lead role in the film 'Adulthood, the sequel to 'Kidulthood'. Within these two films his character goes through a live changing journey which I tried to convey here through multiple exposure.

mmmhhh............ a bit daunting but

2008-07-11T22:11:00.009+01:00

how better to start after almost a year absence then by showing you my favorite image of the last weeks. This is my friend Yolly, multiple times, who helped me test an idea for a portrait shoot.

there is going to be more...

About getting started, reseraching and getting lost

2007-09-03T10:43:00.001+01:00

Going out on Wednesday was very funny and educating. The first club – Destiny, very much reminded me of my local hometown disco on a Saturday night, quite bare, smelly, improvised and alive, the next one Space 34 was more established and could have been in London. I arranged with the managers to come again on Saturday night to photograph.
On Thursday morning I edited my photos and met Francoise Pommaret at 11:30 in the art café. She was really helpful, gave me a list of people to contact. She also thinks that the youth issue is the most burning topic shortly followed by one concerning rubbish.
Most people here are not yet aware that this new waste is not biodegradable and just throw everything to the floor. That is quite an issue especially in the countryside.
The main changes in the last 30years according to her are communication, health and education and in all of these sectors there have been major improvements.

In the afternoon I went up to the youth center for my presentation. I met Ugen Gonpel Chef Training Coordinator for the Election Commission Bhutan. I wanted to meet someone from The ECB but couldn’t because they only receive government guests. I asked him a lot of questions and will give him a call later to find out if there is a chance to photograph rural democratic education in action.
Then we started and I stood in front of about 40 young people –year 10 –12 dropouts and students from the It course. They did not look like drop outs as we know them at all, 18-25 very shy and very giggly.
After my talk a young trainee came and showed them the election instrument they are going to use, explained democracy, voting and elections to them, at the end they had to form 4 parties and vote for one, all in all very good and very hands on.

I asked Peimma Kalden the new manager of the youth centre to help me find a family with teenagers to photograph in Thimphu.
But the whole day I felt very weak and not well. I took some medicaments and hoped it would become better but it did not, so I scraped my plans for the evening and only went to visit the Helvetas office, where I met Nado Dukpa, who informed me on some of the projects Helvetas are organising and supporting in Bhutan, Two of which are vocational schools for young rural farmers in Shemgang which I will try and visit when I am there.

In the last couple of days walking around Thimphu I have seen many Indian laborers working very hard and living in very shabby quarters. To most of the people I spoke to about the youth employments problem, they said that part of the problem is that young Bhutanese don't want to do manual labor anymore - they dislike to get their hand dirty.
I think one of the conflicts is between these two lives. The Indian laborers are seasonal workers and `I need to find out about their status and rights.
But to show this problem I will try to photograph their lives too as well as the Bhutanese youth hanging out in clubs and in youth centers. You can see young Indian chaps carrying heavy load while Bhutanese play volleyball next to it. This of course is not wrong but I think it shows visually well what I have heard and seen happening here.

So what do you think about this idea?

Arriving in Bhutan

2007-09-03T10:18:00.001+01:00

I am in Bhutan,juhuiiiiii! actually since Monday 27th of August. The new foreigner in town and I get stared at - wow. I will quite enjoy anonymity of London once I am back. Before arriving I had a stop in Calcutta - what a city or metropolis better - and what a climate - I love it - humid and hot. I stepped out of the plane and it slapped me like a heavy wet warm towel at 6 am in the morning.
My hotel was funny and beautiful - you have to pay everyone for everything. I just remembered when the guide waited around for a bit longer then necessary whilst saying good buy - hahahaha
Within 10 min walking in the streets I had a self-proclaimed guide – very gentle and nice. Anyway I wanted to move on and he stuck to me like glue – but eventually he got the hint. Another five minutes passed and I had another guide but he had more umpf. Since I obviously had to have someone with me I though I might as well make use of it and asked him to show me the old market - a maze of little streets. Ojjjj Paige this is a market we should photograph - it was breathtakingly beautiful, mysterious and decaying. Old English glory used over and over again decaying in heat and humidity - amazing.
All in all I have absolutely fallen for Calcutta - I had a very funny evening with two other guys that lived near the hotel, just strolling through the back streets.

Next day I had an early start at 4:45 in the morning having heard the crows the whole night. My guide came to pick me up and drove me to the airport. Calcutta was awakening, everywhere I saw people on the street sleeping or standing sleepy in the road looking out into nothing - some brushed their teeth, some washed or drank tee sitting closely to their friends, some smoked brown sugar (o-tone my guide - cheap heroine I believe). As I passed I was overwhelmed with a feeling of life – everything happens unfiltered in front of me right here on these streets – every day whether I am there or not. What a place to be.

Getting on the plane involved the usual confusing waiting system at the desk, where every body get served at the same time and nobody gets anywhere for a long time. It is definitively a question of language – if I would understand what they were saying it would be much easier. So again I swore to myself to learn Hindi, Bengali, Urdu, Dzongkha and all other possible language jajajajajaj as if..

A quite typical scenario at the x-ray followed. I asked if it would be possible to check through my films manually – he said ok and we spent 15min looking through all the films – then I had to be checked by the policewomen separately and meanwhile he let the films through x-ray. I was furious not only because it didn’t go my way but also because he breached our deal. I made that clear and as a reaction all my baggage was checked very meticulously. Knowing how Indian border police can make you stay and miss your plane I switched very quickly to very polite.

Arriving in Paro, I got a visa for 2 weeks only, so I will have to apply for a new one at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs which of course involves more payment.

I met Namgyal and he told me that the road from Paro to Thimphu, where we were heading is under construction and therefore only open from 7-8 12 –1 and from 5 onwards so we had to wait till 12:30 to drive to Thimphu. He took me to Drukyel Dzong at the end of the road towards northwest. This is one of the oldest Dzongs (fortresses) and sits at a very strategically point.
Built in 1647 by Shabdrung Ngawang Namgyal to commemorate his victory over the Tibetans in 1644. It means fortress of the victorious Drukpas. A three days walk further into the valley will bring you to the base camp of Mount Jomolhari 7,314 meters and marking the frontier to Tibet.
Unfortunately the Drukyel Dzong burned down in 1951 but even the ruins are very impressive. It was amazing to get out of the car not only because the road was only one lane for both ways and full of bumps – the first thing that overwhelmed me was the smell. I realized that this was one of the smells I missed – Artemisia is the plant that produces it – it was a hot day so there was a undercurrent of pine – it was so fresh. We walked up the hill and I felt the height. I can explain how Bhutan looks to Swiss people - it looks a bit like Switzerland 200 years ago but with many payer flags. Their houses look a bit like chalets but very colorful ones with red chilies on the roofs, and dragons, snow lions, gods eating snakes and big penises painted on the outside wall.
One of their best-loved Saint - called the divine mad man allegedly scared many demons and evil spirits away with his private parts and therefore one believes that it still has the same effect. The landscape is very lush right now because of the monsoon. There are a lot of pine trees and paddy fields.
We arrived in Thimphu at 3pm I could hardly keep my eyes open - actually I couldn't anymore.

Later I walked around and found a youth centre - met a young Bhutanese guy a volunteer and I was asked by the manager of the centre to talk about Swiss democracy on Saturday as part of a workshop they were organizing and as exchange I can take some photos. I met the same guy - Tashi and his friend Dorji by accident on Tuesday while they were on their way to a festival in a village called Hongtsho, up the hill towards Punakha Of course I went along. What a chance to photograph local people celebrating a religious festival in honor of a local male deity called Yartshap ! This festival happens once a year It was absolutely amazing - I felt so lucky and so very happy to be there.
The crowd at the festival were in a very celebratory mood, they had a little fair – about 6 stalls, one sold food and drink, one offered dart play, one sold a lot of plastic toys making noise for the kids and at 4 of them one could bet money. That was obviously very popular. They were drinking and chewing doma – a mix of leaves and betel nut. It makes the whole mouth red and looks a bit like old vampire movie special effects. It also smells quite strongly – but it is very popular. There are always two clowns, jaspers that lighten the whole ritual up. Their masks were amazing, looked very old and worn. Once one came very close to me and I could see that he had some comics stickers on his forehead. First I though oh what a pity, but then I thought that the difference between living and dead culture also lies in the preservation of it – we would never stick a silly comic figure sticker on the forehead of an old mask but then we don’t use them anymore in this way.
Then there are the religious dancers representing the twelve zodiac signs coming out of the little monastery one after the other.
Then Girls bring some offerings and Gonp and Gommo, which are protective deities of Bhutan come out. All of these deities will now disappear slowly one after the other and then the Yartshap will be brought out and placed on the altar. Now people will offer money to the deity for prosperity, happy cattle….
It was amazing in every way.

But otherwise I am slowly getting in touch with all the people I arranged to meet before hand - it all goes quite well. I have to have a permit for everything - road, monasteries, and hydroelectricity power station.... They are keeping a very close eye on my movements and because the government did not invite me but a private person, I have very little weight. But it does not matter too much for this story.

I am planning to leave thimphu at the weekend and drive to Chukka and Thala, and then move on to Wangdi, stay there for a while, move on to Bumthang and stay there for 2 weeks and then go to Shemgang at the end to visit Dorjee and old friend of mine.
Right now I am in the process of finding a driver/translator and a guide to come along... But it proves to be a bit tricky. The main season has just started and all the guides are booked.

I think the main story will be on the young people here. Wednesday I have found out about a youth program, a youth club with focus on art - I had a very long and interesting conversation with the organizer and I will take pictures of the workshops on Saturday. There is a rehabilitation centre for the youngsters and very new a detention centre for young offenders - both of which I want to get access to - I can only imagine how difficult this is going to be.
But tonight I will explore Thimphu's night life - and photograph it hopefully.
And happy me they have got the equivalent of the Haygate here too - council housing Bhutanese style - it looks very different from Elephant and caste that much I have already spotted.

Read on further on my world press blog ..

2007-05-13T15:32:00.000+01:00

Because the next task's project is part of a collective and the blog itself will be archived - I had to start a new blogs. This is its url http://itrdu1.arts.ac.uk/wordpress/cleisinger1/.
See you there. Thanks

The Original - Food stall outside the Elephant an Castle Shopping Centre, London, May 2007© Claudia Leisinger 2007

No_2

2007-05-06T15:24:00.001+01:00

When I see a tower block I always wonder who knows whom and how? Maybe the person living behind the third window on the second floor knows the inhabitants of the seventh window on the first floor really well – both have dogs or kids the same age, but they don’t get along with 2nd window 5th floor because of the noise his car makes in the morning …
In short I would like to draw a map of relationships between the residents of one of these tower blocks.
Plans and thoughts:_-I intend to photograph early mornings and in the evenings/night, leaving or returning times, that is when we are emotionally most involved with our families and homes._-Ideally I meet a family that agrees to participate. I would photograph them within their environment, get to know them, their friends within the estate and go from there.
Pieces of the story:_-Photographing the lives of the inhabitants of a flat, the time they share, like meals, after school time, going to bed, getting up…_-I want to position my camera on time-lapse setting on their TV and record their evening without being present. Recording the time they spend in their flats separated by a wall but within the same building._-Documenting the relationships between the inhabitants while they meet in the stairway, local shop, on site café, at home, in meetings…
Format:_-35mm and 2 photos 5-4 large format of the estate at daytime and night time.

Starting off

2007-05-06T15:22:00.001+01:00

It was a strange thing, coming up with ideas to document a community that lives relatively close but I don't actually know anything about, nor, at first glance, can really relate to. I have never lived in a house with more than 3 stories / 5 neighbours but I have lived for a long time in a house that was considered uninhabitable for Swiss people, too old, no heating except for a wood-fired stove, no warm water and a medieval sanitation system. It was a big house, rumoured to have been a monastery in the past, with a garden, two attics and three cellars plus a huge barn, a stable and a pen all occupied by the relevant animals. It was a great place to grow up. After 15 years this house was knocked down for commercial reasons, to make place for an ordinary three-family-terrace house. Not many people really understood why we were sad since the new houses were so much more convenient.
When I think about this house, I see the wooden ceiling of my bedroom and the shapes the branch marks made, the view from the roof, the smell of fire in the morning. For my first project idea for the Elephant I drew from that memory and so I essentially want to photograph what the inhabitants of the Haygate Estate will miss once it is gone.
I will be looking for people who have grown up in the estate or lived there for a long time. I will capture their memories on medium format, when, where and how they want to remember them. In addition I want to record their voices.

Gilles Peress

2007-04-24T20:32:00.001+01:00

Copyright Gilles Peress/Magnum Photos
IRAN. Teheran. 1979. Amusement park

This is one of the pictures I have looked at while researching for my essay on the New Photojournalism of the 1980's and I just like it so much - so I will post it here.
It is a photo from Gilles Peress's book: Telex Iran

Elephant and Castle

2007-04-24T16:15:00.001+01:00

New term - new brief. We shall study the Elephant and Castle community, which is in the middle of a regeneration program drawn up by Southwark council. For those who don’t know this area or haven’t actually had a chance to look beyond the roundabouts because they are so confusing, there are a number of very large council housing tower blocks (amongst other places), which are going to be knocked down and hence allow for a reshaping of this area. Plans can be viewed on http://www.elephantandcastle.org.uk/.
Not knowing much about this locale nor the community, a group of us LCC students set out to discover it on Friday 20th of April - last week. The Haygate Estate, one of the longest in Europe, looks very vast and anonymous from the outside. I wonder how it looks within these flats and am quite excited about this project and the prospect to get to know some of the people living in this community.

Bandit's Roost by Jacob Riis, 1888, from How the Other Half Lives.

2007-04-11T23:16:00.001+01:00

by Jacob Riis
This image is Bandit's Roost at 59½ Mulberry Street, considered the most crime-ridden, dangerous part of New York City.

Amazing, isn't it?

Finally

2007-04-11T23:07:00.000+01:00

I had to take out some time to write the essay - finally done, I wanted to update my blog but I couldn't log in anymore, must have pushed the password out of my brain filling up with so many words.
Thanks to luiz - thank you - I am back in my blog. juhui

Bilingsgate Market, porters having a smoke outside, through the windows

2007-03-29T22:48:00.001+01:00

Billingsgate Market, Sunrise

2007-03-29T22:32:00.001+01:00

2007-03-29T22:23:00.001+01:00

What a lucky day

2007-03-29T21:12:00.000+01:00

Where shall I start? This Monday I decided to rearrange my plans to make them suit reality. The project I had planed for these 4 weeks just didn't really seem to get off the ground. It is not so much an access problem as the bureaucracy that threatened to suffocate my enthusiasm and because time is running out too, I decided to let it rest and concentrate on my Grave Digger project - and the essay of course.

So today I went back to my Grave Diggers in Brenchly Gardens to arrange interviews. When I got there they were just heading out to a funeral. It was the funeral of Michael Ayotunde Dosunmu, the 15-year old boy who was shot in Peckham in February.I lingered around, asked for permission to photograph and was lucky. After having spent the last week on the phone talking my mouth fuzzy - a simple nod of permission was all it took - that was great.

Wish you all the best

claudia

Grave diggers, Brenchly Gardens, London, 06.03.2007

2007-03-28T18:43:00.002+01:00

These are the photos of my current project on Grave Diggers.