Doing a shoot with Andy from FYXO was fun, and a
challenge. His shoots boast “hot chicks and hot bikes” in a way that most
photographers fail to capture. His life and love of bikes is always clearly
represented in his shots by the care and taste he demonstrates when
representing both bike and rider.
He balances both subjects expertly, where
usually the bike or woman dominate the photo, overriding the real point of the
picture. His pictures get this point, which is an interaction or a relationship
in the content. This is easy to miss when trying to find a balance between sex
appeal and intelligence. This is why I said yes to a shoot with him. Have a
look at some of his other shoots here.
Andy initially threw some ideas to me of what to wear for
the shoot. We met at the Australian Custom Bike Show in Melbourne and I was
wearing a light blouse with a pussy bow neck and an A line pleated skirt. We
started discussing a look like what I was wearing on that day, but when he
showed me the bike we would be shooting I began crafting other ideas.
Meet the Cinelli SC. There is a full bike only shoot and
specs available on the FYXO website here.
I loved the look of this bike. I loved the class, the
intelligence of it. So I started a Pinboard to develop a look that would
compliment all the best aesthetic features of the bike. http://pinterest.com/lianasmooz/prep/
Here are some of the shots from the Pinboard.
What I developed was a simple, elegant, preppy look. I
loved photos that incorporated a ‘bike courier’ feel. The outfit needed to have
clean lines, classic cuts and compliment the bike instead of overpowering it.
For this reason, I went for high waisted short shorts. These would keep the
body of the bike easily visible and add a little bit of sass. The plain shirt
was partnered with a skinny tie the same colour as the shorts to make the
outfit more ‘uniform’ looking.
Shirt: Target
Shorts: Miss Selfridge
Tie: Roger David
Shoes: Rivers
Watch: Antique store find
Bag: Primark
During the shoot I got to look at the shots to try and
work on my poses and expressions and Andy was brilliant for letting me know
what I needed to adjust to get the best from a shot. It was part, hanging out
with a friend, part photo shoot.
We chatted and I asked him lots of questions about
the bike, his time as a bike courier and his new daughter who has been born
since we had last seen each other at the Australian Custom Bike Show. The shoot
ended when I got pooped on by a bird. Fortunately for me, it was a very solid poop
that I was able to shake out of my hair. We laughed it off and went for coffee
on Rathdowne St.
You can view the full shoot and read Andy’s words on it
at Fyxomatosis.com
