Afternoon in Bath
It didn’t take long to plan this shoot with Sofia.
Ukrainian-born with Polish blood running through her veins, Sofia soon appeared to me as the embodiment of the fieriness and boldness often associated with Eastern Europe.
One should never plan a shoot in a tourist-packed town like Bath on Sundays. Regardless, yours truly is always up for a challenge: no, I’m not blaming my full time occupation at a photo lab which gives me some joy, except for the abundance of free time. In addition to that, fate decided to play a trick on the team by making our arrival at Prior Park coincide with the new closing time for the winter season, which, of course, had to start on that very day.
Sofia’s shrewd mind proved worthwhile and taught us how to take advantage of festivities to dodge Bath’s sneaky resident-permit-holders-only areas and find the perfect free parking spot
just a short walking distance from the centre.
The three of us proceeded to have coffee together and talk about our lives, backgrounds, Japanese anime series, and food preferences.
We eventually found our photographic Eldorado in a less touristy part of town, at the Holburne Museum, surrounded by Doric pillars and perfectly trimmed hedges.
As we reached our destination, I realised we were already in the middle of golden hour.
Initially, it was planned that we would take our final shots under this much sought-after quality of light. However, the current state of affairs forced us to anticipate the grand finale in order to get at least half of the set done in the remaining thirty minutes or so of good natural illumination.
I mentioned earlier that we were a trio, didn’t I?
In fact, on that day, I was assisted by my Japanese friend, photographer, and videographer, Yusuke Yamamoto, from a city I dearly love: Osaka.
Yusuke-san’s contagious enthusiasm and excitement propelled us throughout the shoot, and his continuous feedback proved extremely valuable.
Instagram: @sofia_kovalchukivska and @_____yyam
Yusuke took amazing behind the scenes shots in black and white on his OM camera equipped with beautiful Leica lens and he also recorded a cinematic video that documented our session.
I believe he was also shooting a vlog whilst driving to the location, but I wonder if it’ll ever see the light of day. Only time will tell.
Sofia brought a few outfits and accessories which she bought especially for this day. We opted for a total black pseudo-gothic look that worked really well with the surrounding environment.
The dark rose necklace was paramount and gave each portrait an aesthetic boost.
Photoshoots like this feel like a tranquil stroll in the company of old friends, easing the pressure off one’s artistic endeavours, or the compelling urgency to make everything look larger than life for those working with you, acquaintances, and strangers who will scrutinise your work, let alone your hypercritical self.
Establishing a genuine connection, scratching off the surface of that very grey area wherein individuals put on a big smile only for the sake of making things work for a couple of hours, is not what I morbidly go after.
When this happens though, even if only momentarily, a fleeting sense of reconciliation with the world arises from within and all insecurities about my craft are held off for a little while.
Some of you might be familiar with Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi’s concept of flow: in this feeling, creativity thrives and the abstract to concrete output appears seamless, organic, purposeful.
This doesn’t necessarily mean that the final outcome will be of any cultural relevance, of course.
Nonetheless, I think it deserves a place on the map of my photography.