NYC Trip: Jypsy Jeyfree
January 2, 2018NYC Trip Blog Series
Part 3: Jypsy Jeyfree Photoshoot
Model and Make-Up: Jyspsy Jeyfree
Visual Ninja: Jik-Reuben Pringle
Location: The A-Type, Chinatown, Manhattan.
What I love the most about my trip to New York, is that almost everything happened so effortlessly, spontaneous and . I met Jypsy, who is the lead vocalist for the IGBO band at their summer Rooftop Cookout at the Our Wicked Lady in Brooklyn, New York.
At first sight, I was immediately intrigued by her personal style and eclectic mannerisms. I had to go over to her and ask for a couple snaps. We also had a really cool talk when she found out I was from Jamaica, as she lamented about her time spent on the island during the coincidental visit of Prince Ermias Sahle Selassie. At this moment I was completely new on the scene and had no clue she was apart of the IGBO band until after when my friend Maria told me. She’s a kindred spirit and I adore her energy especially her performance later that afternoon.
After that day I was not satisfied with the portraits I had taken at the event and reached out to her via social media to do a collaborative photoshoot. She loved the idea and we planned the shoot for the day before I was leaving. I do remember that being probably being the most hectic day I had while away, as i still had last minute shopping and other people to meet up with.
However the day came and we met up at the A-Type; which is a free membership creative hub, that houses a studio, screen printing facility and work/exhibition space, which as how synchronicity works was being co-managed by Benjamin who plays lead guitar for the IGBO band.
I bet you’re wondering how I carried out a studio photoshoot; did I rent light, shoot natural light, etc? Well firstly I had no budget at point to rent any lights neither did I purchase or brought any lighting gear with me. I only travelled with my camera and my lenses. Thankfully for me the A-Type was well equipped with continuous studio lighting, which was a joy for me because I’ve been meaning to plan a shoot where I only shot with continuous lighting vs strobes or flashes.
Another obstacle I had to face was that the studio space to my (mis)fortune was being used for an exhibition so instead of being discouraged, I decided to make use of the plants and wooden panelled storage doors upstairs in the main working area. Which for me was super cool and I believe turned out way better than if i had used the typical white background provided.
Jypsy was a joy to work with, it was as if we we’ve worked together on numerous occasions. I didn’t have to give her any directions she worked her poses and I captured accordingly. At the end of it all, I was left with many solid shots of which I chose 6 to present to you.
Part 4 coming soon!
-Jik-Reuben Pringle, The Visual Ninja,
2018.
~Peace, Perfect Peace~