M.A.S.H

Goodbye! M.A.S.H going into Archive

2013-03-16T13:06:00.001+00:00

Hi Everyone

Gosh it's been a while since I visited this blog! I have really enjoyed blogging here and sharing my views, joys and inspirations. It's been a great platform for developing my style in both photography and blogging and has driven me to explore new music, art, style and hype about it!

With many new ventures I've unfortunately had no time to keep blogging here however you can view my new projects here where I will still be blogging about similar things but on a different blog:

My photography arts blog: http://nishasvest.blogspot.co.uk/

My website: http://nishahaq.blogspot.co.uk/

I'm also the creative director and main contributor to Lost & Found Mag blog where I have been spending a lot of time managing the blog and launching it. M.A.S.H blog has given me the experience to create Lost & Found's image and I hope for the publication to be launched A/W 2013. Please check out the blog here: http://www.lost-and-found-mag.com/

Many thanks for reading over the years. Can't believe I created my first post 6th July 2010! Feels like such a long time ago. And for people to still read this blog is amazing. Thank you for 89,965 page views! You certainly have given me the confidence.

So time for a goodbye to this blog... it's been great blogging! The blog will still be live on the internet but I will cease to blog anymore.

Thanks,
Nisha.

Artist of the Week > Jessie Ware

2012-08-24T23:06:00.000+01:00

Yikes its been ages since I've posted on this blog! Almost a year. Well one of my summer resolutions was to blog more so today I'm deciding to put that into action! I must admit I've been demotivated by posting onto this blog due to the adult content I've been forced to have (this isn't an 'adult' site) but I hope you wonderful readers won't be put off by it!

Album released 20th August 2012. Buy on Amazon

Anywhos onto the main business. Today was a slow day where the clouds overcast and rain drizzled throughout the afternoon; I was thinking of what to do especially as electricity was cut off for most of the day (mum working on sockets in the dining room) and thought I would pick up the dusty guitar and practice singing. I was stuck on what to sing and looked up Nina Nesbitt on Youtube (A wonderful acoustic indie singer-songwriter) and was directed to Jessie Ware, a 27 English singer-songwriter, under recommendations. There I clicked on her current single 'Wildest Moments'. A mellow slow paced radio-friendly song sung with indie soul, her tone is a delight to listen to. The video, directed by Kate Moross, is a simple yet a fitting music video for the song; simple song structure and repetitive choral lyrics yet ever so catching and I love the words and how they speak truth:

'Maybe in our wildest moments

We could be the greatest, we could be the greatest

Maybe in our wildest moments

We could be the worst of all'

I particularly love her acoustic rendition of this song featured on the deluxe edition of her début album 'Devotion'. Other favourites are 'Running' (the vocals and electric guitar are brilliant!) and 'Night Light'.

Further Links:

Jessie Ware Website

Jessie Ware Soundcloud

Jessie Ware Music Facebook

Jessie Ware Youtube

Jessie Ware Twitter

Nisha Haq Photography > The Kiss 0.2

2011-12-05T01:22:00.001+00:00

It's been a while since I did a post on my work. This piece of work is a GIF and I've only experimented with creating these only on a few occasions. Though they look rather simple there is quite a lot of work involved! I made 'The Kiss 0.2' for a short project at uni (BA Photography at Southampton Solent University) to do with time. I was thinking of a few ideas and thought I'd revisit a shoot I did this Jan. 'Kiss Me Kay' (Jan 2011) are stills from a video I made. I was experimenting with time lapse and the subtle differences in each frame in a kiss, a simple act with so many expressions. For my current time project I wanted to have a slightly different twist but fundamentally have the same basis for the idea. This time I shot outside against a fountain background which was also on a time loop for when the water would shoot out. I also used a tripod so all the shots can be level. Thinking about when to shoot and wait for the fountain all involved calculating correct timing and using a very fast shutter. I shot on continuous shoot mode and as it was outside I could shoot at a fast shutter at a low ISO so more detail.

To create the image I first resized all the images to 600 pixel width and saved the images again using Fastzone Photo Resizer software I downloaded for free from the internet. This meant I had low risk of Photoshop CS2 crashing due to uploading a lot large images. I then edited the first photo and saved the actions I did to it to apply the action to other photos easily. I added contrast, a few colour filters, soft Gaussian blur and used the sharpen image filter. I opened all the photos I wanted to use one by one and replayed my 'The Kiss' action 26 times. Now all my images were ready to use. I then created a Photoshop document to create my gif. This involved opening all the edited images and simple placing the images on top of each other. I opened the 'animation' window, the tool to use to create gifs. I then selected all the layers and chose the option 'Make frames from layers' from the small arrow on the right of the 'animation' window. I then selected all the frames and chose 0.2 second delay from each frame to the next. To save as a gif I selected 'Save for Web' and chose GIF format, not JPEG.

Here's the image I created: Tell me what you think? Being relatively new at creating GIFs I'm quite happy how it turned out.

Kiss Me Kay (January 2011)

M.A.S.H

Video of the Week > Shame Trailer 2

2011-11-20T21:43:00.001+00:00

I've been a fan of Michael Fassbender since seeing him in 'The Devil's Whore' which was shown on Channel 4 in the UK in 2008. Since then he's been a rising star and I think it's safe to say he is hot property at the moment! He is currently a well sought out actor in Hollywood with the box office hits such as X-Men: First Class which was amazing, a beautiful retelling of Jane Eyre and 3 highly anticipated films coming out next year: Haywire, A Dangerous Method and Shame. The trailer for Shame really caught my eye which was directed by Steve McQueen. McQueen had directed the hard-hitting drama, Hunger featuring Fassbender 3 years ago which brought Fassbender into the limelight. The pair have teamed up again and Shame looks like an intriguing, mesmerizing drama. Fassbender plays Brandon who has a sexual addiction in New York but when his sister comes to stay everything is turned upside down. Though my very short synopsis of the film seems very shallow the trailer speaks for itself. From just looking at this short trailer it shows that McQueen is certainly a director to watch. My favourite part in the trailer is at 1.00 / 1.34 when Brandon (Fassbender) softly touches a woman's hand on a vertical rail on the NY subway. The mere touch has a sexual energy which I find fascinating.

The film is due to be released 13th Jan 2012 in the UK, rated 18. It also features Oscar nominated Carey Mulligan from An Education, another star in her own right.

Watch it here:

I also love the poster promoting the film. How the meaning of a word can change with the presence of a picture. Text placement and images are powerful tools in advertising. I particularly like how they've used an image of crinkled bed sheets with the simple noun, 'Shame' written in plain sans serif white font. I'm thinking it could be Helvetica however I think the subtext is, not the main title. If anyone knows please drop a comment below! Thanks!

Sources

IMDB: Shame

Youtube: FilmsActu

Shame Poster

M.A.S.H

Photograph of the Day > Stunning Swarovski Shoot by Benjamin Lennox

2011-11-14T01:34:00.001+00:00

My friend Kirsty had just bought the latest issue of Vogue with Gisele on the cover which came with a 'best places to party' guide. On the back of that cover I came across such a captivating image that I was searching the net for the shoot as I only had a glimpse of the image before we left for our train. I took a snapshot on my phone to remind myself to look it up! I think this image is pretty spectacular.

This was shot for Vogue Promotions, Vogue UK Dec 2011 by Benjamin Lennox. I had found these images on Kim Howells blog who was the stylist for this shoot. I think this shoot is beautiful especially the vibrant colours and the model's expression in my Photograph of the Day. I love the styling, fashion and how it's shot. There really isn't anything I can critique on! You certainly see the sparkle in Swarovski.

Source:

Kim Howells Blog

Video of the Week > It Will Rain - Bruno Mars

2011-11-13T13:33:00.001+00:00

Following on from my previous post 'Stewart Sizzles in Michelangelo di Battista Shoot' where Kristen Stewart is promoting her Breaking Dawn film I couldn't help but blog about the official song for the film, It Will Rain by Bruno Mars. Despite not being that interested in the new film coming out or the hype surrounding it, I thought Mars' single was beautiful and heartfelt. His vocals are stunning and I particularly love his lyrics and how he puts a song together. His ballads are always a hit and he's only been in the limelight for a year or so yet he's certainly put his stamp on the music industry. I love the soft piano echoes throughout the song and the chilled out beat. I've enjoyed this song so much that I've decided to play it on guitar!

Check out the new video here featuring clips of Breaking Dawn:

M.A.S.H

Stewart Sizzles in Michelangelo di Battista Shoot

2011-11-13T13:06:00.001+00:00

It certainly has been a while since I've blogged so to start the 're-vamp' of M.A.S.H I've decided to blog this beautiful set of images by renowned fashion photographer Michelangelo di Battista of Kristen Stewart for November 2011 issue of Vogue Italia. She wears designs by Alexander McQueen, Roberto Cavalli, Blumaine, Marchesa to name a few. Well known for her portrayal of Bella in the Twilight Series she certainly oozes gothic vampire sex appeal. Stewart is certainly the one to watch with her highly anticipated new movie being released, Breaking Dawn and also a new trailer for another new film, Snow White and the Huntsman coming out next summer. Although I'm not really a fan of Twilight or the media obsession with Stewart I love how Battista captures her raw simple beauty with a touch of class and mystery. These images are most definitely captivating and atmospheric which I love. I also think the hair and make up is alluring.

Sources:
Touchpuppet.com / FashionGoneRogue.com

Further Reading:
Vogue.it
Management + Artists - Michelangelo di Battista

M.A.S.H

Sorry Guys! Defo time to revive this blog!

2011-11-07T22:07:00.000+00:00

So it certainly has been a very very long while since I've written on this blog and on Blogger in general (since July in fact!?!)...

"WHAT'S HAPPENIN'?!?!" you could ask...

No folks, I haven't dropped off the face of the earth, been abducted by aliens and I haven't really been without internet so I have no excuse really except mere laziness which is a horrible thing to hear! Dun Dun Dun.... You could say I've had blogger's block! So I'm very sorry that this blog has been stagnant for 4 months! :( I plan to revive it and blog regularly every week about the things you & I love!

I don't plan to quit this blog and I still stay true to everything I write on here (well probably 95% of it anyway.. views can change over time!). I must admit I have been very busy especially over the past month as I'm now in university studying Photography! Woo Hoo! The past 4/5 weeks have been no easy feat with various things happening (both mad & sad) however I am adamant to change my ways and get motivated to blog again. I have adopted a new attitude: 'Fuck It, Why Not?'; meaning I'm going to get out there more and with a mindset of 'what's the worst that can happen?'. :)

Expect a few changes here and there and I may change the format/layout to an updated snazzier version??
But in the meantime.. let's get blogging!

M.A.S.H

Video of the Day > Horrible Bosses - 15+ Trailer

2011-07-12T21:11:00.001+01:00

A trailer can really 'make or break' a film (hence there's big money in trailer production!) and this new 'red band' (I assume is some American phrase) trailer for Horrible Bosses is very funny. I hadn't heard of this movie until today and watching the trailer (below) has certainly made me want to see this in the cinema! To be honest, I'm not a fan of films that Jennifer Aniston features in (don't get me wrong I love Friends to the extreme!) however this film looks genuinely funny and taps in to everyones' humour from around the world. There are many American blockbuster comedies that I don't find funny, but the Horrible Bosses trailer made me laugh a lot. I enjoyed Charlie Day & Jason Sudeikis performance in Going the Distance and I think Kevin Spacey is an amazing actor. Also Colin Farrell is totally rocking the half-bald look (reminds me of the Tom Cruise look in Tropic Thunder) and I liked Jason Bateman in Juno. So this certainly has a solid cast, not to forget Jamie Foxx and Ioan Gruffudd also features, so I'm expecting big things!

The basic plot is that 'Three friends conspire to murder their awful bosses when they realize they are standing in the way of their happiness.'- (IMDb.com) This is going to be released 22 July 2011 in the UK.

My favourite dialogue in the trailer is:

KURT Wait Wait, what's this for?

WETWORK MAN Wouldn't want to a leave a stain now, would we?

DALE Your ad says you do 'wet work'

WETWORK MAN I urinate on other men for money. Why else do you

think my ad was in the 'Mens seeking men' section

KURT You fucking idiot!

NICK Could you be any dumber?

DALE We are MEN looking for a MAN!

M.A.S.H

Video of the Day > Best Thing I Never Had - Beyonce

2011-07-08T18:56:00.002+01:00

So I've decided to do a new feature... 'Video of the Day' which will include videos such as music videos, film trailers, fashion films, random vlogs or even a funny video from Youtube.

Just watched this new music video from the fabulous super talented Beyonce, 'Best Thing I Never Had'. This video was just released yesterday yet already has half a million views... the only 2 reasons this is because Beyonce has a huge fan following (as she is awesome) and she looks damn sexy in bridal lingerie! :P I've been listening to this song non stop from her new 4th studio album, 4. I love the upbeat major key to the song and casual beat to it making it a funky 'ballad'. Though this song has 'Beyonce' style written over it, there's nothing wrong in being typical especially when the song is so catchy. Watch her new music video here:

P.S. (I want to look that beautiful for my wedding! haha)

Further Reading:
BeyonceVevo / Beyonce Online / Beyonce Facebook

HAPPY BIRTHDAY M.A.S.H! It's been a Year!

2011-07-07T11:16:00.001+01:00

Wow, it's been a year since I've been running this blog! Time does go by fast! Technically yesterday was the anniversary since my first post.. so now it's been a year and 1 day!

I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who reads & follows my blog (it's hard to tell sometimes whether what you write goes out to people) however if just one person reads my blog it's all worth it at least. :)

Though running this blog has been tough and I admit there have been long absences when I haven't blogged often (due to college commitments) I've always managed to stick to this and try to blog as often as possible :)

This year I unfortunately got flagged by someone which has meant that I've had to keep an adult content warning. I have since removed objectionable material and hope to make this 'adult content' free very soon & hopefully get more readers!

Despite not having a huge readership (eg. in the thousands) I simply enjoy writing and researching what's hyping and just discovering amazing talent that is out there.

I'm also hoping to change the layout slightly and make it easier to navigate through this blog and easy links to click on. Also do more M.A.S.H street style posts. :D If you have any requests or suggestions on what this blog could do better than comment below, email me at nish.nash@sky.com or 'like' and comment on M.A.S.H facebook page.

However in the meantime would like to say HAPPY BIRTHDAY M.A.S.H! and I hope to continue this on for a very long time.. so I 'ain't going anywhere! haha

M.A.S.H

Photograph of the Day > The Tempest by Jenny & Lee

2011-07-06T16:02:00.002+01:00

In the latest issue (#14) of Ones2Watch I came across this wonderful shoot by Jenny & Lee called The Tempest. 'Tempest' meaning 'A violent windy storm' (Google Dictionary) is also a Shakespeare play. I believe this shoot references Shakespeare's 'The Tempest' play (however I haven't read it); also the studio set features blistering garments.

I chose this photo as I really like the expression on her face and the clothes she's wearing is marvellous. The dress is a Kristian Aadvenik design. Black & red are 2 bold striking colours signifying love, power, war, rage, passion. I particularly like the symmetry in this pose and the intense look the model, Lisa Bommerson is giving.

Credits:

Photography by Jenny & Lee

Styling by Nicole Freeman

Set Design by Stéphanie Kevers

Hair by Maki Tanaka using Bumble & Bumble

Makeup by Christopher Phillips

Model(s) Lisa Bommerson @ FM Agency

Photographer Assisted by Catherine O’Gorman

Stylist Assisted by Ronnie Kenlock

Special Thanks to Big Sky Studios

Source:
Ones2Watch

Further Reading:
Jenny & Lee Photography / Lisa Bommerson @ FM Agency / Kristian Aadvenik

M.A.S.H

Lookbook > Death by Stripes

2011-07-05T19:24:00.002+01:00

I recently did a set of self-portraits (May 2011) originally intended for my Chair A2 Photography project but never got round to editing them in time for the deadline. I sifted through this shoot which I wasn't too happy about but managed to find some editing-worthy photos out of the 250ish photos I took!

I thought these shots were worthy of a Lookbook.nu entry... so Hype / Like it if you like this style!

About This Look: I decided to wear my zebra print dress as I wanted to play the role of a hunted down prey, a zebra, with a fashion twist especially as zebra print is in season this summer. The papers on the floor represent the endless work that is 'killing' me and the chair signifies the countless hours sat down working (on that particular chair).

I have yet to wear this dress out in public (give me an occasion to wear this to!) plus I would like for this to be tailored in as when I bought it online from boohoo.com it was a little big. ... Can a zebra change it's stripes.. hmm?

Anyways Hype away ppl! haha btw, you can check out more photos on Flickr from this set: http://bit.ly/my8sCF

Summer Movie Guide (UK)

2011-07-04T21:19:00.001+01:00

Despite the majority of posts being about photography and fashion I still love to blog about general things that interest me; in particular I'm a big film fan and regularly spend my evenings being up-to-date on imdb.com.

Due to my local cinema (which only has 2 screens btw!) which has only recently boosted to 3D technology digital screens a few months ago, I've certainly been trying to see as many new releases as possible. So far this year I've been to see (click on film titles to link to imdb.com page)

Spring:

Green Hornet

Paul

I Am Number Four

Submarine

Source Code

Sucker Punch

Thor

Summer:

Priest

Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides

The Hangover Part II

X-Men: First Class

Green Lantern

So far this year I would say my top 3 films would be The Hangover Part II, Thor and X-Men: First Class and a special mention to Submarine; one of the best independent British films I've seen in a while.

I loved the humour in The Hangover, 'manly' action in Thor, drama and effects in X-Men: First Class...

... and the sweet & simply touching storyline in Submarine.

The films I'm looking forward to this summer (UK release dates) are:

10th June: Kung Fu Panda 2

17th June: Bad Teacher

8th July: Super

15th July: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2

22nd July: Cars 2

29th July: Captain America: The First Avenger

5th Aug: Mr Popper's Penguins

19th Aug: Cowboys & Aliens

2nd Sept: Fright Night

9th Sept: Friends With Benefits

9th Sept: Jane Eyre

23rd Sept: Crazy, Stupid, Love

23rd Sept: The Art of Getting By

Looks like this summer of movies looks like a good one! What are your anticipated films of this summer?

M.A.S.H

Showgirl, Bluey Robinson - New Music Video

2011-06-28T13:04:00.001+01:00

I've been playing this song over and over and I think his voice is awesome cool. Haven't heard any recent funky newcomers with a sound like his. :) It's all electronic R&B at the moment so it's refreshing to hear a voice like his. woo.. shoowwggiirrl :)

Watch on Youtube

Bluey, 22 year old funky guy from London is a 'distinct British personality' who echoes the likes of 'Prince, Otis Redding, The Jackson 5, Cee-Lo Green and Bruno Mars in Bluey’s sonic spectrum. “I’m influenced by a lot of old music but I’m also a young guy living in London in 2011, so I want to tie the two angles together,” says Bluey'. The single was produced by hit-making mastermind Labrinth who is most famous for his work on the Tinie Tempah track ‘Pass Out’. - (http://www.blueyrobinson.com/about/)

I think the video is casually cool and doesn't over do it with meaningless special effects; the video stays true to the lyrics and I love the summery vibe. I wanna move like those dancers in the video as well! This song has catchy lyrics and Bluey has an incredible voice. Coming from a design background I think the single cover art could have been more eye-catching and echo the coolness of his Showgirl music video however all in all, the song is all you need! :D Showgirl is going on repeat this summer :D

Ooh & check out this awesome acoustic Street Session of Showgirl. I love how he's so 'out' there jamming in the streets. Goes to show he's a 'real' musician, not a manufactured vocoded over popstar. :) He's just too cool isn't he? haha

Bluey Robinson Links:

Official Site / Facebook / Twitter / Myspace / Youtube

M.A.S.H

Nisha Haq Photography > The Secretary's Chair

2011-06-24T15:58:00.003+01:00

For my Chair project (March 2011-) I first focused on fashion photography and using the chair as a prop for various fashion shoot. After all my fashion research I decided to finally shoot in the studio drawing inspiration from Willy Vanderperre’s photos of Lara Stone and Liv Tyler, Giovani Squatriti of Caterina Murino and Nick Knight’s Then Now Next feature for i-D magazine. I liked the simplicity in all these shots and their use of black and white. I have recently done a lot of photos in colour and thought it would be nice to return to the wonders of greyscale. I also decided monochrome would suit these photos better as the outfit I chose for my model, Lauhren Jones would stand out much better especially as they were black and white clothes. I did this shoot in March 2011 in my college photography studio.

I was inspired by the Chanel look and with a classy translucent material Asos blouse teamed with a bow tie (M&S), high heeled lace shoe boots and elasticated black mini skirt from New Look with hold ups and stockings (vintage); I wanted to fuse elegance and sexy which lead me to the idea of a secretary especially after looking at this film poster from 2002. I wanted to play on office fantasies and stereotypes of female secretaries whilst retaining the fashion element. On some of the shots I didn’t want them to be too sexy and wanted to portray an easy going lady despite the constricting garments.

FACEBOOK / FLICKR / TWITTER / MODELMAYHEM

Nisha Haq Photography & Design Links:

BLOG: mashthings.blogspot.com

FLICKR: flickr.com/mashnashphotography

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/pages/Nisha-Haq-Photography-Design/18373...

TWITTER: twitter.com/nashdood

M.A.S.H

Luxurious Louboutin F/W 11 by Peter Lippman

2011-06-23T10:47:00.002+01:00

One day I'll get a pair of Louboutin's but for now I'll just blog about them!

I love these photos Louboutin F/W 11 collection by Peter Lippman. They are photographed exquisitely and the post-processing is extra-ordinary. I love the fact they've used inspiration from iconic historical paintings and gave a modern Louboutin twist to it. It certainly makes the shoes even more luxurious than they already are! There have been many adverts/photos where the photo upstages the product however here these photos shows a brilliant collaboration between photographer & designer and equally work with both strengths highlighting the shoe as well as the artistic creativity. Who would ever though that Whistler's Mother would be holding a Louboutin! (last picture)

Source: Trendland.net

Further Reading: Christian Louboutin / Peter Lippman Photography

M.A.S.H

Autumn Trend > Siwy Denim A 2011 Look Book

2011-06-21T17:11:00.003+01:00

To me it seems crazy to even think about autumn when summer hasn't even really started in Britain (well down in the South West, April was the summer!) but when I saw these simple but very stylish clothes teamed with sexy denim I thought I'd post some trend related photos.

Siwy Denim, launched from New York, create 'easy-to-wear' look for all shapes and sizes and I think would look great on both small & tall people (Horray for little me!) Their latest autumn collection is called 'Crazy on You'. I don't really see denim as a trend any more as it'll always be trendy! It's just the different cuts and shades and what to wear it with that changes from season to season. I'll certainly be taking style tips from Siwy Denim this autumn. Anyways.. enjoy next season's looks from Siwy Denim:

Source: Fashionising.com

Nisha Haq Photography > Dood Looks Like A Lady

2011-06-20T20:36:00.002+01:00

One of my most interesting and 'daring' shoots I've done to date. For 'Dood Looks Like a Lady' I decided to get my fabulous gay friend, Matt Giles to dress up as a transvestite for a an hour for my Photography chair project. After continuously seeing how the androgynous look is very in season (especially after the Andrej Pejic case of modelling both females & menswear) the fashion world is becoming more accepting and even promoting this fashionable 'transvestite' trend. This particularly intrigued me where I wanted to explore themes of burlesque styling with a modern 'twist'. I linked this in with my chair project as burlesque dancers often use a chair as part of their act so thought I'd mix these themes up.

For this shoot (shot in March 2011) I dressed Matt in my lingerie (was really funny doing this) with the aid of Lauhren Jones for dressing and some make up. I had asked him to bring in a wig just in case however chose not to use it as his neck length conditioned hair looked very silky and feminine anyway! Despite being very rushed for time as I could only book the college studio out for an hour I only had 15 minutes of good shooting. I thought Matt was a great first time model (especially in clothes out of his comfort zone!) and certainly worked the studio space and followed direction very easily. Here are some of the edited shots from the day:

Check this photo out on: Flickr / Facebook

Nisha Haq Photography & Design Links:

BLOG: mashthings.blogspot.com

FLICKR: flickr.com/mashnashphotography

FACEBOOK: www.facebook.com/pages/Nisha-Haq-Photography-Design/18373...

TWITTER: twitter.com/nashdood

M.A.S.H

Big Question: Is Technology slowing eradicating Art?

2011-06-11T20:28:00.003+01:00

I've been browsing through internet blogs and started thinking about how much new technology is available to us and how easily accessible it is. I'm talking about MP3s, MP4s, e-book readers... you name it. The technological world is creating devices where we don't need CDs, DVDs or books any more, everything is technological including online streaming/downloading. I know I can't say much, I've done the odd song download where I didn't want to buy the album or the one-off movie stream when I couldn't go to the cinema which goes on to a whole new topic about illegal downloading n blah (don't report me to the authorities, I'm innocent... honest!), this post is about how art is left behind.

Music

Being a graphic enthusiast; I feel as if people have forgotten the importance of cover art on CDs and how it isn't impacting as it was before the incredibly fast digital era came; this is mainly down to the increased use of the internet. People download singles or albums in MP3 format and don't bother to buy the CD. I prefer buying CDs and enjoy looking through the album art especially interested in the graphic design (and photography) of the front cover, layout and typography.

Here are some great examples of cover art including iconic, controversial and general awesome design:

When listening to music I enjoy flicking through the album art especially if the artist & production team have taken a lot of time and effort into creating an outstanding visual booklet. Although I prefer booklets with lyrics inserted inside I believe concept art is more important. I see albums like a book of songs and each song is a chapter of the story. The booklet should visually represent the concept so that is one reason why album design is very important. I'm quite put off seeing manufactured pop acts with an over-airbrushed face for a front cover and some meaningless sexy poses inside, it just represents the artist as being uncreative and talentless. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE pop music however you can tell the artists that contribute to the CD to those who has everything done for them. So if album art was eradicated then the concept of the album can be lost on the way as music and art certainly go hand-in-hand.

Books

Moving to books I think that people should hold a book when reading. With the new e-book technology where people can just download numerous books to fit on an e-book; people need not buy real books just download data. I'm quite against this technology; yes it's easier and has many benefits especially for people 'on-the-go' but the feel of holding a book and all the other senses we take for granted when reading books will simply be lost. I love the smell; touch and sight of books filling up my shelves and to see that it can all fit in to one small compact silver object isn't satisfying for me. It's like having a whole beautiful closet shoved into one tiny box; no one can admire it. I recently bought a book called 'How to do more of just about Everything' (which is an addictive read!) and I hadn't bought one in ages! I forgot how much I enjoyed reading books and flicking through pages rather than sitting hours on end on my laptop. It's the same with CDS and DVDs as I like collecting and seeing them on my shelf in front of my eyes and the array of colours and designs that feature on the covers makes the stories/music much more exciting. Furthermore I believe the existence of blurbs will be lost and people will soon lose touch with the importance of books; the bearer of knowledge. So not only is technology diminishing art but possibly making people less active in terms of not going to the library and researching the old way: using books.

Cinema

Technology has also impacted cinema and with increased sales of devices that offer high quality (even HD quality now!) video functionalities eg. iTouch, people are downloading movies rather than buying DVDs or with the click of a button people can view ratings on movies online and need not bother to see whether the cinema poster art will affect them to watch the film. Gone are the days when artists hand created movie posters to be put especially outside the cinema; this is one reason why Bollywood hand made movie posters are still in high-demand and a joy to look at. The film industry is obsessed with super Photoshopped film posters and there have been numerous blunders that just ruins the art of film and design. A recent example is X-Men: First Class first film poster where many people were shocked at how awful it was and had no reflection on how amazing the film was (honestly is an awesome movie so go watch it now!) but thankfully the marketing team have changed it!

Original posters:

More examples of pretty bad film posters:

All these art forms; cd covers, film posters etc. are not only a form of artistic expression they are created to sell the product so of course has the advertising & marketing element. Does this mean that films, music and book sales will decrease a lot without the impacting presence of poster and cover art?

Well we've already seen a decline in album sales. Statistically this would look like artists and record companies aren't selling as much as before and the music isn't getting out to the public however due to the internet age; data can spread like wildfire making it easier to download both legally and illegally alike especially with the emergence of a blog culture. Sooner or later shop shelves won't be selling hard copies of albums and books, people will just be solely using the internet for everything this includes reading magazines and newspapers online with software/sites such as 'Other Edition', 'issuu.com' and downloading apps to read on iPads and other tablet devices.

In conclusion I believe that printed art for the entertainment industry such as CDs, books and film posters are slowly becoming unnoticed and unappreciated. I honestly hope it doesn't become a dead art form. I don't think technology itself is eradicating art but the development of this has inadvertently lead to the decline of printed art which would be a huge loss to both art and entertainment worlds. Everyone loves to see images and viewing a picture is one of the quickest ways to receive information rather than read words; it is also one of the most powerful methods of communication. If this is lost then hearing about new releases, the experience of reading a book/magazine/newspaper etc. could possibly have detrimental effects on socialisation and the impact of media. I believe advancing technology is brilliant such as the invention of portable devices like iPods, internet blogging (I wouldn't be posting this entry otherwise!) and applications on smartphones etc. has transformed the world in many amazing ways and has made information quick, cheap & accessible and has made people more interconnected because of this, but lest not forget the importance of printed media and where it all began. I hope CDs, DVDs & books etc. are not replaced by the internet and downloadable apps but somehow I've got a feeling it won't be due to the priceless experiences of printed media.

M.A.S.H

Please let me know what your thoughts on this matter are! Post a comment below!

N.B Please note I do not own copyright to images used in this entry and have been copied from other sites. For source origin, right click on image and select 'Copy Image URL' (For Google Chrome users)

If you wish to use excerpts from this entry please credit me and link to this entry page. Thanks.

Photograph of the Day > Alexander Skarsgård by Steven Klein

2011-06-05T20:03:00.003+01:00

Was getting my daily feed of hot guys at homotography.blogspot.com and was utterly captivated by Swedish actor Alexander Skarsgard in this wonderfully sexy shoot by the one-and-only Steven Klein. I must admit when I saw him in Lady Gaga's Paparazzi music video 2 years ago I wasn't completely sold by the guy however after watching True Blood (OMG his acting and mere presence is a pleasure to watch!) and now seeing this incredible shoot I am blown away! It's been a while since I've done 'Photograph of the Day' and this shoot is most deserving of that title... plus what better photograph to get me back in my regular features! The True Blood star is styled by Karl Templer and is photographed for the June/July issue of Interview magazine. He is joined by model Crystal Renn. I wish I could get my hands on this magazine where I live so if you can.. get it! :D

Source: Homotography

Further Reading: Interview Magazine / Steven Klein Studio / IMDb: Alexander Skarsgård / Models.com: Karl Templer

M.A.S.H

'Buy Your Own Burka Barbie' Graphic Design Posters

2011-06-01T23:57:00.002+01:00

Hey Guys

It's been a while since I've posted my work on here and being a person who likes things in chronological order I couldn't post recent works until I posted my old ones (I really should get a hold on things!) So I traced through my Flickr photostream to see what the last piece of work I posted on my blog and realized I haven't blogged these pieces.

Burkas, Barbies & Banning

'Buy Your Own Burka Barbie' was created for my A2 Graphic Design final piece 1 coursework for college (there are 2 final piece coursework modules.) I created these in January 2011 (photo was taken Nov 2010).

Burkas
This piece was submitted for my Identity/Feminism project where I looked at aspects in my life, how I identify with them and my strong views & beliefs. I wanted to look into my Islamic roots (my grandparents are very religious), self-portraiture and what that meant to me. I had intended to just do a self-portrait (see below) but was lacking inspiration on how to go about it. I had submitted this as my first final piece until I realized I really didn't like it and had a typical general message that didn't really identify with me.
I was surfing the internet looking for inspiration and came across Shadi Ghadirian's 'Like Everyday' photo series which looks at the role of Islamic housewives in many Arab countries. Some may say this is stereotypical, I say it's realistic. So 'Like Everyday' and looking at burka Barbie dolls on Trendhunter.com inspired my final piece coursework. I do think Islamic women are oppressed especially in the Middle East (though this is just a generalisation, not all women!) and their voices are left unheard.

Barbie
I decided to create these posters linking in with Barbie, a Westernized concept of beauty and the perfect woman; also Barbie represents global corporate branding. I wanted to look at how women in Islam, in particular housewives are seen as dolls in the sense that they are the 'property' of their husband and are told what to do without a say in the matter including sexual demands. I wanted to portray these themes in this poster with a stereotypical 50's Western housewife advertising style including the catchphrase 'I'm your Real Life Housewife!'. The tagline 'Available in all men's stores for only £1.99' meaning how cheap, easy & accessible it is to get a wife like 'me'.
Whilst creating this design (both posters took a whole weekend of work) I heavily airbrushed and 'Photoshopped' my face to make myself look 'doll-ish' but still human. I wanted the surface to be bright and colourful but with a sarcastic note to it, addressing heavy concepts with a flavour of dark humour. I didn't want to be too provocative, just enough skin showing to communicate my concepts clearly and of course the burka relating to Islam.
(FYI, no copyright infringement intended on Barbie!)

Banning
I had this work exhibited in one of my college's corridors and stayed there for a few days until it was suddenly taken down! At first I thought it was because the college was clearing the space for more work to be exhibited but was unusual that only my work was taken down and my friends work in my graphics class still remained on the walls. I lead myself to believe that the technicians got tired and hadn't gotten round to taken the other work down... but of course that wasn't the case! I had to enquire myself (unfortunately the college didn't have the decency to tell me themselves) why my work was taken down. It later came to my knowledge that my work was TOO CONTROVERSIAL!! The principal had apparently voiced concerned that it wasn't 'family friendly' and subsequently was taken down for open evening where all ages were welcomed to attend. At first that seemed shocking for the bad reasons that I couldn't exhibit my work any more, then I realized to some extent is a weird sort of compliment that my work was too controversial (meaning my message obviously came across!) and as a graphic designer is a good sign to cause such a reaction (I hadn't considered these posters to be controversial or using shock tactics as such until now). The only problem I had about this incident was that I wasn't notified (especially as my work was exhibited in an educational establishment, not a public place which is understandable) and the poorly explained reasons behind it. I think people should hear about these issues and if 16+ year olds are going to study at college should know what they're getting themselves into! (sorry for all this banter.. sometimes the blogging takes over me!)

Anyways... here are my posters! Tell me what you think!

I really liked the background typography and the effect of the texture so decided to make a typographic version with an outburst of bright colours. I also used the 'Barbie' logo font to make my posters more realistic. I particularly like the use of lens glare on this poster, it's such a handy tool to use in Photoshop! I think these posters look really effective A2 plus. When I printed it out on glossy on A2 size paper I was shocked looking at my own face! haha, Never seen it so big before!

Please note that I do not intend to hurt, target or upset anyone, only simply to communicate my views in an artistic form. I do not wish to spread hate or anger just bring to light issues in today's world. Hope you can respect that.

M.A.S.H

Flickr Pro Account, Twitter... and more changes :D

2011-05-25T18:56:00.001+01:00

So I've upgraded my Flickr account to a Pro account! woop, so now I can feature all my photos (unlike before where only my recent 200 photos were shown) and organize my photos better :) This means I can keep on top of my photos which will help me post my work here! I've also organized my sets of photos into chronological order! woop, ( I may be a little too happy about this! haha) Like I have said many times before... I will post regularly on here 'cause I love blogging so shall defo' keep up to date with this!.. I WILL!! haha

I've also just got TWITTER!! haha so follow me if you want to keep up to date with my banter.. (haha) twitter.com/nashdood and other general shananigans that relate to photography, art, music, and all things M.A.S.H!

I'm also thinking of re-vamping this blog and make it easier to navigate and more simplified... plus I have still yet to create a banner/logo for this blog!!! So changes shall be made here as well!

Loads of new edits to post... coming very soon! woop woop :D

M.A.S.H

Sold My First Prints!

2011-05-22T14:27:00.005+01:00

Was pretty excited to sell my first photo prints today of Jake Morgan (from my chair series) and the hard work certainly had its rewards. These were 2 7x5" and 1 14x11" prints and were also sold with a thick black frame and I think looks great!

See the originals here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/mashnashphotography/sets/72157626751461084/

Thank you for buying my prints!

If you would like to purchase any of my prints please send me an email at nish.nash@sky.com. As of May 2011 prices vary from £6-£45 (but may vary) so get them quick! Prints vary from matt & satin finish on high quality photo paper with option with of a frame and I can also print on canvas (but can vary so get them quick!).

M.A.S.H

Super Human by Lope Navo

2011-05-20T22:45:00.000+01:00

Another reason I created this blog was to post my inspirations and general stuff I like (mainly being photography, fashion, graphics, art, music, pop culture, film) and generally share things that are certainly worth looking at. This shoot by Lope Navo called 'Super Human' featuring Ford model Josh Button is definitely one of them!

This editorial features in the May 2011 issue of Factice Magazine and styled by Sonny Groo (epic name btw!)

First of all Josh Button looks hot! Men and baby oiled skin = niiiice! :) haha

Secondly I love atmosphere and the different lighting, blues, purples, greens etc.

Also I like the small details in the images; such as 'I heart my Penis' in one of the photos.

I'm still trying to grasp the relevance of the Labrador (I think it's a Labrador) to the story and the Button. I think it plays on the idea of 'a dog is a man's best friend'. According to this sense I believe Josh Button is taking time off from his 'super human' abilities and relaxing with his best friend, his dog. I'm not sure about this interpretation...

Source: Homotography

Further reading:Lope Navo Studios / Josh Button