The latest issue of Stylus Magazine is out on newsstands and it's sporting some cover art by yours truly.
I was tasked with shooting something "abstract" preferably in colour. I wasn't really sure what I was going to do. I had a been shooting a lot of black & white and live music when I was asked to do the cover, breaking from that mindset was necessary.
The next day I got a call from Luke, a friend and fellow photographer. He asked if I wanted to go out shooting with him. He had some film loaded up and an idea he was eager to execute. I agreed knowing that it would be a good opportunity to brainstorm. My hope was that the walk would help clear my mind and give me and idea for the cover art.
About midway through our excursion we ended up around Higgins and Disraeli. We ventured down every back alley and side street gazing around for scenes of interested. I became totally enamoured with the train cars covered in graffiti; the overgrown prairie grass that had broken through the cracks in the pavement; the birds that were flying in formation overhead, swooping between the buildings and under Disraeli bridge; and all the junk that had been discarded behind the old warehouses. That's when we stumbled upon the forty five gallon drums seen in the above photo. Luckily I had a small speedlight, so I was able to capture the shot as seen here, otherwise it would have been a silhouette.
I have since learned these forty five gallon drums are used by the beekeeping industry. They are used to store honey until the internal lining or exterior is damaged and then sold off to scrappers. Somehow these drums ended up on a loading dock behind Graffiti Gallery with an assortment of other refuse.
When I got home that evening I had a stronger idea about what I wanted to do for the cover. I processed a few of the photos and sent them off to Stylus to see if we were on the same wavelength. Thankfully Sheldon Birnie (editor) and Andrew Mazurak (art director) both loved what I had sent them. I'm also quite happy with the results.
Here's full uncropped photo below.