Surrender

“Surrender, surrender, oh.
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Give me that sweet
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Give me that sweet
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Give me that sweet
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Give me that sweet
Surrender, surrender, oh.
Give me that sweet
Surrender, surrender, oh.
I’ll be released, I’ll be released, oh!”

[ Surrender – Hurts ]

Speaking of Hurts songs that are difficult to nail, Surrender (the title track of the third album) doesn’t give much to work with: it’s a one-minute-and-eighteen-second intro with basically three sentences in the lyrics – and they’re quite vague, too. But musically it’s a powerful song despite its simplified structure: the gospel-like choir is incredibly energetic and makes it quite emotional – even epic. I always thought of a picture with very dramatic light and a welcoming mood of sort as, despite the title, the lyrics are quite optimistic. And that’s pretty much what I got by having Knajfer and Riccardo posing in front of the setting sun.
I thought this scene could fit the idea I had, but again, it’s their expressions – something out of my control – that really give the photo its impact. I know it’s sort of weird of me to just go with the flow when shooting, especially when it comes to my long-term projects, but it’s a really nice way to keep the creativity flowing and ready for the more structured, difficult photos in the series.

Ecstasy

“Fall back and touch the night
And reach for the blinding light.
‘Cause everybody says that we’re too young to see.
We know that we’re brave enough to be –

In the state of ecstasy,
In the place we’re meant to be.
In the state of ecstasy
There is only you and me.

Break through from the other side
And lead me to Paradise.
‘Cause nothing but love can take us away from here.
Ever time I close my eyes, we disappear –

In the state of ecstasy,
In the place we’re meant to be.
In the state of ecstasy
There is only you and me.”

[ Ecstasy – Calvin Harris feat. Hurts ]

Now, technically Ecstasy and Under Control are Calvin Harris songs featuring Hurts, but I like them enough to include them into the Inspiration Hurts project nevertheless. Ecstasy, in particular, is a pretty little ballad with a romantic undertone which I wanted to shoot, given the occasion, with a real-life couple.
This photo just happened: my dear friend Knajfer and his boyfriend Riccardo were just fooling around and being adorable, and they kissed behind the furry overcoat thing long enough for me to snap a picture. Which happened to fit perfectly the song retroactively: it has its ecstatic, romantic mood, has the closed eyes thing from the lyrics, and the furry thing cutting away the actual kiss gives it that sense of intimacy and “only you and me”.
Yeah, this photo just happened and it turned out a really charming addition to the project, that’s it.

If You Follow

“As we met we didn’t know of yesterday,
Anything that wouldn’t paralyse your system.
Set a day I can break free,
Set a day on what you think I’m not existent.

Would you stay until the end?
We are growing older,
Every moment that I spend
Laying on your shoulder.
Would your fear contain the loss?
Would you ever regret?
I’ll forsake my second life
If you follow.

I apologise for what you’ve done to me,
And truly, I’m upset for giving up the distance.
Time collects its space to show me how to see
How deep in you I dwell – the deeper is my promise.

Would you stay until the end?
We are growing older,
Every moment that I spend
Laying on your shoulder.
Would your fear contain the loss?
Would you ever regret?
I’ll forsake my second life
If you follow.

Should I lose my mind instead?
Should I give you answers
If you forget to question fate?
We might be lonely dancers
Erasing any doubt,
And if your fear is stronger,
Disconnect the roots, find out
Where you belong.”

[ If You Follow – Leandra ]

So, what do you do when you’ve got a bunch of long-term projects that have slowed down lately, a few photos from said projects with a romantic undertone and a real-life couple posing for you? You sqeeze the hell out of it! That’s how I ended up with two photos for my Inspiration Hurts project and another two for Morphine. Come on, you don’t let a good occasion go to waste.
Basically, I had a nice shooting with my dear friend, fellow photographer and insanely pretty, photogenic boy Knajfer Wintermere (of Lullaby fame), and his real-life, equally pretty and photogenic boyfriend Riccardo. Among the couple photos I had sketched out and wanted to take was If You Follow: the basic idea was having one of the two in a more static pose and the other inviting him in some way, pretty basic and sticking to the song.

My original idea had the two of them posing on the oppisite sides of the beam, one facing away and the other going all “follow me” on him. I even have a couple of takes like that, but during this shooting I allowed much freedom to Knajfer and Riccardo because I wanted them to act as themselves, and one of the later takes on the photo ended up as what you see, with the two of them engaging each other while still being on opposite sides of the beam. And that’s what caught my eye: my basic idea was still there, but there’s such an exchange of energy in the picture that it trumped the more static vision I had in mind. Also, I like that it’s a bit ambiguous who’s inviting whom and who’ll follow.

So here we are, with a new work from the Isomorphine part of the series. Coming next, one from the Metamorphine side. Enjoy!

Kaleidoscope

“There was only ever you and me
And there was only ever history
Holding us back, holding us back.
But that night, we stared in wonder,
Wide-eyed but scared to wander.
The landslide fell silent all around.

And it was the same scene from a kaleidoscope dream.
You got me spinning. No, no,
You didn’t wake me from my kaleidoscope dream.
You got me spinning in your love,
Spinning in your love.

Do you remember when we used to see
White flamingos gliding on the breeze
And there was only ever you and me?
In this neon jungle, you fed my hunger and
That night we stared in wonder:
The black sky turned technicolor
And your eyes surprised me when you smiled.

And it was the same scene from a kaleidoscope dream.
You got me spinning. No, no,
You didn’t wake me from my kaleidoscope dream.
You got me spinning in your love
And you hypnotise me like no other,
Mesmerise my mind with colour, so
Let the night bring us together again.”

[ Kaleidoscope – Hurts ]

Unpopular opinion: I don’t exactly like this song. Hurts have an impressive musical catalogue with emotional, inspiring songs and this one… is okay, I guess, but it falls a bit flat. I find it generic compared to other Hurts tunes both in terms of music and lyrics. Unsurprisingly, it didn’t give me much in terms of visual ideas other than “there’s gonna be a couple”: if I included it in the poject at all was because I’m obsessive-compulsive and having a song out would bother me to no end.

Now, fun fact: there’s a lot of material I’ve gathered throughout the years which I’m saving for shooting with real-life couples rather than me and a friend, or two friends, or two random pretty people who’re willing to roll with it. Part of the reasons why I’ve slowed down considerably on many long-term project is just that: the photo needs that kind of genuine emotion to work. That’s what makes the difference between a pretty picture and one that really tells a story.
This approach paid out big time on Kaleidoscope and it’s pretty much what got me out of the tight spot it would have put me in once I was done with the rest of the series (eh, someday) and I had to deal with it. The fact I pulled it off now and in a satisfying way is pure luck and all thanks to my dear friend Knajfer Wintermere and his real-life boyfriend Riccardo.

So, when we organised the shoot, I dusted off a few ideas from my “Ho!Yay photos kept for better times” file (yes, that’s its actual name) to have a basic outline, but left many details, such as the location choice, to Knajfer and Riccardo, who are the locals and know better than me where to go in Milan. The park they chose happened to have this sort of… err, porch thing, which happened to be painted with that geometric motive in bright colours. Mmh, I thought, I have a couple, I have something that sort of recalls a kaleidoscope or, more generally, the colour / neon / brightness theme in the lyrics, might as well see if I can cross this photo off the list here and now.
During the shoot, I gave Knajfer and Riccardo some directions for what I had in mind on certain photos but I generally left them free to be their cute selves in front of the lens. Here I just let them come up with the pose without any interference whatsoever (other than building a nice geometry with the bacground) and it ended up matching the mood of the song perfectly. All on their own merits, they cleared me the greatest spanner in the Inspiration Hurts works.
On a side note, the colours from the murals turned out particularly bright against the dark wood background, and that added a really nice touch to the photo. That, combined with Knajfer and Riccardo’s emotional intensity, really did the trick. Hurray, love did really save the day this time!