A behind the scenes look and story from the tin city shoot. More shots to follow
Here's the original text that accompanied the pictures ;
4am starts are not completely uncommon in the modelling
world, but it’s not the greatest time of day to be heading off to work either.
Many of us would have still have been languid under sheets by the time the crew
met up with Ben at Anna Bay, some 200km north of Sydney.
Ben was in charge our fully equipped ‘Pix’ 4WD location van,
as well as being Sonny’s assistant for the day. The Pix truck had an esky in it
big enough to hide a body in (and by halfway through the day we would have had
volunteers to try it out), though we just crammed it with water, water, water.
Predictions were for a hot day, and we could feel it already. After loading
people, clothes, make-up, cameras, lights and food into the 2 4WDs, we headed
out onto Stockton Bight sand dunes. This 32km stretch of constantly moving sand
is home to a unique cluster of houses known as ‘
Tin
City
’.
The houses, made predominantly of tin, have been a part of the dune landscape
since the Depression era, and were even used in the film Mad Max. They are home
now to a select few long-term residents who are tenuously allowed to stay while
waiting to reach an accord between National Parks and Wildlife, and the
traditional owners of the land, the Worimi people.
One of those residents and a friend of Sonny’s, Robbie, had
kindly allowed us the use of his house for the day, and had organised for his
neighbour to look after his rather diligent guard dogs.
Before the sea-breeze picked up around midday, inside
Robbie’s house was warmer than outside, but what a great space it was! Robbie
seems to have an idyllic lifestyle living there. Solar power and a constant
supply of fresh water just a few metres below the sand. Catching fish for
dinner, and a stunning location to just sit and watch the ever changing
landscape. The colours on the dunes as the sun makes it’s way across them each
day, the undulating lines sometimes barely visible against each other in the
glare, and the stark contrast of the shacks against smooth mounds. It is a
visual paradise. I guess the biggest problem is keeping the shifting sands away
from the windows and doors, but inside the house was surprisingly sand-free – I
guess Robbie was well-practised at it.
Travis, hair, and Victoria, make-up, quickly set to work on
the gorgeous Simone, while Michael and Heather prepared all the clothes. There
they were, beautiful long flowing gowns, juxtaposed in Robbie’s garage, next to
the old quad bike, skirts trailing in the sand!
Only Sonny and I had been to the Tin City before, so
everyone was pretty excited about the location, and after slathering the
invisible zinc on Simone’s alabaster skin, and Victoria checking that her
make-up was sweat-proof (Oh who am I kidding? Models don’t sweat!), we were
ready to shoot. Taking turns holding umbrellas for shade, and light stands up
against the wind, everyone pitched in where they could. The wind and heat were
a challenge, but it’s a testament to the professionalism of the crew, that they
didn’t let it get to them. The latex,
the ruffles, tulle and jewels, the heels, and the sand! It was great fun. Well,
maybe not the latex and heels-in-dunes for Simone, but bless her, she smiled
all day. Sonny shot 8 outfits, and in between changes, everyone would huddle in
shade to review the pictures. We loved what we were seeing. The dresses were
divine and the breeze captured their fluid lines perfectly. If only we could
all look that great on the sand! Did I mention it was hot? We all wanted to
jump in the surf to cool off, but an abundance of fish in the area includes a
large number of Great White Sharks, so we erred on the side of caution and just
kept drinking water.
Sonny called it a wrap after sunset and we loaded up the
vans in darkness, making it home close to midnight. A very long day, but what a
great shoot.
