TIFF's Cameron Bailey: HOUSE Magazine Nollywood Editorial Photoshoot / February 7, 2019 by Sean Berrigan

I can’t believe i’m only just sharing this now in 2019 and not in 2016 when this shoot originally took place. Back in the early summer of 2016 I was commissioned by Soho House head office in London, UK to shoot a feature story for HOUSE, their international quarterly magazine that goes out to over 40,000 Soho House members worldwide. Soho House for anyone who isn’t familiar was founded in London in 1995 as a private members’ club for people in the creative industries, including film, fashion, advertising, music, art and tech. With over 23 clubs across Europe and North America, as well as restaurants, cinemas, workspaces, spas and bedrooms, Soho has been a major hub for creatives in Toronto and all around the world.

The feature story was written by a man named Cameron Bailey who is a Canadian film critic and festival programmer. He is better known as the artistic director and co-head of the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Cameron is very prolific within the Nollywood film scene a.k.a the Nigerian film industry and he was writing an article on how Nollywood is the most ambitious film scene of the moment. This was a last minute shoot that came through back in the summer of 2016, and I was extremely excited and eager to have the opportunity to shoot something for HOUSE as it’s a beautiful publication with stunning design. HOUSE wanted to see relaxed, candid lifestyle images capturing Cameron in various locations throughout the iconic TIFF Bell Lightbox centre on King St. W in downtown Toronto. They wanted the images to highlight his environment which was downtown skyscraper-filled Toronto. We didn’t get any time to location scout the area so we were going in almost completely blind, except for vague memories of the building when it was first constructed as I worked on a photoshoot there years prior.

We had some help from Cameron’s assistant who showed us all the locations we could shoot once we arrived. We had about 20 minutes to get a tour of the building before Cameron arrived camera ready. Vanessa and myself ran about like maniac’s trying to find locations that had nice light and we managed to find a couple great spots. The shoot went great, we had a lot of fun and Cameron was a blast to work with for the hour and a half we had him. Fast forward a couple months and the issue of HOUSE arrived at my apartment and it was surreal to see the images in print. Soho House, myself and Cameron were very pleased with the images that came out of the shoot, even though the shots that you least expect, always end up being the ones that get used. The images below are my favourites from the shoot. :)

All images were edited with my ONYX Signature Lightroom Presets, which are available for purchase HERE!

Serious pastel vibes at Montreal's boutique atelier cafe Pastel Rita / January 28, 2019 by Sean Berrigan

We had a chance to check out a well known boutique cafe/workshop in the Mile-End neighbourhood of Montreal. Pastel Rita is the headquarters for not only a restaurant/cafe but a super cool artisans’ workshops, and a boutique space where local designers can showcase their work. The space is curated very nicely with moody lighting and interesting products displayed all over the place, even where the dinning area is, which I found pretty cool to eat and drink alongside the items for sale. We made sure not to get too messy :)

A Peek at PEI's First LP Sponsored Cannabis Event w/ Arkells / September 11, 2018 by Sean Berrigan

As the looming October 17, 2018 Canadian Cannabis legalization date comes closer and closer, companies are scrambling to put all their efforts into building their brand before regulations come into play. One of these companies pushing the rules in the name of building brand equity is Canadian Licensed Producer Aurora Cannabis. They have been recently holding big events for their Illumination Series celebrating arts, music, culture and legalization all over Canada featuring big names in the music industry like Post Malone, Ghostface Killah, Queens Of The Stone Age, Kings of Leon and City & Colour to mention a few. They recently held Prince Edward Island’s first LP sponsored events here in Charlottetown at the PEI Brewing Company featuring Arkells. We were fortunate enough to get press passes to this event which allowed us to snap some photos of the event and performance.

I only brought an old point and shoot film camera with half a roll of film in it, as I wasn’t expecting to really take any photos but did anyways. One of the great experiences Aurora provided to the attendees on top of the great performance was a Terpene Infused Drink Bar powered by The Space Bear Company. These drinks did not contain alcohol or cannabis but they recreated similar taste and smell terpene profiles in drinks to what you would experience with different strains of Cannabis. Terpenes are the essential oils in cannabis that hold the flavour and smell profile of the plant and they also act as a modulator of the varying effects experienced from consuming different strains of Cannabis. They work alongside Cannabinoids like psychoactive THC and the equally important non-psychoactive CBD to provide varying therapeutic effects to the end consumer. You can find naturally occurring terpenes in lots of different foods and plants (think fruits, vegetables and herbs). They’re used similarly to the way one would use aromatherapy in the way essential oils like Lavender that are used for sleep, Pine used for memory retention and Lemon used for energy.

I scanned the images I shot at the event recently and did scan in a very dusty environment so the images have lots of dust but I think it adds to the aesthetic haha.

Sean