Behind the Scenes of Madras, with Pelle Crepin
Our Madras shoot was a first for Turnbull, we sent you and the crew off to Portugal without anyone from the brand onset. What made this shoot particularly memorable for you?
Just to be given the freedom and trust to go off and shoot without too much involvement from the client is very unusual. It makes for a great creative environment and meant we could work with a minimal team, which gives you much more flexibility and it is a faster way of working. A nice team made it a great experience.
Talk us through the run of the shoot? When and where did you shoot? Did you get a chance to explore when not on set?
We flew out the first week of February to shoot in and around a location house in the Algarve region. It was a pretty quick affair. We picked up a rental car when we landed around midday and drove out to the house. We then went to a nearby restaurant to have what turned out to be quite a long lunch as the pace of things is not quite as quick as in London.
We had a mostly blue sky that afternoon so we tried to get as much done as possible, shooting until the sun went down, then heading off to a restaurant for some local food and wine. The weather was cloudy pretty much throughout the second day so we did quite a few shots inside before packing up and heading straight back to the airport in the early afternoon. Not much time to explore the area any further I am afraid.
In your opinion, what forms the perfect campaign shot?
An image that is both memorable and captures the personality of the brand.
Your final project for your MA was a beautiful series of Swedish landscapes, do you have a preference shooting people or places?
Thank you. I enjoy being able to do both. It is nice to be on your own and just walk, cycle, or drive around and explore an area you find interesting, but I very much enjoy the collaborative process of working within fashion too.
What keeps you motivated and inspired?
Learning and seeing things in a new way.
And finally, what was it like to work with the Pet Shop Boys?
@petshopboys
It has been great. They are nice and easy people to work with. The first shoot was one of my first ever jobs after college where I got to document a day of rehearsal for their upcoming tour.
