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The Shopping Cart

The intersection of Los Angeles and 5th Street in Downtown L.A. isn't exactly the most sensible place to shoot a model (too much car and foot traffic), albeit only half naked. And so I figured I'd shoot the the scene at sunrise... Well evidently the homeless in nearby Skid Row are super early risers. They were all over the place!

Luckily my beautiful model Monique wasn't too worried about all of the sketchy characters milling about (I think I was more worried than she was). Just picture this: A photographer, an assistant, light stands, battery pack, shoot-through umbrellas, a Home Depot shopping cart, and finally a somewhat conspicuous model in a thick robe in Downtown L.A. at 6 am with about half the Ski Row population in attendance ... Yeah not exactly low profile, is it? Yeah when the strobes starting going off all eyes were on us....

Surprisingly however most didn't seem like they cared at all... Some of them just sort of glanced over somewhat seemingly amused but not terribly excited. Some proceeded as if we didn't exist and some said hello and chatted a little. No one really gave us a hard time or worse hung around a bit too long for comfort. Yeah it wasn't terribly exciting at all. In fact probably the most exciting part of the morning was when an LAPD squad car stopped at the red light as my model was egressing from the shopping cart (Either the didn't care or possibly at the end of their shift?).

Anyhow if you are wondering why this model is clothed... Well, I think i'm starting a whole new series of photoshoots that are going to be similarly themed/editorial and similarly composed as my artistic nudes. Should be interesting....

This Shopping Cart sat in my car for two weeks. After the shoot I left it in Skid Row. I figure a homeless person could use it....

Posted by: Marc Gabay
Saturday, November 13, 2010