Casper & Christo - 5 Hours Photo Walk in London With a Marvelous LGBTQIA+ Couple
April 2023 - London, UK
Christo and Casper have been together for 3 years now and while their relationship has been great, the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t quite allow them to explore much of it outside the house so as soon as the restrictions were lifted they decided to book their first trip as a couple!
After what it seemed a lifetime of waiting for their visas to be approved, they left South Africa and flew to London, United Kingdom.
For Casper this was not a foreign city. He had visited London before and that’s what give him so much certainty that it would be a great city to visit with Christo.
For Christo, on the other side, this was not only his first time in London but also his very first time outside of South Africa!
Casper, a creative and very talented fashion designer, saw my profile on Airbnb Experiences and saved it way before they arrive in the UK. Once their visas got approved and their flights were booked, he then reached out with a challenge I could not refuse: they were looking for a photoshoot that could include Notting Hill, Hyde Park and some place with street art.
Although these were all great locations for photography there was a little issue: they wanted to book a 1 hour photoshoot and all these locations were away from one another. This meant that they needed to choose just one location, which not only wasn’t what they have dreamed of, I was not happy with that either and so I proposed a new solution!
Confronted with this small problem, I clearly saw we had 2 options:
Either we stick with one single location and compromise Christo and Casper’s experience based on what they’ve envisioned
OR we extended their experience in order to not only accommodate their vision but also have a relaxed time without rushing between locations
Fortunately Christo and Casper had the entire morning free and so they accepted my suggestion which turned a 1 hour photoshoot into a 5 hours photo walk around London.
Based on Christo and Casper’s desired locations I designed the best route and so Notting Hill was our starting point where they not only enjoyed the empty streets only an early morning can gift you with in such a famous city but even had time to do some vintage shopping once the shops started opening.
The key to a great photo experience is always time. I like to respect my couples time and desires. After all, this is their time and experience, not mine.
Since Notting Hill is closed to the Italian Gardens in Hyde Park we walked there. In the meantime we had the chance to talk a bit more about South African culture and how Christo and Casper feel living in a extremely religious and traditional country as a gay couple.
As one can imagine, it’s definitely not easy. Unfortunately we still live in a world where hate is more acceptable than love which sounds pretty nuts, to be honest.
So with that in mind we arrived to Hyde Park. The weather had changed and the air was chilled so Christo and Casper decided to change outfits and wear their Christmas shirts that are always too hot to wear during the South African Christmas time.
One of the things that still mesmerizes me in photography is it’s ability to make one go back in time. ‘Til this day I still look to Christo and Casper’s photos and hear them laugh, their voices, I can even remember what they said and why they were laughing so hard. It’s kind of magical that so much have happened after that day but with one single image we are all there again as if we have never left.
(insert hyde park photos)
Once we finished our time in Hyde Park it was time to check Christo and Casper’s third desired location: some place with street art.
As soon as this lovely couple mentioned their street art love I knew exactly where to take them: Brick Lane. And so we did, but first we had to pick an underground and did a pit stop to have lunch near Liverpool Street Station.
Liverpool Street Station area is one of my favorites in London. It can be quite chaotic but still calm at the same time. It’s quite hard to explain, I think only someone who have been there can really understand this dichotomy. It’s also a gorgeous location that combines modern and old architecture in a very perfectly.
Brick Lane is just a 10 minutes walk from Liverpool Street and once we arrived there Christo and Casper decided to change their outfits once again to match the vibe of the new location.
Outfits change are not required to have a great experience but it can bring variety and dynamic to your photos. Since we agreed to do a longer photoshoot and in multiple locations, I suggested Christo and Casper that they could bring different outfits that we could play with if they were feeling like doing so. Since Casper is a fashion designer himself he quite liked that idea!
After our street art fun we parted our ways and I headed home extremely excited to start working on these two lovebirds memories (which I did as soon as I sat on my desk - Christo and Casper even had a little preview in that same day as I couldn’t wait to share some of the photos with them!).
And so this was the story of Christo and Casper’s 5 hours photo walk in London. To be honest, it didn’t feel like 5 hours - and I think they felt the same:
Thank you Casper and Christo, for such an amazing day. May we meet each other again soon. Being in the presence of your love is a blessing I’ll cherish forever.
Love,
Patrícia
