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Newcastle’s City Tavern up for Heineken Award

This month Heineken awards it’s very best pubs nationally for their best achievements. The City Tavern in Newcastle city centre has been entered for Best Newcomer. Lessee Dave King who has been in the bar and leisure trade for many years had taken retirement but returned to the business to start up Barhound to refurbish and re-open what once was LYH (legendary Yorkshire Heroes).

The ales are varied and they have their own house ale brewed by Caledonian in Edinburgh. The food offering is fantastic with a high ranking certificate from food hygiene standards and the decor is spectacular with views up and down the vault like centre of the building. If you are Newcastle based and doing some Christmas shopping over the next few weeks it’s a perfect quiet stop away from the bustle of shoppers and long shop queues!

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The Big Cheese Making Kit

Big Cheese Making Kit has been created by Ailsa Proverbs and her team offering an amazing product for those who fancy the idea of making cheese at home. It has exploded so fast that originally the kits had instruction manuals with quick phone snaps. With the demand increasing for Christmas from stockists such as Debenhams and Harrods, Ailsa wanted to replace the temporary shots with professional ones. I was commissioned to capture well executed illustrative photos of the key stages in the cheese making process for Halloumi, Goats and Mozzarella. As food and drink photography is one of my specialities I was delighted to get on board!

The day was lots of fun learning about cheese making as I worked and Ailsa’s beautiful new kitchen was a fantastic backdrop for the imagery. For anyone interested in these kits, have a look at thier website as they make a perfect pressie for any cheese lovers!  http://www.bigcheesemakingkit.com 

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The All Seeing Eye, Fluid Group Newcastle

The All Seeing Eye opened two weeks ago by owner Oliver Vaulkhard of Fluid group in Newcastle. Heineken’s Star Pubs and Bars have invested in the refurbishment of what was The Blackie Boy’s rarely used function room upstairs. The historic features have been exposed with the roofs rafter’s, rustic red brickwork and 30’s satined glass windows creating a cool New York feel together with ornate Moroccan tables and velvet furnishings adding a laid back vibe.

The brief was to capture PR portraits of Manager Dave Walker and his staff along with photography of the bar interior design showcasing the large atrium, the light features and the relaxed low ceiling snug area. The lighting and colours created dramatic compositions perfect for PR & marketing photography for todays Journal to promote this fantastic new late night bar in Newcastle city centre.

The article is in today’s Journal on this link http://www.thejournal.co.uk/business/business-news/popular-pubs-receive-240000-makeover-7120118

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Private Dining at As You Like It, Jesmond

Apartment Group’s bar and restaurant As You Like It in Newcastle is a rich and colourful environment to capture. The bar and restaurant interiors are a photographer’s dream with the textures of rich fabrics and low lighting. The images were required for their private dining area for future marketing material for weddings and private dining functions. The brief was to use my creative eye to show it off to it’s best with atmospheric, illustrative interior design photography. Whilst the rich velvet curtains gave a cosy feel there is an escape to a private veranda for an exhilarating and elevated view over Jesmond.

Whilst this shoot was enjoyable, technically it was tricky as the low light required a slow shutter speed and the use of a tripod restricted the angles to shoot from but the colours of the dusk light and the interior design resulted in some great shots as you can see below….

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Heineken’s The Staith House North Shields Fish Quay

The old Dolphin of North Shield’s Fish Quay had a refurb last year with new ownership and an excellent new interior. The Fish Quay is an atmospheric spot for last years Master Chef finalist John Calton, wife Kimberly and partner James to set up The Staith House gastro pub. The interior design features local maps, port holes and old timber echoing fishing industry history. They are up early daily at the fish market so their menu boasts creative and exciting seafood dishes fresh every day.

The photography was for Heineken’s pub company Star Pubs & Bars and the brief was to capture my usual Heineken creative documentary shots for their pubs and bar photography including interior design photos, food photography, portrait shots and images of the surrounding fish quay. The sun shone and the kitchen was buzzing with John and his team so this was an absolute treat to photograph.

For the food photography we captured a finished dish; The Staith House famous fish and chips styled with a pint of Caledonian’s Deuchars. It photographed well but the food tasted even better! I can honestly say it was the best fish and chips I have had in years! Check them out at http://thestaithhouse.co.uk as the warmth from the staff together with location and interior make it an unbeatable dining experience.

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