The elation at making it through the storms and into Yosemite National Park in the deep winter snow soon fades as you start focusing on the next challenge in a few day’s time: Getting back out again. Awesome though it was to be surrounded by deep walls of ploughed snow on the one remaining open road in and out of the park, you know you’re only one storm away from being trapped in the valley […]
“Hey Paul, OK, got it – I’ll bring two goats.” – That was the email I received two nights before my shot with Shangri-La Sydney‘s new Head Chef, Bo Sorensen. While not necessarily appealing to all the vegetarians out there, the resulting image is something I’m very proud of, all captured in a single frame with no “tricks” added later on! So, an image that includes two goats, flying bits of meat (don’t worry, they weren’t served to […]
“Welcome to W Doha, we saw you had a good flight” – was my welcome as I entered this amazing hotel. Granted, W Hotels are unique in the way they really take time to get to know their guests, but I was still surprised. “Oh, we saw your instagram post”, was the response when I looked back at him slightly puzzled. Ahhhh, I get it… Entering in to the lobby (or “Living Room” in W speak), you’re […]
Of course, witnessing that sunset was a special moment in itself – but being up here on the rooftop of the Jin Mao Tower, the home of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Shanghai, was especially significant for me. Soon, I would be leaving Shanghai – a place I’ve called home for 3 years now – and this was a return to the very first building I’d ever visited in Asia. Stood up on the roof with my […]
Tokyo – what a truly amazing place. Full of modern innovation, side by side with centuries of culture and history. It’s one of my favourite cities in the world, and despite visiting a few times (I’ve climbed Mount Fuji twice now!) – it was another tick off the list to head back there and capture an iconic image of the skyline before I leave Asia for a while. The standard stereotypes can actually be pretty accurate […]
Per Aquum Huvafen Fushi – A surreal Maldives luxury resort in the North Malé Atoll. They call this place “a waking dream” – and having had the pleasure of shooting with these guys many times over the past couple of years, I can tell you it’s an accurate description! Not only is the island a hideaway of perfection in the middle of the Indian Ocean, but I can honestly say the guys there are some of the most […]
What an amazing view – and what a privilege to be able to photograph it during a one-off event at such a special hotel location. I’ve always been a fan of the Shangri-La in Sydney, the views from the Horizon Club floor and Altitude/Blu Bar at the top of the hotel are simply the best panoramas you can get of the harbour. But this was an unexpected (and very gratefully received) honour to be allowed up onto the […]
Normally when I photograph “talent”, it’s part of a modelling shoot or specific commercial imagery. To the industry, the term “talent” has certain preconceptions attached to it, but is a generally accepted term for the star of the show. So why would a hotel group insist on employing “talents” instead of staff? At the W Hotel Singapore – Sentosa Cove, it’s blindingly obvious : These guys really are the star of the show each and every day! In […]
Welcome to the W Retreat Maldives – where one of the coolest hotel brands in the world meets paradise on earth. (As you can imagine, it’s a great combination!). Building on the shoots we did at the amazing W Retreat Koh Samui last year, I headed out to the Maldives to photograph the talent team there with the Starwood digital marketing team. Now I’m not going to lie – paradise or not, the warning email I got […]
Welcome back to the W 🙂 That stunning view, above, was part of what prompted me to write about the W Retreat Koh Samui in February, after I returned from an amazing stay there. Realising that what made the place so special was in no small part down to the the talent of the staff at the retreat, Nick (the general manager) and I got talking… W Hotels pride themselves on being cool, hip, and vibrant […]
The above picture is of my hotel “room” from last week in Koh Samui at the “W Retreat” in Mae Nam. What’s a hotel room doing on Paul’s blog? I hear you ask – Well, there’s a bit of a back-story to this one and the place is stunning enough to warrant me actually putting fingers to keys and writing about it (yes, it’s that good). And for once, I’m posting an entire page of images […]
