For those of us in this industry in QLD… there would not be many of us who aren’t aware of the Photographer/Makeup Artist duo, Henryk Lobaczewski and Amelia Axton.

Recently they packed up their life, their puppy and all their courage and moved to Sydney to continue their creative lives in the big smoke.

The dream of moving to Sydney or Melbourne and exposing ourselves to the plethora of opportunities that seem to be skating around in these creative cities is a dream that many of us have… but only a number of us do it.

One thing that possibly crosses our minds… is the question whether making the move would guarantee exposure to more opportunities? What would happen? Would it work?

The fear of something that hasn’t even happened yet is what stops most people in striving for their dreams… and yet in reality it is actually a ridiculous thing to prevent you from just going for it…. the fear of something that doesn’t exist and/or hasn’t happened. Maybe if we all considered our ‘what if’s'… prepared a bit… and then dove in head first… maybe the world would be full of happier people. The future hasn’t happened yet so why fill it with anything else but a life that blows your mind?

I loved catching up with Henryk and Amelia as they are definitely ’dive in head first’ people and it’s paying off.

Check out their latest Beauty collaboration….

What have you guys been up to lately?

Henryk:  Almost non-stop shooting for the past three weeks, when it’s on ..it’s on!

Last week it was a 2 day campaign for Vinnies, a campaign for Coco & Rogers with Annabella Barber, and promo images for Syndicate (a Sony- signed band). This week Amelia and I shot a 2 day test with an amazing stylist Geoffery Burger Nolan, as well as a whole beauty story for an up-and-coming model, as well as a car shoot for a UK mag and a fun PR stunt for Triumph today in Pitt St Mall. I’m off to Thailand to relax now for 2 weeks it’s been non-stop since we got here.

Amelia:  Same as above, Also we shot a look book for a great Brisbane swimwear label – Terridonna and a Hair shoot for Identity cut & colour. I also did a shoot for Mink Pink and was the head hair and makeup artist and organised a creative team for the Triumph “Shape Sensations” fashion parade in Sydney.

You both moved to Sydney recently from Brisbane… how has the move impacted you careers?

H: It wasn’t easy. uprooting yourself is a big step, I’m lucky to have done it with Amelia instead of trying to do it alone. Sydney is the place for us at the moment, Australia’s best models all come here (before NY and abroad) and that goes for everyone involved in the industry, there is just so much opportunity here. New york is the future goal at present as it all steps up there 10 fold.

A: I love Sydney! There is so many amazing creative’s here, all the best photographers, models, stylists move here and the work they do is so inspiring to be apart of. Most of the major magazines are here so there are so many opportunities to have your work published. Already I have been lucky enough to work with magazines such as DOLLY, Grazia, Mens Health and Cleo Magazine. Also I have had the amazing opportunity to assist Rae Morris, which has been so fun and is such a great learning experience.

Amelia… in your experience…what have you found to be the biggest difference between working in Sydney compared to Brisbane?

A: Brisbane has some incredible models, but to get the big jobs most of the best models from Australia move here. And they are GORGEOUS! I swear sometimes you could do makeup on those faces with your eyes closed and it would still look amazing. So my portfolio has improved so much, thanks to those beautiful faces.

A good Photographer / Makeup Artist relationship is needed for amazing work to be created… what do you look for in each other when working together?

H: Excitement. I have to know the people I work with are excited about what we are shooting otherwise there is no fuel to the fire. Time-frames make it hard though, sometimes we plan a shoot the night before.. Coco&rogers was planned at 1am the night of the shoot before we went to sleep- it literally changed 100% from what we originally planned- we are very lucky that we have clients who trust us!

Sometimes I just need Amelia to have some blind faith in me too.. I can’t always show her what I’m imagining, or have the time to show her on the day, but 95% of the time I think she trusts me and loves the end result. Everyone should always have input on a shoot, including assistants, but there is only one cook in the kitchen otherwise an idea can quickly get watered down.

A: Haha! Sometimes I need Henryk to have some trust in me as well, telling him that blue eyebrows would look good on a model took a lot of convincing- which included me walking around the house with blue eyebrows for a whole afternoon saying “I promise it will look good on a model.. it just looks strange on me”. Patience is also a big one. Sometimes intricate makeup looks will take about an hour and when you are doing close up beauty work everything must be perfect. I had to say –  “Henryk give me an extra 10 minutes otherwise you could be spending an extra 30 in photoshop”

How did your shoot ‘Composure’ come about? What was the inspiration behind the shoot?

H: Composure was one of our first shoots in our studio in Sydney, shot with Olivia Dunnfrost. At that stage we had hardly done any beauty work (apart from the kissing shot) as we didn’t have a studio of our own in Brisbane. We were so excited about the model at the time we just wanted to focus on her face and both of us wanted to build on our beauty work. This shoot, and the other shoot with Olivia were both shot on the same day.. it was a long day, as beauty takes so much time between each look, but a very rewarding one.

Amelia, what did you find the most challenging about this shoot?

A: See my answer below.

I love the blue eyebrows… what did you use to achieve this look?

A: I used the Kryolan Supra Colour palatte.. Probably not the most practical product to use. It has the consistency of lipstick so while Olivia was posing the eyebrows ended up smearing all across her forehead and into her lashes, this was probably the most challenging part of the shoot.

Henryk… when shooting beauty… what do you need every makeup artist to really focus on?

H: Focus is such an integral part of our work, that’s why it’s so exhausting shooting constantly as I’m never unfocused with a camera in my hand and it takes a lot of energy. I need the make-up artist to focus too.

It’s never about just a look for me, it’s about a feeling, a tone and a mood. Also planning.. I always ask Amelia to have a folder on her laptop that she’s sectioned for the day, filled with images of potential looks that fit the brief, so we have something to draw on for each look, and something to compare to sometimes. This takes planning before the shoot, as we both have massive folders filled with inspiration that constantly change.

What is the hardest thing to photo shop out that a makeup artist could potentially fix before shooting?

H: Probably eye lashes….. when you do a lot of changes in a beauty shoot, they can get clogged and messy.. this is sometimes almost impossible to correct…. as is underneath the eye, but applying another fake lash is time consuming, annoying for the model and expensive.. so it’s best to keep them clean as long as possible. Also lips are hard to retouch.. so when the model has a drink for example, the makeup artist needs to re-apply the lip colour.

What hot tips do you have for makeup artists who want to do a beauty shoot?

H: Don’t get too excited and over-do-it. If everyone on the job is trying hard to shine, the job will crumble.

There has to be a central focus & strength. Whether it is be lighting, an effect, styling or make-up. Sometimes the most simplest things work the best. Pick ONE idea and let it resonate throughout the shoot.

A: Be prepared! Have all your looks planned before the shoot and a couple of extras down your sleeve as well. Beauty shoots take a lot of time the last thing you want to be doing is trying to come up with a new idea in the middle of it, it will just waste time. Also be kind to your model! Taking off makeup and putting it back on can be taxing on sensitive skin, so be gentle.

OK.. my favourite question.. if there was a machine that made robot makeup artists… what features would you include as standard?

H: Turbo mode. I do hate to wait! But good things take time. Oh, and a food dispenser!

A: I would like them to have a malfunction chip.. so they don’t work properly.. then I wont loose my job! Haha!

See more of Amelia’s work here:

http://www.ameliaaxton.com/

BLOG LOVE! - http://makeupandtiramisu.blogspot.com/

See more of Henryks work here:

http://henrykphoto.com/