Mad Hatter Shoot

A Shoot gone MAAAAAD!

Being a tribute artist of an icon who has filmed many different characters that one can have fun emulating (ie. Hatter, Sparrow, Tonto, etc.), there is no shortage of photographs wanting to be taken. I was approached by a local photographer, Herman Surkis who asked if I would like to be involved in a HATTER shoot.  I was all game.  as the shoot date approached, I became even more inspired after I learned the photographer was bringing in a live animals (a wolf and a hawk) as extra ‘models’ to the shoot.  Since Hatter is an eccentric character, it makes ‘thinking outside the box’ and getting creative outside of ‘Tim Burton’s box’, more fun and doable.  Here are some results…..

The photographer had previously forewarned me that my rather flamboyant and colourful ‘attire’ may upset the hawk or make her very ‘inquisitive’ (possibly peck at specific items or…. even me).  Upon the arrival of the hawk and its’ owner hawk’s, he took one look at my ‘rainbow coloured’ outfit and also seemed somewhat concerned.  Outcome:  No problem at all.  Easy was easy (no pun intended).  She was relaxed in my presence allowing me to move my finger from my other hand and point in the direction I needed her to look.  I would then comply my own expressions to accompany the idea that we were indeed communicating with each other, making for an intriguing shot.  She was brilliant.

In the photo above, it shows how content Easy was being perched on my wrist.  My movements were slow and steady and as long as I didn’t decide to have a staring contest with my new feathered friend, (I would have lost), we had a beautiful working relationship.

The above photo is one of my favourite finalized photos.  With a little photo shop (leaves were  real ), Herman was able to create a very fanciful Hatter shot.  

Also on site was another photographer, Scott Laird who had a different aspect of shooting Alice and Hatter on a white backdrop……

Photography by: Scott Laird

Photography by: Scott Laird

Accompanying us was a dear family friend of ours who played the role of “Alice”.  (See Other Characters  under GALLERY for Hatter and Nero shots by Herman Surkis).

Photography by: Scott Laird

(Note:  To view other photos from Herman Surkis and Scott Laird, please see Other Characters under Gallery).

Related Images: