We’ve done a shoot before and it was the idea of my then Marketing Director and good friend Amy Lan to do another. She was a publisher for a couple of magazines so I left it in her hands but with her gone and the stage we are in – a high fidelity vision of JUZD -the creative was in my hands.

The great thing about Igor is that he has a lot of experience. I really don’t know what to expect or what the exact vision is. I called up my sexy friend Deniz Reno and we went cruising around town. We met at 8pm but we have to burn quite a bit of time before any shots because it was still bright outside.

Our first stop is a parkade in Chinatown. This photo has a very nice dramatic feel to it. Igor wanted a greenish glow in the background. He wanted a longer lot for a more dramatic feel. I really didn’t know what to expect. The only thought that came to my mind is that the picture looks good and Deniz has nice legs.

Then we went to this part of town where all the ‘famous’ walls of nice graffiti are. Not really a big fan of graffiti. It’s too ghetto and cliché’ish. “But they are really nice” says Deniz and Igor. We drove by it. It looked good but I’m still not a fan. Plus the look of the place would be too typical. So I suggested making it kind of surreal by bringing a really high end couch to the place. Igor loves the idea no photos were taken and we kept driving.

Next stop was an alley way I always go through and thought it was a very interesting spot. Photo above. Igor saw potential there. With the wooden platform you can make some interesting poses. It looks exotic and doesn’t look like Toronto but it does look like the alley of any city.

Tried some street paparazzi style shoots but it didn’t turn out well.

We stopped by for burritos which was, in retrospect, a bad idea. Deniz has been very sick from it for a few days now. I hope she gets well soon.

We returned to a spot that we drove by earlier, now it was dark enough for what we wanted to do. It was in the back alley of some stores. I really liked this because of the strong classic architecture. The vertical lines made it very dramatic and powerful. I’m beginning to realize the creative vision I wanted for JUZD photos.

Then we went back to the area where we initially met and I left my car. This is kind of an American Apparel style photo with the natural lighting, no make up, just pure rawness of the street. I wasn’t a big fan of this but it started to grow on me.

At the end of the day there were two spots I really liked and I thought they were the perfect locations. It was a great experience because now I know the creative direction I want to go with JUZD photoshoots. Igor was amazing with his perspective of the options and his creative vision. To find out the location and theme, stay tuned…

From February 12th to the 15th the JUZD team was in Las Vegas checking out North America’s premiere fashion trade shows, MAGIC, POOL, and PROJECT. Despite the predicting US recession the buyers were spending and spending lots. It was a good season for the brands we visited. Above photo (Jing Liu aka me! [lead designer of JUZD Bamboo Streetwear], Masahiko Nakane aka Polo [owner of Panty Japan], Christian Audigier, Yuichi Ishii [buyer for Panty Japan])

Once again Christian Audigier was the talk of the show.With the largest booth at Project, guest stars, naked (but artistically painted) girls, swimsuit models, and a performance by Snoop, Christian Audigier’s booth was the spot to chill. Christian Audigier also premiere his latest label Crystal Rock, named after his daughter.

The colorful Creative Recreation showcased its new sneaker collection and style for Fall. While smaller labels such as Shmack Footwear were making head waves and extending their distribution for the fist time to Japan.

I was able to check out Raw 7. It maintained it’s high end grudge style. It brought its unique style of art to sandals and underwear (which I got samples of woohoo). Another brand that caught my eye was Hard 8, an up and coming brand out of LA. It has simliar grunge style as Raw 7 and strong symbolic designs. What was also great was the overall fit and design of the shirts. It fits and feels really good and the designs was perfect for the shirt.

Pool was also a very interesting experience. It was one big chilling lounge. Lots of cool and funky brands. Alternative Apparel was a major sponsor, they were giving out free t-shirts, hats, and other cool stuff. But one of the most interesting brand is Cyberoptix Tie Lab. They print designs on ties and their creativity and craftmanship are amazing. Had a chance to talk to Bethany who is the principle designer and she’s a really nice girl. It’s not the usual silk suit ties I’m use to.

As for Magic, the big show, it wasn’t all that interesting…to me anyways. Lots of huge brands. As for the streetwear section, it was like night clubs, with girls in skimpy outfits handing out flyers. But that’s the streetwear culture. I prefer the class of Project.

Overall it was a very enlightening trip and I had a lot of fun. We are currently trying to get a booth at the Project show in August. Come check us out!