Heading toward Venice, the worlds capital of romance is exciting for any girl, but when you’re responsible for taking care of a fashion cover shoot, Television crew for Made in Chelsea, and a group of journalists travelling from Paris, romance is the last thing running though your mind! Before leaving London for Venice we both made sure we had set our itinerary for the week with everyone. It was my first month at Drake London, so I was learning very quickly on the job with the wonderful opportunity of joining a trip to Venice. Months of planning and meetings within the various crews and editors, and now a week of action in Venice had arrived.
Arriving for the first time, it was easy to see why this historic city was so enchanting, beautiful architecture lined the canals passed us by, catching my eye and making it increasingly difficult to put my camera phone down, It was like entering a stunning stage set of Venice!
After arriving, and as our client the Bauers collection of hotels are just a stone’s throw from St Marks square, meeting the staff and settling in…I was itching to get out and explore the city, but priorities came first and a meeting and recce with the TV crew, Made in Chelsea was first order of the day. Prior to the rest of the crew arriving later in the week, our recce meant hopping on a taxi boat and zipping across the Grand Canal to Gudeicca Island to have a look at the beautiful Villa F, another property within the group of Bauers hotel’s in Venice.
Over the next few days we juggled our work, grabbing any spare time we had to get out into the city and explore with our cameras, sketch books and maps. By Wednesday morning the photographer, stylists and model arrived at the hotel for the cover shoot of a new British luxury menswear glossy magazine, Roadbook. Thankfully compared to the drizzle on the first day the sun was shining brightly, perfect for the shoot located in one of the exquisite suites facing onto the Grand Canal within Il Palazzo – the shoot was like something out of The Talent of Mr Ripley film and in perfect keeping with the style of Venice for Spring – stunning photographs in the making within the suite and the terrace of the hotel. It was going to be a beautiful cover story for an Italian special edition.
The journalists arrived the next afternoon from Paris, we were in the sunshine next to the Grand Canal, drinking in the atmosphere around me, gondolas floating past and the echo of Venetian music filtering over onto the terrace. A welcome lunch at the hotel was followed by a boat trip and a Murano glass tour, with the opportunity of meeting the owner! That evening we shared stories and conversed over dinner about art, design and travel enjoying the hotels cocktail in the B Bar and meeting the wonderful head chef over a delicious dinner in De Pisis restaurant.
Finally, it was the last evening and we were up on the roof terrace of the Bauers hotel with breathtaking views over the Grand Canal, not a bad location to be on our last evening in Venice! We were doing the grand finale shoot of the trip for Made in Chelsea; it was fascinating gaining a real insight seeing how the popular show is made behind the camera and getting to know the crew who make it and meet the actors.
A very busy week but full of wonderful creative people, a fun film team and stunning venues for the work! Venice we will be back soon, Arrivederci..…..