The 2015 Kurilpa Derby had a larger samba presence than previous years — a full troupe with elaborate costumes that represented some of the most photographically demanding material I had encountered at the event. The peacock feather headdresses alone required thinking about how to frame them: too tight and you lose the scale, too wide and you lose the detail of the beadwork and feather construction.
The man on the bicycle in the steampunk outfit — top hat with goggles, brocade waistcoat, leather crossbody — was standing still when I made his portrait, hands on hips, surveying the street as if he owned it. The Kurilpa Derby produces this kind of character without effort.
On photographing elaborate costumes: The samba costumes at the 2015 derby were the most technically complex I had photographed up to that point. Each dancer wore a headdress that was effectively a sculpture in feathers and wire. The challenge is finding the angle and distance that shows both the costume and the person wearing it — too much costume and the dancer disappears, too much face and the costume reads as background. I found that a slight downward angle from slightly above the dancers’ eyeline gave the headdresses context without swamping the portrait.
On the moment with the child: One of the best images from the day was a samba dancer in blue and turquoise taking the hand of a small girl in a red tutu and walking with her down the street. The girl was completely unself-conscious. The dancer was smiling at the crowd. The moment lasted about twenty seconds and I had one good frame of it.
On light in October: The derby runs in late October, which in Brisbane means warm afternoon light that arrives at a low angle by mid-afternoon. By 3pm the light on Boundary Street was doing most of the work — picking up the sequins and beading on the costumes, putting the shopfronts into softer shadow. I work with the light rather than fighting it.
The Kurilpa Derby in its 2015 edition was the most visually ambitious version I had photographed.
More Kurilpa Derby coverage: Kurilpa Derby 2011 · Kurilpa Derby 2012 · Kurilpa Derby 2013