Movember Portraits is a series of self portraits done to help raise money for the Movember charity by capturing my Mo's journey. My name is Neil Bremner and I'm a photographer from Glastonbury in Somerset.
At the beginning of 2013, my father in law broke the news that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. I’m delighted to report that he is now on the mend but it certainly opened my eyes to how important the Movember charity is. So I decided to do a project that captured my Mo's journey and this year saw the project come out for a second outing.
More info: madeportraits.com
Day 01 - Bad start!
Not the greatest of starts to my 'Movember Portraits' month. I dropped my razor in to the sink and when I went to pick it up out of the water, I sliced a rather large chunk out of my finger. I'm feeling a little bit silly but highly 'Mo'tivated!
Day 2 - We have stubble people!
Last year on Day 2, there was very little sign of anything coming through but this year, it's already taking shape. A pleasant surprise.
Day 3 - Do you LOVE it or HATE it?
I wanted to do an image that was a nod to the 'Lemon Babies' project I did earlier in the year and decided to go with a 'Marmite Mo' shot. As you can see, I HATE it but what about you?
Day 4 - Duck face selfie!
It's been a busy year with weddings for me and while capturing these fantastic days, I've witnessed countless duck face selfies being taken in the background which inspired todays image.
Day 5 - Fireworks night!
DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!
Many of you will be venturing out to a Bonfire Night this evening and filling the air with sounds of ‘OOoooohhh’s and Aaaaahhhhhh’s’. Remember to wrap up warm and don’t hold a lit firework… that would just be silly!
Day 6 - EX-Self confessed diet coke addict!
For many many (MANY) years now, I've been a BIG Diet Coke drinker but NOT ANY MORE! I gave up a couple of months ago now and it has been added to the ever growing list of things I loved but have given up for health reasons. As you can tell, I’m really happy about it and have embraced water with a smile on my face and a spring in my step!
Day 7 - Lets NERF!
I’ve had a couple of shoots recently where the kids have taken NERF guns as props and the images I’ve produced have been great fun. It seemed apt to do a NERF shot for my ‘Movember Portraits’ project and so this is the result and I once again… DON”T try this at home. It REALLY hurts!
Day 8 - Super ’Mo’!
My daughter has been dressing up as Supergirl for the last few weeks with her cape (Pillow Cover) held on with a peg and it inspired me to go with this today. Everybody loves a Super Hero!
Day 9 - Lest we forget!
God of our fathers, known of old
Lord of our far-flung battle line
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!
Lord of our far-flung battle line
Beneath whose awful hand we hold
Dominion over palm and pine
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget!
Day 10 - Too old to ROCK?
I had a boys night out on Saturday night and the truth is that once I was home and in bed by 23:00, I became highly aware of the fact that perhaps my rocking days are well and truly behind me. Gimme a nice glass of wine, an episode of ‘Newsroom’ and an early night any day of the week.
Day 11 - This ‘Mo’ is HOT!
Last year I came across an incredibly cool GQ shoot of Andy Murray shot by Art Streiber. He was holding a tennis racket whilst it was set on fire and for months now I’ve been considering doing my own version so here it is. Now I just need to dig out the number for my insurance company.
Day 12 - Singing in the shower!
I love music and I love singing along to some of my favourite songs (End of the Road by Boyz II Men being a particular favourite) but I am very aware that I should only sing when alone in the car, the studio or in the shower. I may be tone deaf but it doesn’t hold me back!
Day 13 - Hit me with it!
It’s amazing just how quickly you can get a volunteer when you ask if anyone would mind throwing a shoe at your face! This is another shot that’s a nod to a photo I’ve seen although in this case it was a series of images. Kaija Straumanis, a U.S.-based photographer and grad student did a series of self portraits that captured random objects as they collided with her head and so I thought “why the hell not?”.
Day 14 - Children in need!
Children in Need is another amazing Charity Event to happen in November where the Fundraising Efforts are often funny and full of character which I love and it’s all for a great cause. I’ve been racking my brain all week as to what to do for todays image and as soon as I thought about using Heinz Beanz, it all just fell in to place.
Day 15 - Lol!
One of the main things I love about doing what I do is I get to laugh a LOT. When a client comes in for a session, the main thing I want to do is make sure that they have a great time together as that translates in to the images and the benefit of that… I have a great time to. Today I have laughed a LOT. Thank you to everyone that’s been in today.
Day 16 - Carnival weekend!
One of the many many things I love about Somerset is when the Carnivals begin travelling from town to town and this weekend was the turn of Wells and Glastonbury. I went with my family and it really was a fantastic evening out with some incredible floats and over-priced tat.
Day 17 - Tired!
That was very busy weekend. It included studio sessions, viewings, trips to the park, an evening at the carnival along with my first visit to the gym in over 2 years and the result is I am feeling very tired today. In an attempt to wake myself up I have tried a can of Red Bull, dunking my face in a cold sink of water and slapping my cheeks leaving me no other option but to resort to extreme measures.
Day 18 - New boots!
With the weather changing, I thought it was time to pack up my ever faithful Dunlops and Converse and get myself a pair of proper boots to keep my toes dry. My wife likes them as she thinks they make me look taller but I think she’s mistaken.
Day 19 - DIYOCD!
I’m looking at introducing a new set of images to the studios product selection and updating a couple of images so it’s time to break out the tool kit and hang some pictures. The problem is it always takes me ten times longer than I intended because I can be a little OCD-ish when it comes to spacing and straightness.
Day 20 - Healthy eating!
Last week, I finally started using my gym membership in an attempt to lose some weight but obviously exercise alone won’t do it. With that in mind, I now make sure I have my 5 a Day as recommended by my doctor… the jam of a doughnut counts, right?
Day 21 - Bubble love!
Like so many of you, since I had a child I find that bubbles are just a part of my day to day life so when I was looking around the studio to decide what to do for Day 21, the bubbles were just there staring back at me. Normally in photos, bubbles tend to be accompanied by a smiley wide eyed toddler but I thought I’d go for my moody serious (attempt at sexy) look.
Day 22 - Alone in the dark!
I’m really starting to feel that it’s THAT time of the year again. I’m arriving at work in the dark and I’m leaving work in the dark. I love where the studio is located but when you have to venture outside to take in the A Frame at night, it’s a little bit spooky.
Day 23 - Man flu!
It appears that 3 weeks without a day off and quite a few 16 hour days has finally caught up with me. I think the only thing left to do is to head home, grab a blanket, curl up on the sofa and watch the final race of the Formula 1 2014 season.
Day 24 - Damn you Paul Hollywood!
My wife like the large majority of the women in the UK has a little crush on Paul Hollywood. I thought if I could learn to bake a variety of sweet things, it might please her but this baking thing is harder than it looks and the tidy up that follows is epic! They don’t show that on the Great British Bake Off.
Day 25 - Just one month till Christmas!
Since I was a child, I have loved Christmas and waking up stupidly early on Christmas Day is something I have never stopped doing. The hardest thing I find is just how early am I allowed to put up the decorations and with the studio, that day is TODAY! The Christmas Playlist is blasting out as I sort out the studio. Merry Christmas everybody.
Day 26 - Suck it in!
It’s amazing how good you can look when you have the right lighting, the right stance, you tense up a little and just a teeny weeny ickle bit of Photoshop. That’s right people, I’m sexy and I ‘Mo’ it!
Day 27 - Mid-morning snack!
Sometimes when I get half way through the morning, I just find a little snack can give me that little bit more energy needed to take me through to lunch time. My triple decker Corned Beef with Cheese, Salt and Vinegar Crisps and Ketchup Beast of a Bap should do the trick.
Day 28 - My Black Friday!
I’ve had a really frustrating day which involved early start (05:20); drive to Bristol for meeting; car not working well; call AA; they say take to garage; miss meeting; drop off car to garage; 1.5 hour bus journey back to Glastonbury for viewing; call from garage to say car ready; get 2 hour bus back to Bristol; garage realise they replaced wrong part; car now won’t be fixed till Tuesday. At this point, stress, frustration and escalating car repair costs saw my head explode but I’m still jolly and fruitful on the inside at least.
Day 29 - Change!
With the change in facial hair over the last 29 days, I’m tempted to change my hair style after sporting the mohican for over 15 years now. Do we think dread locks in a ‘Silver Surfer’ style could work? I’m liking it truth be told, is that worrying?
Day 30 - Toothless!
On Day 3, I gave a nod to my ‘Lemon Babies’ project and so for Day 30, I thought I would acknowledge my ‘Toothless!’ Project. I did say this years ‘Movember Portraits’ would be more extreme than the last but my wife says I’ve maybe gone too far today. Do you agree?
It's inspiring to see photography being used as a tool for raising awareness and supporting cancer-related charities.
Just like spreading hope through portraits of children battling cancer, Movember Portraits aims to make a difference, documenting a personal journey with the iconic mustache.