Tag Archives: photo

Last Minute Christmas Gifts: Personalised photo book service Pocket Memories

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Anyone looking for a last minute Christmas gift look no further: Pocket Memories is a new app that has recently launched offering a high-quality personalised photo book service.

As a precious keepsake, these photo books are created using clever technology to instantly bring your design to life. Gone are the days of creating fiddly photo books – using the Pocket Memories app, users can choose pictures straight from their own camera roll to achieve these personalised designs in a matter of minutes. There is also none of that faff of putting individual pictures into a photo album. I tried the service and it was so quick and easy-to-use. I cannot recommend it enough.

During uncertain times, they are a fantastic and thoughtful gift for your loved ones. This year we have all missed our family and what would be a better gift than a reminder of beautiful memories?

What’s more, for every photobook sold Pocket Memories will donate one photobook to Make-A-Wish UK.

Amy Schumer Says Her Stomach Is Why She Has To Write Her Own Stuff

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Always one to bring the party, Amy Schumer was the centre of the Critics Choice awards, making everyone laugh when she accepted the award for MVP.

“Thank you for this trophy, covering the reason I have to write my own [stuff], If you’re an actress and you have this area right here, [points to her stomach] you have to write your own stuff if you want to get it made.”

Then she made fun of how patronising the word “brave” can be.

“This is where I get really ‘brave’ as everyone said after my Annie Leibovitz photo. That’s what you want everyone to say when a naked photo of you goes viral. You want them to say, ‘What a brave photo.’ You’re like, ‘Thanks, wow, thank you,” .

Photo credit: wikipedia. Mario Santoro

Photo credit: wikipedia. Mario Santoro

She then thanked “the managers I fired.” Finishing with “This is so boring, I am so sorry you guys. Nobody cares,”

 

For more actors who make their own work read this article. You can also check out my new book, How To Be a Successful Actor: Becoming an Actorpreneur, out now.  It tells you all about how to become a successful actor.

A Director In Search Of An Actress by Paul Vates

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Pity the poor director who raises his head above the parapet and publicly proclaims ‘Is there anyone interested in playing Nora?’

If you’ve read my previous articles about the process of staging A Doll’s House, you’ll know it’s audition time. The chosen poster used to represent the internal struggle within the protagonist’s mind …

A Director In Search Of An Actress by Paul Vates1

… but now represents the director’s (Kevin Russell’s) horror as the emails began to arrive. The number soon reached 200. How do you find the Special One amongst all those? Stories abound of some producers and directors abhorring hotmail email addresses, detesting specific drama schools or, even, flinching at the names of rivals on CVs. One famous director is known for whittling the list down by deleting every third email and removing every third application from his pile.

Ask any HR Manager attempting to fill a vacancy in a company – it’s a nightmare .So can it all be that random, relying so heavily on luck?

Ohhhh, yes.

Kevin told me that ‘it’s so silly what goes through my mind when looking at headshot after headshot. Whether they can act or not seems irrelevant. The first time acting gets involved is at the audition itself, but that seems so far away.’

He does, though, admit other skills are required. For him – and this is just Kevin, no one else (before someone complains that’s not how it’s done) – Kevin wants a clear CV, a photo that shows a certain attitude and a covering letter that indicates a little thought has gone into the application. The rest is gut instinct on his part.

Gradually, the audition list was reduced until sixteen actresses were invited to the venue, Barons Court Theatre. Then I joined him in the process, as a guide, a shoulder to cry on and the-fella-that-reads-along-with-the-auditionees.

The pressure is on them: 1 – to turn up on time; 2 – to resemble the person in the photograph (you’d be amazed how many don’t); 3 – to enjoy themselves. We assist with the last part, aiming to create a jovial and inspirational atmosphere.

So – the big news … Drum roll … An actress has been chosen and she did say ‘Yes.’ Her name is Alexa Matthews. When asked she said, ‘I have always wanted to play the role of Nora and as soon as I saw there was an opportunity to do so I applied immediately. She’s a complex character and makes such an interesting journey though the play and one that as an actor you can really challenge yourself with, this really excites me.

A Director In Search Of An Actress by Paul Vates3 Alexa Matthews – Photo by Michael Shelford

‘The audition was lots of fun and Kevin and Paul have a way of naturally making you feeling at ease. What I loved was that Kevin directed me in some of the chosen scenes with Paul and we got it up on its feet. Auditions can be a really surreal environment but instead of sitting behind a desk Kevin and Paul were much more involved.’

Where was she when she heard she had been offered the part? ‘I had just boarded the plane to France for a friend’s wedding with my boyfriend and received the email just before taking off. I was so excited to hear the news and couldn’t wait to get back to discuss the play further.’

The whole production rests on Alexa’s shoulders – so no pressure there. It’s such a famous role, it is natural to feel nervous about the months ahead. Alexa said, ‘I really hope that I do the play justice and that the audience come away feeling like they have seen a great version of the play. I hope that they are tickled with its lightness but also come away with an understanding of the fresh and relevant messages it has to convey.  Importantly I hope they have a great evening out and that as a company we also have lots of fun.’

What Alexa may not realise at the moment, though, is just how many macaroons she will have to consume during the run. I think I may keep count… but more on that later.

A Doll’s House by Henrik Ibsen will be performed from November 3rd to 22nd at Barons Court Theatre, west London. Tickets are selling fast, so if you fancy stopping by call the box office direct on 020 8932 4747 or email londontheatre@gmail.com to reserve seats.

www.newdreamstheatre.co.uk

Facebook: New Dreams Theatre

Twitter @KevinNewdreams

 

 

Win! Three Copies of MAGIX Photostory To Giveaway | Competitions

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Win! Three Copies of MAGIX Photostory To Giveaway | CompetitionsMAGIX Photostory 2015 Deluxe offers over 300 freely combinable high-quality effects, animations and decorative elements. You can combine individual images to make panoramas or 3D photos, and travel route animations allow you to create interactive presentations of travel images. With over 50 new music pieces and 500 effects, the program now features more than 850 professional sounds & songs for audio dubbing. You can also add your own audio comments and music.

If you don‘t have much time or a creative streak, you can always make use of the Photostory wizard. With tons of thematic templates for birthdays, weddings, Christmas and other events, you can automatically create the right Photostory for every occasion.

In addition to new effects, templates and audio content, the controls have also been further optimized. You can now assign photos, videos and music to up to 8 multimedia tracks, and the optimized multi-track performance allows for a more efficient use of multicore processors.

The program stands out against online slideshow providers in its ability to allow you to create as many slideshows as they want. There is no need to upload photos and video to the Internet, and everything can be saved locally on your PC. You can also choose to export to DVD, mobile end devices, online on Facebook, YouTube, Flickr, as well as showy and we have three to giveaway.

To be in with the chance of winning this fantastic prize, follow @Frostmag on Twitter or Instagram, or like us on Facebook. Alternatively, sign up to our newsletter. Or subscribe to Frost Magazine TV on YouTube here: http://t.co/9etf8j0kkz.Then comment below saying what you did. Competition finishes a month from now.

 

 

 

Jennifer Lawrence: Nude Photo Hacking Was a “Sex Crime”

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Jennifer Lawrence opens up about that nude photo hacking in Vanity Fair’s November issue, the digital edition will be available Wednesday, October 8 followed by the print edition.

Jennifer Lawrence speaks out about nude photo hacking

The 24-year-old actress said: “Just because I’m a public figure, just because I’m an actress, does not mean that I asked for this, It does not mean that it comes with the territory. It’s my body, and it should be my choice, and the fact that it is not my choice is absolutely disgusting. I can’t believe that we even live in that kind of world. ”

She tried to write a statement about the incident but “every single thing that I tried to write made me cry or get angry. I started to write an apology, but I don’t have anything to say I’m sorry for. I was in a loving, healthy, great relationship for four years. It was long distance, and either your boyfriend is going to look at porn or he’s going to look at you.

It is not a scandal. It is a sex crime, It is a sexual violation. It’s disgusting. The law needs to be changed, and we need to change. That’s why these Web sites are responsible. Just the fact that somebody can be sexually exploited and violated, and the first thought that crosses somebody’s mind is to make a profit from it. It’s so beyond me. I just can’t imagine being that detached from humanity. I can’t imagine being that thoughtless and careless and so empty inside.

Anybody who looked at those pictures, you’re perpetuating a sexual offense. You should cower with shame. Even people who I know and love say, ‘Oh, yeah, I looked at the pictures.’ I don’t want to get mad, but at the same time I’m thinking, I didn’t tell you that you could look at my naked body.”

“Time does heal, you know, I’m not crying about it anymore. I can’t be angry anymore. I can’t have my happiness rest on these people being caught, because they might not be. I need to just find my own peace.”

Kim Kardashian Wedding Dress Pictures

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It has been three days since they married and E! have finally released pictures of Kim and Kanye’s wedding. Especially the Givenchy wedding dress. Here it is:

.kim-kardashian-kanye-west-wedding

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It sure is beautiful but if you were on your third marriage at 33, would you wear white?

Why We Should All Calm Down About Vogue Photoshopping Lena Dunham

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Some controversy I just don’t get. Like photoshopping. When I watch a film I know it is not reality, and when I read magazines and see posters I don’t expect that to be reality either. Which is why those making a huge deal about Lena Dunham being photoshopped in Vogue (of all places, Vogue is all about fantasy) are making a fuss over nothing. And the gleefulness of some people about the ‘before’ pictures is just bitchiness on a high-school level- she doesn’t look like a supermodel, but that doesn’t mean she is not beautiful. Beauty is debatable.

Dunham has said she is ‘confused’ about the uproar. Frankly, so am I. Jezebel even paid $10,000 for the unretouched pictures and featured them. Why? Models are also retouched in Vogue. Why is Dunham singled out? If anything her differences should be applauded. Dunham did a great Tweet on it.

In fact pretty much everything in the media is photoshopped. The sky, food…the list is endless. Of course men and women are photoshopped, yet it is only when women are photoshopped that the media have a huge hissy-fit about it. The same media that encourages the practice. You may noticed I said women. I meant it. Have you ever seen a media-storm about a man having his pot-belly removed or been made to look younger? I haven’t. Men don’t care either.

Jezebel article on Lena Dunham being photoshopped. Credit: Jezebel.

Jezebel article on Lena Dunham being photoshopped. Credit: Jezebel.

In my opinion it is just another form of sexism. Women are made to feel bad about their bodies so they can be exploited out of their hard-earned money with an endless parade of celebrities whipping themselves into shape weeks after birth, or starving themselves for two days a week. Then they are made to feel bad about not feeling good about their bodies. We can’t win.

Here is my opinion on photoshopping: I love it. I really love it. In fact my idea of hell is being in the media, especially in print, and not being photoshopped. Every flaw is highlighted when photographed. I don’t even care if they photoshop out an arm, as long as they make me taller, thinner and better looking. After all, it’s not reality and it’s not supposed to be.

 

Debbie Harry Talks To Fabulous About Sex, Drugs, Dating & Cosmetic Surgery

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One of Frost’s Favourite music icons, Debbie Harry, has given a candid interview revealing her thoughts on sex, drugs and cosmetic surgery. 

In an interview and photoshoot for Fabulous magazine’s Age issue, published on Sunday June 2, Blondie front woman and living legend Debbie Harry opens up about sex over 60, the dating scene and cosmetic surgery.

Debbie, who sold 40 million records worldwide as part of the ’70s rock band and paved the way for the likes of Gwen Stefani and Lady Gaga, says she still has strong sexual desires and feels just as sexy at 67 as she did in her 20s: “Whether it’s just pure sex or having that physical contact, sex is very important. Most people need it.”

Debbie Harry

Miami-born Debbie also opens up about her past experiences with cosmetic surgery, calling it, “a part of showbiz, really. A few needles in the face? It’s not a major thing. What offends me and horrifies me more is bad surgery. When I see somebody that’s permanently changed everything about their face, it’s like: ‘Oh my God, were you so miserable about yourself before?’”

The blonde bombshell – who once battled drug addiction – reveals that she doesn’t regret her wilder days and admits she’s glad she had that time: “I certainly would encourage any young people who want to freak out to go right ahead.” Drug addiction can be battled and overcome with the help of rehabs so looking for drug rehabs near you is a good idea in such cases.

Debbie, who along with her band mates is set to go back on the road, also admits to having a bit of a soft spot for the 1D boys who recently covered her classic hit One Way or Another: “I thought it was fun! It was also fitting for the charity and achieving things ‘one way or another’, so it was all very positive.”

Fabulous magazine is available free in The Sun every Sunday.