Spring lifestyle for Not Just a Shop

We’ve been working with the team since 2015, so it was a real pleasure to kick off our tenth year with a shoot at the shop itself in Holborn.

“not just a shop is the place to find unique gifts, homeware, artwork and fashion created exclusively by students and graduates from University of the Arts London (UAL). We operate as a not for profit.

Managed by UAL’s Careers and Employability team, not just a shop exists to support students who want to run their own product-based businesses by teaching them about working with retailers and galleries.

Since our launch in 2017, we’ve stocked 2900 different lines by 487 different artists and designers and paid out £350k to students and alumni for their products and expertise.”

Since I closed the studio at Hackney Downs it’s been fascinating to see that almost all out shoots can take place on location - at the client’s studio, home or retail space. We have rented larger spaces on a few occasions, but for the most part it’s been fine to shoot in smaller spaces with minimal gear - liberating!

Emma has been styling the UAL images for many years and is always very well prepared. This is in fact an often overlooked part of the stylist’s job - preparation and refining the shot list with the client so the shoot goes smoothly and expectations are met. She is also very efficient at the shoot and able to work quickly, but without rushing, a rare skill!

See the behind the scenes image here for our location setup. I use 2 light stands, a heavy duty extendable pole, an auto clamp and a spigot to attach my camera, all the while remaining tethered to my laptop for instant preview of images. The ‘Tether Tools’ range is great for cables, stands and clamps.

Read more about Not Just a Shop and browse the range of gifts at notjustashop.arts.ac.uk