A few weeks back, my good friend Nicole asked me to shoot some photos of her for a Mad Men contest that AMC was running to promote the new season. At the time, I had never seen an episode, but I was aware that the series took place in the early ’60s and everyone on the show is dolled up in swank outfits. I thought it would be cool to do a spoof on the name and have mad women (or in this case, murderous housewives) instead of mad men.
Yes, I now realize that the show is called Mad Men because its about ad execs on Madison Avenue and not angry husband, but I must plead ignorance.
Anyway, I got Nicole and her very understanding fiance Jared to work with me on a series a shots that subtly show Nicole’s (evil) intentions. The biggest problem was eliminating enough modern crap from my office to make the scene period specific and believable. Sure, I have an awesome Eames chair, but I also have piles of books for Dummies hidden in that book case. I also couldn’t shoot wide because the iMac would come into the shot.
To get Nicole’s expression I took a mirror out of the hallway and stuck it where I usually hang a painting. Why anyone would hang a mirror above a chair is beyond me, but it really worked to bring out her devious looks.
I offered to turn the shots into a “Save the Date” for the wedding, a la Dave Navarro and Carmen Electra, but I was told that the respective families might find them too morbid. Anyway, I’m looking to do more Murderous Housewives shots and am looking for any ideas or couples to get involved. Just drop me a line.
