This past July I spent 9 days in India roaming around two of the finest hotels in the world for Travel + Leisure. I’ve done travel stories before but this one was unique because I didn’t leave the hotel for the entire trip. The best way to describe it would be Lost In Translation meets The Shinning. (Not the redrum parts, just the being isolated in a large hotel parts)
My brief for the job was to “do what you do” which is always the best brief one can receive. First thoughts after receiving the assignment were, how the hell am I going to shoot one hotel for four days? Well, I sure was wrong. As the sun was setting on day four I was franticly running through the halls of the hotel trying to get to the ideal vantage point to capture that perfect closing shot.
Even though the rooms, views, food and pools were amazing, my best memories from the trip were the times hanging with the young porters (aka my assistants) bs ing about motorcycles, music and cricket. Being in a hotel for 9 days solo can get kind of lonely, so it was nice to run around these massive properties with my new friends who were as excited as I was about finding that good light.
This assignment was one of the best of my career, but the real icing on the cake was getting the January cover. Thanks again for giving me a shot Whitney.
Here are a couple outtakes and a tear.
