Nicholas Hendrickx and the Fantastic Mr Fly
Welcome back!
Meet one fantastic Mr. Gerald Fly, whose staggering musical talents have been stirring up a buzz in the insect world. On-stage he’s a genius at the piano and guitar, while off-stage he enjoys skateboarding, cycling, flying his kite, and a relaxing day at the beach.
Mr. Gerald Fly is the muse of Belgian photographer Nicholas Hendrickx. Nearly all photographs of Mr. Fly were shot in Nicholas’s bedroom using mostly natural light and an 8 mega pixel camera.
“I met Gerald Fly in my garden as I was shooting some cliché flowers.” said Hendrickx. “I had just bought my first macro filters and was excitingly giving them a try.”
“Gerald caught my attention as he was sitting on a flowerpot with nothing but a cardboard sign that said ‘Will work 4 food.’ Over the years he degraded from a successful cab driver to a poor lonely insect as he had 173 wives who cost him a fortune in make-up and clothing — not to mention his 2184 kids, who all needed money for education and iPods.”
“So there he was, staring at me with his big mosaic eyes, begging me for help. Macro filters in hand I offered him a job as my new photography model.”
“That night we had a good drink and talked about potential photo shoots. Surprisingly he proved himself a lovely musician on both piano and guitar.”
“We really had a good time together until a dangerous freefall dandelion shoot, when Gerald and I had a big fight over the conditions he had to work in.”
“He furiously buzzed away to the streets outside, and hitchhiked for 29 hours non-stop to Poopville, the Promised Land for flies, without success. But the guilt inside me was becoming too much so I begged him to come back and promised to give him a little holiday.”
Gerald is actually one of a number of flies that Nicholas photographs using props. “It took quite some time. Some flies were great to work with, while others were very frustrating.”
“I guess it’s normal — flies and humans aren’t made to work together. Flies are made to annoy us with their buzzing and pooping on stuff.”
In answer to why he uses flies as subjects, Hendrickx said, “I guess I just wanted people to enjoy the little things in life and to give them a refreshing view on insect macro-photography.”
Hendrickx says most of the shots are captured using live specimens. “I like to experiment with original ideas and compositions. I’m a perfectionist with great patience and an enjoyer of life and its little details. But the main thing that matters is that I’m having a lot of fun!”
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Hilarious pictures. Great story as well. And to think that I’ve been swatting these poor helpless creatures for years. If only I’d known they could do tricks and pose for pictures. Very interesting blog. My first time here, but I will definitely be coming back. Keep up the good work!
http://www.ithappenedinplainfield.com
LOL – I really thought that the flea circus was a thing of the past and that was one thing I never thought would be resurrected. Great pictures – I will think about them when I swat the flies that find their way into my house. LOL
ohhhh Deborah…
how cute are these pics…..and what an adorable story….
I won’t be able to look at our Aussie blowfly the same way again….gosh they could be relatives of these little fellows
Haha, I’ll never be able to look at a fly in the same manner again Henson. And thank you, great to have you as a new reader
‘Feal circus’ … too funny Andreas
Oh noooo, I don’t think George would be very happy about losing his relies in that manner Kim
I never thought I’d be watching insect pictures and be mesmerized by them. Wonderful concepts and a very good job with the photo manipulation. I hope no flies were harmed during the photo shoot.
Haha, I found them quite amusing, Concert. And no, I don’t believe any flies were harmed in the making of the photos
Hello,
These images are great fun! I really like the fly riding the bicycle – what an excellent idea! Thinking about the musical instruments images, it would be good to put a complete band together!
Marvin Africa’s last blog post..Close-up Photography of Small Objects
I got a real kick out of these. I have a friend who just finished animation school and he did something similar but it was only drawings. He wanted to make a comic book out of it but… I don’t think he was too serious about it.
Awesome post!
-Regards