The hunt for exquisite Jade

For a profile of Hong Kong designer Barney Cheng, I did an extensive multiple day interview and shoot, marking the 25th anniversary of his eponymous brand. The popular designer has several celebrity fans, including Michelle Yeoh and model turned actress Celina Jade.

Between her packed film shooting schedule, I interviewed the actress regarding her long-standing collaborations with Cheng and we did several looks featuring Barney Cheng couture and jewellery, as an accompanying piece to the main article. Everything you see in the left picture is from Cheng's design house. While photographer Ruby Law was taking perfect snaps of the perfectly poised Jade, who was studded with rubies and glittering diamonds, I was taking BTS shots in my often blurry phone camera. I posted this picture on social media for my.. 10s and 12s of followers!

What followed was... unprecedented on the account. An avalanche of trolling and hate speech, the likes of which I have never seen, bombarded the page. A mixture of bile filled comments in both Chinese and English. Apparently some... crazy person... in China? In some God-forsaken artery in Kowloon?.... slammed us for the shoot and feature as they hated Celina Jade for dating or breaking up some guy. Allegedly. We would delete the comment and three more would pop up the following day. Someone very unemployed who had time to write near-essays of virulent trolling.

For the record, Jade was a wonderful interview, a thorough professional at the shoot and lovely to work with. So the spewing that we read online was shocking.

We don't know if it was a bot or some aggressive person with severe mental issues, but it was relentless for weeks on end and we had to turn off the comment section on both the official account of the magazine and my personal account. Oyve.

The perils of fame, fandom with a pinch of cray cray.

On the plus side, the normal somnambulism of our social media account has never seen so much fire and ire. ..

TBT: Peter Cheung: Society feature and shoot at The Grand Hyatt

Peter Cheung by Dino Busch photography

Outtake from a shoot and interview I did with Peter Cheung at the fabulous Ambassador Suite at The Grand Hyatt in Hong Kong. The spectacular view, the shimmering accessories (Van Clef & Arpel), the festival of colours (Versace wardrobe) and the uncensored conversation, spiked with wicked laughter, there was much we talked about - that was mercifully not recorded on video. Lost in meandering chit-chat as he tried on the accessories, we completely forgot we were being taped for the video. When the dawn of realisation hit - I had to double-check with the videographer that none of what we spoke was on the record. Phew! 

As an erstwhile Society Editor who has seen socialites of all shapes and sizes run in and out of favour and flavour, he knows far more than he'll ever let on. 

For the final article in print we had two chats. One that was rather... PC... and we don't mean his initials. But so matter-of-fact that it read a bit like a press release. Then, we had another, over champagne by the pool at the Hyatt. Far more fun. The long walks down memory lane, the glamorous shoot and the video is online at the magazine's official site. 

Peter was one of the first few people I interviewed for the Society column for the paper so long ago, Jesus was a boy back then. 

Check out: http://www.petercheungasia.com/

Above portrait by Dino Busch. 

Below: Video with Peter Cheung, behind the scenes of the shoot and the interview. 

On set with Hsieh Ling-ling: Chinese Cinema Legend

I met Hsieh Ling-ling long before Elly Lam [Lifestlye cover girl], for a feature and shoot with the magazine. We've shot a lot of celebrities for the magazine and paper, but I've never seen my usual crew fan out completely for someone like they did when the legendary actress came in for a portrait. Having done several films as a child star, teenager and a leading lady of Chinese cinema, she's been the part of everyone's childhood and teenage years as they've all seen one or several of her movies.

She was magnificent. We were all in awe of her and kept a healthy distance. Such a graceful and gracious lady who made time for everyone on set who wanted a selfie with her - after the shoot and interview.

You can read the entire interview and see the shoot by Until Chan here at PrestigeOnline.com

These outtakes from the shoot - she is so exquisite; mother of five, and a few grandchildren included! 

Shooting with Sammi

Outtake from a shoot I did with Sam (https://www.samuelsalvadore.com/)

To save money, the house has been doubled as a set several (hundred!) times.

Sam and I sit at the dining table and come up with ideas and concepts, he heads to the fire exit to smoke (ze French!) and then he comes back and we get some shizz done somehow.

We didn't have a budget for a model for the shoot so we grabbed our buddy who is a personal trainer and Sam (who was a model) directed him. Got some amazing shots that day. This was one of them.

BTW the brand that we were working with didn't like the shots. Cause taste is... rare.

You know how common sense is anything but?! Along the same vein...

Modern Art is... Lit.

Saw this in an art feed as Art Basel Hong Kong got cancelled.... that sounds harsh, postponed as the city deals with COVID - 19.

TBT: Happy Birthday Jeremy Wong

Last week, 'twas the birthday of popular KOL, model and reality TV star Jeremy Wong. He was the Society Editor at large for Prestige Hong Kong for several years, the face of the magazine at events and the cynosure of all eyes and cameras when he hit the red carpet with impeccable contemporary style.

We rarely saw the man in the office as his busy schedule, shoots and event hopping kept him away, but on his birthday, our then-editor buzzed him and asked him to attend a very important meeting...

If ever there was anyone to win the popularity and congeniality contest, Jeremy would win hands down. The office printed out pictures of the model, glued them on our tops and surprised him when he turned up at the door. Birthday lunch, copious vino (the boy can out-drink YOU!) and insta' fame snaps. That rare occasion when we saw him have carbs and sweets. Well, once a year...

Bless his (designer) socks. Happy Birthday #JWow You are one in a million. Well, one in 7.4 million (Hong Kong population!).

Follow model Jeremy Wong on instagram at https://www.instagram.com/jeremixmatch/?hl=en

Mathew T in Calvin Klein

TBT: Working on a project and was rifling through the archives and this popped up.

Mathew T in Calvin Klein. Outtakes. 

Feauter and shoot appeared in South China Morning Post when I was writing the menswear column.