posted by Kiell # 12:17 PM

Friday, August 20th, 2010

One of the biggest events on the parkour calendar is 'Rendezvous' held by Parkour Generations. This year, Rendezvous 5 was based at the South Bank with groups heading out to visit a few other locations. A unique addition this year was a night training session held at one of my favourite, soon-to-be-demolished housing estates in Elephant and Castle.

Regular visitors to my site will know of my fascination with the Aylesbury and Heygate estates, so it was with some excitement that I cycled out into the darkness to meet up with Parkour Generations and their large group of RDV5 participants. And it was certainly something very special; not simply through the atmosphere, the numbers, the location, and the movement, but that special vibe that comes with every PKGen event, this time amplified by the darkness and the emphasis on silence.

I've been photographing parkour for a long time now, and I've never photographed anything quite like this. Rendezvous 5: Night Training.

posted by Kiell # 16:42 PM

Wednesday, August 4th, 2010

From my previous post you will know that I recently spent 11 days in Nicaragua photographing parkour and running workshops in conjunction with Parkour Generations. Following on from part one, I'm pleased to publish parts two and three.

Traffic roundabouts in Managua are typically quite distinctive and culturally symbolic. The Rotunda Periodista provided a striking venue for movement. Later that day we moved to the new cathedral, built to replace the old cathedral that was badly damaged by an earthquake in 1972 that destroyed large parts of the city. It's not often that I manage to sneak in to one of my own photoshoots but one of the walls made for an interesting climb that I couldn't resist. My thanks to Johnny 'Sticky' Budden for pushing the button once I'd told him what I was after.

Our final day of action was spent at locations better suited to Julie Angel's filming: a colourful and leafy park on a seemingly unnamed street (not unusual in Managua), a footbridge above a busy street, and a stop-off at one of the city's few tourism spots. All rounded off by a brief visit to the city's baseball ground.

During our visit to Nicaragua we ran two days of workshops. Galleries to follow in due course, including some snaps from our day's surfing on the Pacific coast.

Managua, Nicaragua: part two

Managua, Nicaragua: part three

posted by Kiell # 12.47 PM

Wednesday, July 21st, 2010

In May this year I was contacted by Russian company Yota and asked if I could take a team of traceurs to Managua, the capital of Nicaragua. The brief was to find locations, photograph and film parkour, as well as running two introductory workshops for the residents of a city that had never seen the art before.

At the end of June I flew to Central America to start scouting locations and was soon joined by Dan, Stephane, Blane and Sticky from Parkour Generations, Julie Angel who would be making the various films, and my assistant, Violeta Beral.

This first gallery is from our visit to the Concha Acustica, an outdoor concert venue next to Lake Managua. More galleries to follow.

Managua, Nicaragua: part one

posted by Kiell # 12.56 PM

Wednesday, May 19th, 2010

Last month I spent a day exploring and photographing with Bobby. We share an interest in climbing the built environment, something that I'm hoping will turn into an ongoing project throughout this year. More to follow in due course.

In other news, the next issue of Spiked magazine is due for release on May 24th. Again it features quite a few of my photographs. You can order your copy here.

posted by Kiell # 11:57 AM

Friday, February 19, 2010

Wednesday February 24th sees the publication of the first printed Parkour-specific magazine in the world. Spiked and Parkour Generations are now working together to promote parkour in its truest form, giving an honest account of its humble beginnings, through to every aspect of its evolution while retaining the key values of the discipline.

I'm very pleased to have more than twenty of my photographs appearing in the new magazine which marks a milestone in the evolution of Parkour. Spiked will be available in stores across the UK or you can order online (worldwide delivery available) via the Spiked website or the PKGen homepage.

posted by Kiell # 11:16 AM

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Some time in the next 6 weeks, my good friend Johnny Budden - known to Parkour world as 'Sticky' - will be setting off from John O'Groats and running to Paris, with plenty of Parkour en route. This epic journey, entitled '1000 Miles of Parkour', is to raise money for the Motor Neurone Disease Association.

For two reasons, I encourage you to go and donate. Firstly, Johnny is a good friend and has featured in many of my photographs over the last 6 years. He's an amazing individual and deserves your support in doing something exceptional.

Secondly, this is a very worthy cause. Any athlete who has experienced an injury can understand the frustration of not being able to move to one's full potential, so the devastation of knowing that your body will never work again and will only get worse must be overwhelming.

I'm hoping to join Johnny for various parts of his journey. For now, please give generously. Many thanks.

posted by Kiell # 11:37 AM

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

I'm very pleased to publish two new galleries of photographs which focus on Parkour amongst some of my favourite London housing estates. The collection of images bring together over two years of work and I'm indebted to the skills, patience and endurance of many athletes from Parkour Generations, including those who gave their time and effort only to be left out of the final galleries due to the fact that things weren't quite right on my part.

I had been holding back on publishing the images as the two-part set seemed somehow unfinished, but eventually felt a sense of completion after my most recent visit with Thomas Couetdic on what was possibly the last day of the year's small amount of summer sunshine. My thanks in particular go to Thomas, recently returned from his another of his travels, who spent the day wandering, exploring and climbing, and waiting patiently for me to decide what to do next.

The two parts split the images almost into chronological order. The housing estates featured are either Brutalist or heavily influenced by Brutalism, giving the collection of photographs its name.

Before clicking the following links, I suggest switching your browser to full screen (hit F11).

Brutalism: part one

Brutalism: part two

posted by Kiell # 11:43 AM

Sunday, October 04, 2009

I've just put a copy of my latest blog entry for Parkour Generations onto Kiell.com. Regular visitors to my site will know of my fascination with post-war housing estates and the enormous, soon-to-be-demolished housing estates in Elephant and Castle inevitably prompted a few visits. The flats are virtually empty, creating something slightly surreal and unique.

Click here to read the article and see my photographs.

I'm planning to release a new gallery of more than twenty images in the next week, finishing a project that has waited patiently to be finished for almost two years. Check back soon for a wealth of new action shots.

posted by Kiell # 5:23 PM

Friday, September 04, 2009

On Sunday 23rd August 2009, traceur Naoki Ishiyama fell from a tree in Hampstead Heath, London. Despite being a very strong and fit individual, Naoki was seriously injured, breaking his back.

Despite only visiting the UK for a very short time, Naoki has formed a very strong bond with some good friends of mine, and for this reason I'm lending my support in appealing for donations to help him with his treatment and repatriation to Japan.

For more information, please visit the Naoki Ishiyama Donation page and consider helping him in his recovery. Many thanks.

posted by Kiell # 11:09 AM

Tuesday, September 01, 2009

On Sunday, I attended the second day of Parkour Generations' 'RendezVous IV'. Traceurs from across the UK, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Brasil, Mexico and Cyprus gathered to train, with groups hitting some of London's best locations - Elephant and Castle, Imax, and Vauxhall.

My photos can be found here. There was a great vibe to the day, inspired by the fantastic Parkour Generations coaches and the Yamakasi Founders, their French counterparts, visiting from Paris.

posted by Kiell # 8:14 AM

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

The three photographs from the recent shoot for Native Instruments. My thanks again to Stephane Vigroux of Parkour Generations, film-maker Julie Angel, and Terry from Native Instruments.

As well as the Native Instruments website, the adverts are due to appear in next month's issues of DJ Mag and iDJ.

posted by Kiell # 9:30 AM

Wednesday, July 22, 2009

Last week I photographed Stephane Vigroux of Parkour Generations as part of the launch of a new DJing tool produced by Native Instruments. Along with print adverts, my work can be seen here alongside a funky short film by director Julie Angel which you can also catch on YouTube.

Many thanks to Stephane, Terry from Native Instruments, Julie and Violeta Beral.

posted by Kiell # 9:01 PM

Wednesday, April 22, 2009

A few weeks ago I went to visit one of my favourite housing estates in deepest, darkest east London with James, Alli and Dom from Parkour Generations. We had some bits and pieces to shoot to complete the new book due for a release in June.

It also meant a good chance to reccy the housing estate for another shoot. Being a grey, damp day we had no real plans to photograph any big jumps, but one saut de bras sucked us in. With limited light available, I saw it more as an opportunity to find the right angles in preparation for a return trip in better weather. It also turned out to be an interesting study of each of the athletes' preparations for this particular jump; each had varying degrees of confidence, freshness, and maybe the odd minor injury to take into consideration, along with the jump itself.

More to follow once we've returned for a full day's shooting. Preparations.

posted by Kiell # 9:41 AM

Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Buildering with John.

I recently hooked up with my good friend John (aka 'Spidermonkey' to us in the geek world) for some buildering and inevitably took my camera along. I've done a quick write up of our exploration of south London and posted it here on the inimitable buildering.net.

You can also find it here on the Parkour Generations blog.

posted by Kiell # 8:11 PM

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

A quick photo for the new year.

In the build up to Rendezvous 3 hosted by Parkour Generations, we were kindly granted access to some of the rooftops around London's South Bank. This gave me chance to grab a quick snap of Dan and Stephane. Hopefully some decent weather will bring some great opportunities later this year.

posted by Kiell # 8:41 PM

Friday, November 28, 2008

Back in September, I spent a few days in France with Parkour Generations, meeting with the team from Majestic Force and visiting some of their favourite training spots. Most of my work was observational, watching some of the teaching and then spending a day training in the forest at Sarcelles.

I managed to grab a few of the guys for a quick shoot on one of the many bridges that crosses the Seine, this image being the pick of the bunch.

posted by Kiell # 12:49 PM

Wednesday, October 01, 2008

My thanks to Thomas and Johann of Parkour Generations for their patience and hard work on our first ever night shoot that took place back back in August. Something of an experimental fashion shoot, we thought we'd head out with some lights to a location where we wouldn't disturb anyone. The resulting gallery can be found here.

posted by Kiell # 9:03 AM

Friday, August 22, 2008

A busy summer is being consumed primarily by weddings but last week I did my first night shoot with Thomas and Johann of Parkour Generations. The shoot was something of an experiment and proved to be an excellent opportunity to shoot some action in the dark.

A quick taster for now, a full gallery to follow in due course.

posted by Kiell # 7:47 AM

Monday, July 07, 2008

I recently returned from a three week road trip around Italy with Thomas and Blane in a 1976 Citroën 2CV. Leaving from Thomas's home town of Tours, we visited Turin, Genoa, Florence, Rome, the Dolomites and Milan, meeting lots of very friendly traceurs along the way.

Too much to tell, but I've inevitably got a load of photographs from the trip which will appear on the site in due course. My thanks to Thomas and Blane, and those people that hosted us during our trip - Italy certainly can be very proud of the hospitality it offers to visitors.

More details to follow.

posted by Kiell # 1:54 PM

Back from Italy and trying hard to catch up on everything. Here goes.

On the weekend of May 17th and 18th, the Yamakasi held an international seminar in the town of Evry. With the blessing of the mayor, we had the freedom of the town and taught eager participants in various locations and on purpose built structures. I joined the team from Parkour Generations, spending the Saturday photographing the teaching and performance, and joining in with a spot of training on the Sunday.

A fantastic weekend with a lot of positive energy, and great to see one of the homes of parkour lending such support to the growth of the art. You can see the photos by clicking here.

posted by Kiell # 12:40 PM

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Just after Easter this year I spent a week in the Fontainebleau forest in France. Chris Keighley of Parkour Generations joined me for some intensive bouldering and the occasional bit of Parkour.

I also managed to catch up with Thomas 'Des Bois' Couetdic who has invited me to join him on a road trip from Tours in France into Italy, meeting various traceurs along the way. We start our journey on June 1st, and more information will be posted on Thomas's blog very soon.

Thanks to everyone who has bought prints recently. The feedback has been great. For more information about digital prints, click here.

posted by Kiell # 9:53 AM

Wednesday, April 02, 2008

After eight months of waiting, I am incredibly pleased to launch my latest gallery of work: Stern, Paris.

My thanks to Paul Holmes, Forrest and Stephane of Parkour Generations, and to Laurent and Williams of the Yamakasi.

The photographs are in the current issue of Stern magazine, available across Europe.

posted by Kiell # 9:48 PM

Saturday, March 29, 2008

It's not often that I post news here, but Julie Angel's new film, GoGirls!, has just been published on YouTube. The first ever all-female action short film, this marks an important development in the evolution of Parkour. Well worth a watch.

Stern magazine is now on the shelves in Germany and across Europe, and the images will be published here and on the Parkour Generations website early next week.

posted by Kiell # 9:51 AM

Monday, March 17, 2008

Thursday March 27th sees the publication of my photographs in Stern magazine, available across Europe. The shoot took place in August of last year and features Forrest and Stephane of Parkour Generations, and Laurent and Williams of the Yamakasi.

I've had to wait patiently before being able to publish these images, but here's a quick taste of the gallery that will be published in a few weeks.

posted by Kiell # 10:19 AM

Sunday, January 27, 2008

A quick update for the new year - I've been out assisting Julie Angel with her latest all-female parkour action shoot. Dan Edwardes from Parkour Generations was along to help choreograph the 12 female Academy students and I managed to grab this quick shot of him as we were getting ready. I haven't felt in a black and white mood for some time but this photo seemed to demand it.

posted by Kiell # 8:07 PM

Monday, December 10, 2007

On November 21st I flew out to Finland to meet up with Perttu of the Finnish Parkour Assocation, spent some time training and climbing, and attended their event entitled 'Supreme Parkour Armageddon'. My thanks to Perttu and everyone in Finland for a fantastic trip.

Photographs of my time in Jyväskylä are now online here (Parkour in the snow..?!) and more details will be published on Parkour Generations shortly.

posted by Kiell # 11:43 AM

Saturday, November 17, 2007

Prints for Christmas.

In addition to the fine art prints, I am pleased to have added a selection of more affordable digital prints which can be ordered online and purchased using PayPal.

Full details of the prints can be found here. Please feel free to get in touch if you have any questions. Note that as I am in Finland between November 21st and 26th, there will be a slight delay on the dispatch of any orders placed during this period.

posted by Kiell # 9:54 AM

I have been invited by Mr Spidet (aka Perttu Makinen) of the Finnish Parkour Assocation to attend Flow Finland 2007. As well as spending time training and rock climbing, I will be giving a presentation about my photography and my experience of Parkour over the last four years. I look forward to arriving in Jyväskylä on Wednesday November 21st, returning on Monday 26th.

It promises to be a fantastic event, especially as Stephane, Dan and Forrest from Parkour Generations will be teaching extensively throughout.

posted by Kiell # 9:48 AM

Wednesday, October 31, 2007

It's been a while since my last update, so apologies for the lack of news. Stern magazine is still awaiting publication so the shoot from Paris with two members of the Yamakasi and Forrest and Stephane from Parkour Generations will be online as soon as the magazine hits the shelves across Europe.

I recently spent half a day with one of the foremost athletes from a small but growing number of female traceurs - Tracey from Parkour Generations. Click here for a preview.

More news to follow about the trip to Finland coming up at the end of November.

posted by Kiell # 11:47 AM

Monday, July 23, 2007

The weather has been making shooting a little tricky so far this summer, but one definite advantage is that when it dries up, there are some fantastic skies to be photographed. I am very pleased to publish my latest work - Cloudy Days at Abbey Road.

My thanks to Chris, Dom and Yao of Parkour Coaching where these images will also be appearing. The organisation is progressing rapidly as the teaching and media work is establishing a position at the forefront of Parkour.

My thanks also to Richard Baybutt for all of his help and advice during the shoot. His images from Abbey Road should be online in the near future.

(I keep forgetting to mention - add me on myspace.)

posted by Kiell # 1:16 PM

I will be selling prints from a stall at Sunday Upmarket (Truman Brewery, just off Brick Lane, London) every Sunday in August.

I have a wide selection of all my shots from the last 4 years available, as well as a few others thrown in. Feel free to swing by and buy me a cup of tea, as well as picking up some (very affordable) prints.

posted by Kiell # 12:51 PM

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Following the success of the exhibition last year at the Inspired Art Fair as winner of their 'Hidden London' Photographic Challenge, I have a few fine art prints remaining. Click here for more details and feel free to get in touch if you'd like to enquire about pricing and delivery.

posted by Kiell # 3:37 PM

Last month, I gave an interview to photography website Steal-Life.com. As well as a short slideshow set to a track by the fantastic Boards of Canada, you can read the interview in full here.

posted by Kiell # 3:30 PM

Monday, June 25, 2007

A new gallery documenting the initial stages of my ongoing work with Parkour Coaching is now online - Spring 2007. There's a busy summer ahead so be sure to check back for more news.

Mike Christie has just announced the re-release of the 'Jump London' DVD. Great news, as now fans won't have to fork out £90 to get hold of a copy on Ebay. Full details can be found on his blog.

posted by Kiell # 5:34 PM

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