In September 2008, I was contacted by Preston Catalogue’s editorial director, Antonella Busa, to create a special concept for their magazine. I am not a fashion photographer, since acquiring such a title would call for full time dedication to the fashion industry. However, seeing as I like challenges, I took it upon myself to do a shoot unlike any I had ever done before. Preston Catalogue’s goal is to promote fashion and art simultaneously, and I admit that I was impressed by the quality of their magazine.

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I explored different concepts for the shoot and we fell in love with the idea of a bank robbery. We began searching for locations that could provide a giant vault, a large tunnel, as well as rundown underground areas that would give us a vintage flair. A few days and calls later, we found our ideal location: Diefenbunker, in Ottawa. How did I never come across that place before? It is a national treasure, and it has such numerous interesting rooms and vintage props that I would have done over 20 different concepts, had they let me.

As a conceptual artist, I like planning all of my scenarios like a small film set, including (but not limited to) schedules, props, a team, and a storyboard. For that particular shoot, I gathered 12 people, which allowed me to build two teams and make that day possible! The first team (Team A) was working with me to create “Scene 1″, while Team B was setting up “Scene 2″ with my specifications. When we moved to “Scene 2″, Team B would take all of the “Scene 1″ equipment to set up “Scene 3″, and so on and so forth.

Special Thanks to: Sébastien D’Amour, Marc-André Ménard, Charles St-Yves, Stéphane Durocher, Frédéric Audet, Karine St-Onge, Josée Charbonneau, Jean-François Bertrand, Pierre-Luc Soumis, Antonella Busa, Cu Van Ha.

Making Of “The Perfect Heist”