Vice Fashion - Pen Pals

Eydie McConnell and Lewis Chaplin are two 16-year-olds who happened across each other’s photos on Flickr. As soon as one had clamped eyes on the other’s work, they immediately knew that they had to somehow start taking photos together. The only hitch was that Lewis lives in South London and Eydie lives in Long Beach, LA.

Thanks to the power of the internet and with a little cribbing from those parched old Lomography books you find festering in the unloved boxes of rural Oxfams, the pair came up with a plan that would allow them to combine what they were shooting without ever having to actually be in the same place at the same time.

Armed only with a couple of Holgas and some stamps, they began shooting, exchanging and double-exposing film. In non-photo speak, Lewis takes a picture, sends the film over to Eydie in LA, and she shoots over the top it. Simple, eh?

Eydie wears shirt by Lee and jeans by Double M; Lewis wears model’s own t-shirt

Vice: So what the hell’s going on here? I am seeing a guy lying down and another headless guy in a Neu t-shirt in front a magic-eye background thing.

Lewis Chaplin:

Eydie:

Whoops. Not a great start to this little dissection of your work.

Eydie:

What’s your favourite Neu record, Lewis?

Lewis:

Lucas wears shirt by Fred Perry

This one’s like a Terry Gilliam animation come to life. It looks like a guy with a typewriter for a head.

Lewis:

What was the Virgin Mary typing?

Lewis:

The Shining

Eydie:

Olivia wears glasses and skirt by Beyond Retro and t-shirt by Uniqlo

Who’s this blurry girl?

Eydie:

What was your contribution to this shot, Lewis?

Lewis:

Rob wears Hat by MLB by New Era, t-shirt and jumper by Suburban Bliss

Wow, this one is a little terrifying. It’s like he’s a ghost emerging through a wall. Is that your scarf again, Eydie?

Eydie:

Who is the ghost guy?

Lewis:

Ally wears t-shirt by Luella, skirt by Fred Perry and coat by Beyond Retro; Dan wears t-shirt by Topman; Ben wears polo shirt by 55 DSL, model’s own jeans and trainers by Converse

Holy crap, it’s the ghost of Soulja Boy!

Lewis:

Whose face is Soulja Boy hanging out on?

Eydie:

Ben wears shirt by Lee, model’s own trousers and t-shirt; Dan wears t-shirt by Topman; hat by Rokit.co.uk; Josh wears t-shirt by Uniqlo, jacket by Nike

Hang on, aren’t these the same two guys?

Eydie:

The Lost Boys

Is the guy that is wafting in on the right wearing a pink shellsuit?

CJ wears polo shirt by Fred Perry, jeans by Double M at Selfridges; Dan wears jumper by Paul Smith Jeans and model’s own jeans; Ben wears shirt by Ben Sherman; Albert wears shirt by Penfield and jeans by Levi’s; Lucas wears polo shirt by 55 DSL

Eydie:

Is this a regular occurrence?

Eyedie:

(It’s a dog, d’uh)

Hello buddy! Who’s this fella?

Eydie:

It appears that there is a plant growing in her ribcage?

Paul wears model’s own sunglasses, shirt by Lee and t-shirt by Rokit.co.uk

Eydie:

Where are you in here, Lewis?

Carly wears t-shirt by American Apparel and skirt by Rokit.co.uk; Lucy wears dress by Vivienne Westwood Red Label; Nikki wears dress by Topshop

Wow, this one is nuts. There are lasers coming out of her head! Lewis: That is Lucy. She is sitting on my steps looking quite serene. I don’t think that she actually realises that she has laser power. She had an amazing Vivienne Westwood dress on. Some of these shots are really trippy. They make me feel like I am on acid.

Lewis: I’ve never done acid. I’m only 16. Eydie: Weed is about as out-there as I get. Maybe these photos are like our acid, ha ha.

Laura wears t-shirt by Trapstar and leggings by Sass & Bide

More lasers! Beer mountain laser apocalypse!

Lewis:

Eydie:

Carly wears top by Beyond Retro; sunglasses, skirt and bracelet by Rokit.co.uk; Olivia wears t-shirt by Uniqlo and skirt by Rokit.co.uk; Lucas wears model’s own coat, shirt and sunglasses; Nikki wears dress by Topshop

Eydie:

You aren’t really in this one either Lewis. Come on, spill.

Lewis:

Carly wears polo shirt by Fred Perry, bracelets by Beyond Retro; Olivia wears t-shirt by Uniqlo, skirt by Beyond Retro; Lucy wears dress by Vivienne Westwood Red Label; Ally wears t-shirt by Luella, skirt by Fred Perry and model’s own necklaces

The two girls on the left look pretty cute together.

Eydie:

Lewis:

at

Niki wears cardigan and body by Uniqlo, shorts by Sass & Bide

This one looks a little like the cover of Bringing it All Back Home, with that weird ring around it.

Eydie:

You seem to mainly both shoot your friends.

Lewis:

Lucas wears model’s own sunglasses, cardigan by Silas, t-shirt by Topman and jeans by Firetrap; Carly wears dress by the East End Thrift Store; Olivia wears polo shirt by Fred Perry, skirt and sandals by Rokit.co.uk

Eydie:

How did you respond?

Eydie:

Olivia wears model’s own dress

So how did you actually get into the church and shoot a girl on the altar without getting nabbed?

Eydie:

But “being there” and “sprawling semi-nude all over there” aren’t exactly on a par?

Eydie:

Lewis:

Albert wears model’s own hoodie; Olivia wears dress by the East End Thrift Store; CJ wears t-shirt by Topman and jeans by Double M at Selfridges

Eydie:

The guy on the left looks like a ghost. A lot of the double-exposed images look a bit like that. Ghosts haunting each other’s photos.

Eydie:

Lewis:

Lucy wears dress by Vivienne Westwood Red Label

This one looks like a scene from the Red Room in Twin Peaks.

Lewis:

Eydie:

Like overexposing your stuff over Lewis’s?

Eydie:

Dan wears shirt by Lee; model’s own jeans

What’s he up to there? That looks like a bong to me.

Eydie:

Do you guys smoke a lot of weed? These photos all look as though they’d be best viewed under a fug of smoke.

Eydie:

Josh wears hat by New Era, jacket by Nike, t-shirt by Uniqlo and shorts by Carhartt at Slam City Skates; Ally wears t-shirt by Luella and skirt by Fred Perry; Lucy wears dress by Vivienne Westwood Red Label; Rory wears t-shirt by Slam City Skates, hoodie by Stussy and jeans by Uniqlo

Wow, this one makes it look as though the piano-playing guy is in the middle of a Coldplay show flanked by a bank of angelic, starving orphans that Chris Martin has personally saved.

Eydie:

Lewis:

CJ wears model’s own trainers and shirt; Josh wears shorts by Carhartt at Slam City Skates, t-shirt by Uniqlo, jacket by Nike and watch by Swatch

Yikes, this one is really skewed. It’s like kaleidoscope vision.

Lewis:

Why are your guys all naked, Eydie?

Eydie:

Dan wears t-shirt by Paul Smith Jeans, dress by Rokit.co.uk, model’s own shirt; Carly wears jeans by Double M at Selfridges and model’s own shirt; Olly wears t-shirt by Topman and cardigan by Silas; Nikki wears shirt by Lee and model’s own jeans; CJ wears shorts by Dickies and model’s own t-shirt; Leon wears model’s own t-shirt and leggings by Uniqlo

Lewis: This one really feels like a good finishing image.

Eydie:

Lewis:

Would you two get on if you were left in a room together for the day?

Eydie: