Angelina
This week I got to shoot with Angelina in the studio. Lately I've been studying Vanity Fair portraits taken by none other than legendary photographer Annie Leibovitz. She captures celebrities standing in elegant light and glamorous gowns, exuding a cinematic flair that resembles Classical paintings. Something about those old ladders, apple boxes covered in drapes, spotlight lamps, and antique chaises tell a story of a romantic bygone old Hollywood era with which I'm infatuated. I'm slowly learning to embrace and create rich shadows that add drama, as well as imperfect backgrounds that begin to narrate a subject's setting. Thanks, Angelina, for being so nice to model and helping me make my crazy visions happen.
I've been shooting single-person subjects in the studio for a while now, but I'm starting to plan group shoots, à la Annie, of course. Now off to model scout and find wardrobe and seek stylist/MUA friends and create magic...gosh I love photography.
During a last minute work trip to New York last week, I squeezed in a studio session with my friend Anica. What a treat getting to book space in a city where photography still exists.
Shannon mentioned she had recently inherited clothing from her grandmother-in-law. I knew we had to do a shoot.
Ultimately it’s the fine art work I’m drawn to. It’s portraiture, natural expression, the female form, shapes, earth’s elements, and movement.
Summer's coming, and what better way to welcome my favorite season than do a fashion shoot? I got to art direct, produce, and shoot Ashley Chloe's summer campaign.
I love the idea of models at the beach. The combination is just so iconic, and reminiscent of the black and white images of supermodels from the past (Elle MacPherson, Claudia Schiffer, Cindy Crawford, Christy Turlington) by Herb Ritts and Peter Lindbergh. It was so natural, simple, unretouched, and beautiful.
I think this was the first time I've ever embraced shooting in direct sunlight. The sun was my beauty dish. And it was perfect.
Last weekend I had the opportunity to shoot with Hillary, a model and trainer who recently moved to San Luis Obispo.
Last week I got the opportunity to photograph some of the models from Cal Poly Cross Cultural Center's Multicultural Fashion Show. As much as I love shooting contemporary fashion, there's nothing more beautiful than traditional garments that hold thousands of years of cultural history.
Cindy knows how to pose in every outfit and play the the part of a girl in any mood - whether it be commercial beauty, dark and moody, bubbly and colorful, or street chic.
After shooting beauty with butterfly lighting these past two weeks, I've missed the depth and drama a one light setup creates.
We found a couple of cute spots at the OC Mix in Costa Mesa for our casual fashion photoshoot.
I'm in love with the way the 5' Octobox lights a full body shot - it's so soft and flattering on any person.
I love photographing well-dressed friends and capturing their contagious restless energy in one of the most unique and gorgeous natural settings on the Central Coast.
I got the chance to hang out with my super energetic and goofy and talented great-grandlittle, Sophia, in the photo studio the other day.
I love being able to create these editorial portraits I've been trying to reproduce since my teenage days flipping through glossy magazines.
Portrait photography strikes me in a way that landscapes, products, or food could never do. I love taking photos of people. There's depth in their faces, stories in their eyes, and confidence in their posture.
As I moved around and adjusted those lights I'm seeing how much of a difference shooting in a studio can make, and I'm seeing images with a whole new set of eyes.
This year's theme promotes filmmaking on the central coast. San Luis Obispo County stretches from Big Sur up north down to the dunes by Pismo Beach to the rolling green hills behind Cal Poly to the wineries in Paso Robles.
There's something so feminine and powerful about the way they move their bodies, and the way a dress reciprocates their every step, every leap, every twirl.
Catching glimmering moments of golden light during my favorite time of day as my favorite dancers pranced around the hills dressed to the nines...the shoot was nothing short of magical.
Pregnancy is a magical moment in your life when you discover the extent of womanhood, something that connects you to all the generations before you. Depicting the essence of maternity had to be done against the backdrop of the natural landscape.