Portraits with Nelson
I shoot so much fashion and dance sometimes I forget what portrait photography is. Last week my friend and aspiring stand-up comic Nelson hit me up for headshots. I wanted to go beyond the classic actor headshots and make portraits that express his colorful personality.
We walked around Tribeca and shot in a couple of different locations. One clean professional look and another more casual. We walked under some scaffolding and he told me he sometimes does pull-ups on them. So I told him to hop on up and snapped this photo, which turned out to be my favorite shot of the day. I feel like it's comedic in the environment he's "stuck" in juxtaposed with a crazy smile. I love when subjects interact with the natural environment—it's fun and clever, and it captures so much personality.
People are so different in the way they express their face and body in real life versus in photographs. A lot of people are very aware of the camera, and put on a smile and pose in a way that shocks me in its contrast to their everyday life demeanor. They look tense, and you can see it in the photographs. It's up to photographers to relax the subject (through conversation, music, walking, dancing, jokes), make them feel comfortable in their own skin, and bring out their best features on camera. I think that's what makes portrait photography challenging, but so fun and rewarding.
I set up a casual portrait session in my office photo studio and revisited my favorite lighting setup: one light, one softbox, and a fan.
Glad we got to go out and enjoy a breath of fresh air in this coastal town I have near and dear to my heart.
This was my first time shooting maternity, and what an opportunity to capture portraits of womanhood, beauty, and the unbelievable wonder of the female body.
Misa's been working as a commercial model for over 10 years, and I was fortunate to have gotten to test shoot with her on campus before her TED talk
Last week my friend and aspiring stand-up comic Nelson hit me up for headshots. I wanted to go beyond the classic actor headshots and make portraits that express his colorful personality.
This week I was fortunate to test with a model from MC2 Model Management. Russian-born Yuliya is based in Miami and happened to be in town for a bit, and the agency arranged for a test shoot.
I love light and movement, shape and textures. For me it's more than showing off clothes. I want the personality and emotions of the model to come through. And the more I experiment, the more I come back to simple and sleek forms, clean lines, and beautiful natural expressions.
Refusing glossy perfection to create simple, truthful, and photojournalistic photographs that look into each person's soul.
Aan athlete's body in itself tells a story of hard work, determination, and persistence.
I want to create more photographs that resemble paintings. Less fast photography, more meaningful fine art photography.
Awhile back I test shot with Navid, a Cal Poly student and model signed with Scout SF. Channeling James Dean and Marlon Brando vibes, we shot a few different looks in the studio.
For the studio shots, I wanted to capture the photos you'd normally see of Olympic athletes: physique portraits in dramatic, beautiful light. The shots at the pool are environmental portrait-inspired.
Sena is so sweet yet so fierce. During our brief portrait shoot last weekend, I photographed her in some of her stylish wardrobe. Girl knows how to model.
It was such a blast getting to photograph Pramika last weekend. She has one of the most gorgeous smiles I've ever seen, and looks beyond elegant in this soft lighting.
The clothes a model wears speaks so much about the person wearing them and the artistic vision behind the photos. And as you can probably guess, this shoot is my aesthetic af.
I invited my friend Mariah to come in and model, and asked Bernadette to do a soft smokey look on her. My concept was natural, sexy, supermodel.
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.
I love portraits with a passion. Posing, facial expression, light, styling...these are probably my favorite things in the world.
After shooting beauty with butterfly lighting these past two weeks, I've missed the depth and drama a one light setup creates.
I brought in some clothes I've been collecting for my wardrobe closet and we had a blast blowing hair all over the place.
She brought in some really cute clothes and we shot fashion and beauty portraits. I absolutely love making portraits, and showing people how gorgeous they really are.
This weekend I had the pleasure of shooting Maxwell's graduation pictures. Softbox lighting + Maxwell's signature businessman smile = timeless portraits.
I've never seen a person's face so evenly lit from every angle to the point it glows. With these close ups, you can study components of facial expressions, skin complexions and undertones, hair color, and so much FACE!
I decided to shoot portraits, and incorporate nature and other settings as stylistic compositions that fill in the silhouettes. I wanted the curve of the hand and faces to be appear as a natural and inherent frame.
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'm slowly falling in love the telephoto portrait lens and cropping tighter to capture editorial beauty shots.
Who would’ve guessed that ten years later, while the world embraces a collective nostalgia for 2016, I’d find myself revisiting this hobby again.