Raadhika
Peter Lindbergh has been one of my photography inspirations since forever, and what I love most about his images is how they capture real people and natural movements, however candid or posed. His cinematic images are inspired by paintings, and over the last few decades, has sought to redefine the standards of beauty with timeless images of women without excessive retouching. He presents women in their pure state, avoiding stereotypes in a way that enhances the authenticity and natural beauty of his women subjects.
“A fashion photographer should contribute to defining the image of the contemporary woman or man in their time, to reflect a certain social or human reality. How surrealistic is today’s commercial agenda to retouch all signs of life and of experience, to retouch the very personal truth of the face itself?”
Lindbergh's humanist philosophy and fashion photography style align with my own, and I seek to apply these ideas to my images. Refusing glossy perfection to create simple, truthful, and photojournalistic photographs that look into each person's soul.
Peter Lindbergh's images are most recognizable for being black and white. He claims "With black and white, you can really see who they are. It toned down the commercial interpretation that color gives. What’s so striking about black and white is how it really helps a sense of reality to come through."
Especially inspired by the simple portraits in Lindbergh's most recent Pirelli calendar, I shot with Raadhika in the photo studio for about an hour or so. With a simple black dress and light makeup, she posed sitting and standing under a single octabox light. This is my favorite go-to lighting setup because it's simple, flattering, and natural. Raadhika exudes confidence and honesty in the way she expresses herself in front of the camera. We also used a fan to add an element of motion and cinematic flair. As I culled photos afterward, I found myself picking out the poses where she seemed most relaxed and natural. Easy, breezy beauty.
I love fashion photography but at times, despise how gimmicky it can be. Seeing Peter Lindbergh's work inspires me to capture the honesty of fashion and portrait photography. Because that's what I think true beauty in art is.
I think this shoot turned out super great, but in the future, I'd love to also capture motion. Moving portraits are rising in popularity and I want to experiment. I need to practice using lights other than strobes and see what I can create.
Thank you so much Raadhika for coming in to shoot with me! You're fabulous! :)
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.