Author Archive
Travel Portrait in Darjeeling, India
During my first few days in Darjeeling, India, I was determined to try travel portraiture. I had never done it before and was nervous about approaching strangers that didn’t speak English.
Darjeeling is in Himalayas of northern India and most known for its delicious tea, which I can most definitely attest to (I averaged about 7 cups a day!). Early one morning, I set out with a goal to approach at least one person. On my way to the market, I saw this man sitting on the curb. I waved to him and he returned the gesture. As I walked past him, I couldn’t believe that I passed up the perfect portrait opportunity. I went through the market and couldn’t muster up the courage to ask anyone for a portrait. Defeated, I made my way back to the hotel. I was taking a different route on my return when I came across the same man sitting in a different place. There was no way I was going to pass up this opportunity again. I said hello to him again, but this time pointed to my camera and asked if I could take his portrait. He agreed and I spent the next 5 or so minutes photographing him. It was an incredible experience! I didn’t realize till then that one could connect with a complete stranger without having a conventional conversation. The camera could be a way of “talking” with people. Since then, travel portraiture has quickly become one of my favorite genres of photography.
Nepali Elder
During a home stay in the most northern part of India between Nepal and Bhutan, I had the pleasure of meeting this Nepali man. He spoke no English and very little Hindi, but the family I stayed with helped translate for me. His bed was in the corner of the kitchen, and his only possessions were a few articles of clothing and a blanket. I was having lunch in the kitchen when I noticed how the window light on his face was perfect for a black and white portrait. I asked to take his photo and he agreed without hesitation. Although I was shooting with film and couldn’t review the shot as with digital, I knew I had a compelling portrait of a very dignified man.
Masha! Masha! Masha!
This shoot with Masha from Next was absolutely incredible. When her booker sent me her online portfolio, I immediately liked her unique look and striking features.
We started shooting at 5:40PM. We had a few different tops we were going to try with her and everything started out nicely. After a few minutes of shooting, Masha asked if we could play her ipod. I of course agreed and before long, she was dancing on set to David Vendetta’s electronic music. She would strike pose after pose in between her dancing. She started running from one end of the set to the next, jumping all over, and throwing her dress in different directions. My team and I were stunned and amazed by her energy. Every frame I shot was unique and full of energy. This variety of movement and expression is exactly what a photographer hopes for from a model. I had booked the studio till 7PM, but had no problem paying double-time for another hour. These opportunities don’t come often. In the span of about 2 hours, we came away with dozens of great shots. The only problem with this is trying to decide which ones are best…an excellent dilemma nevertheless.
An interesting side note: Numerous serious technical difficulties arose during this photoshoot. I’ve had to work through technical difficulties before, but never to this extent. My primary camera wasn’t focusing, a strobe was bumped and crashed to the ground, my flashes weren’t firing at the same time as the camera, the camera batteries weren’t working consistently, and my memory cards were locking up the camera. All of these hiccups were extremely frustrating. I had to remind myself to not let this influence my shooting. I eventually switched to my back up camera to finish the shoot. I find it fascinating to look back on those problems because they helped keep me extremely attentive for the entire shoot.
Workers in Kerala, India (Part 3 of 3)
For this six-month trip that started in Europe and then ventured over to Southeast Asia, I carried a rather cumbersome telephoto lens. Time and again, I thought to myself how I shouldn’t have brought such a heavy and expensive piece of equipment. However, it proved its utility on the rare occasions that I used it.
One such occasion was during an afternoon bike ride. I saw photographic potential with these workers, but I truly didn’t feel like trudging through the suspicious muddy water (I think it was a rather “active” ecosystem). I ended up finding a narrow path to walk out on. Then, I gladly brought out my telephoto lens and lowered myself to blur out the grass. One of the workers eventually started walking towards me with two of his water buffalo. This action completed the composition I was looking for (see photo 1).
Ultimately, I’m glad I brought the telephoto lens because it allowed me to seize opportunities such as this. There are a number of portfolio shots from that trip that simply wouldn’t have been possible without having a telephoto lens.
Beauty Retouching
Sometimes retouching is pretty straightforward. At other times, it requires a little more imagination and finessing. This first beauty shot of Ieva Aniulyte came out very well, but the left hand is visually distracting. So, I found another image that I could use to “copy and paste”(see photo 2).
Here’s the basic process I went through:
First, I copied the knuckle edge from the right hand of photo one. I flipped this and positioned it appropriately (if you look closely, you can see that the edges of the knuckles are the same on the left and right hand).
Second, I copied the finger from photo 2, rotated it slightly, made it a bit smaller, and then positioned that accordingly. Finally, I blended everything together with the original image till it became what you see in photo 3, the finished version.
Ieva Aniulyte and her sister, Aida, just finished doing a show for Donna Karan. There are more photos of Ieva to follow plus a behind the scenes video, which is still in the editing process. Stay tuned!
Lookbook Photography for Fashion Designer
It seems like an eternity ago that I shot this lookbook catalogue for Laura Dahl. Visit her website and check out my studio and location photography.
The location photography was shot in DUMBO Brooklyn. Location shoots are much more demanding logistically. They require transportation of crew, clothing, and lighting equipment. You also need location permits and an indoor location for makeup, hair and changing clothes.
Beauty Photoshoot
I love when ideas of mine come to life on set. This is always very enjoyable to witness and photograph. What I love even more is when new ideas suddenly arise. This spontaneity is exhilarating and impossible to predict.
I was doing a rather simple beauty shoot with Linda from Major Models when one of these special opportunities arose. I had her lying down with makeup powder sprinkled on her face. I had seen this done by another beauty photographer and wanted to try it myself. Photo 1 illustrates the original idea, which is nothing special. As I stood up from the ground I saw this second composition. I immediately told Linda to freeze and started shooting again. I love how her face resembles a snow-covered mountainous landscape.
Musician Portraits in New York City
This was the week of musician photoshoots. It began with Amanda Sparfeld, who is an incredible professional flutist. She needed new photos for her website, and I was more than happy to help out. I’m pleased with how the photos convey her joyful personality and lively music.
Workers in Kerala, India (Part 2 of 3)
These photographs were made shortly after my series with the workers in part 1. I saw this construction site from the road and decided to go inside and introduce myself. As in part 1, I wasn’t simply looking for “pretty” pictures or documentary photos. I was looking for content and beauty. Story and soul.
I first started photographing a teenage boy who was catching bricks. I tried different focal lengths and eventually came to this composition (see photo 1). After that, I had to capture the brick at just the right moment. This brick serves the same purpose as the large rock in part 1: it’s the counter-point of interest to the worker’s face.
Second, I started photographing this older man who was carrying bricks to the wall, and then throwing them up to the roof (see photo 3). I could tell by his calm and pleasant disposition, that a nice portrait was waiting to be discovered. Richard Avedon, one of the best portrait and fashion photographers as far as I’m concerned, mentioned how he works from a series of no’s: no distractions, no exquisite lighting, no props, etc. The no’s eventually lead to the yes! I find this to be a great approach as well. I positioned myself where the composition would be simplest: no trash bags on the floor, no workers, ladders, or wheel barrels in the background. I then waited for the worker to return. When he did, I quietly asked him to look at me for a moment (see photo 4).
In looking back on that afternoon, I’m surprised by how many portfolio shots came from that short period of time. These three photos—the rock carrier from part 1, the brick catcher, and brick thrower—remain as three of my favorite shots taken during a six-month trip! What’s interesting is that this happens numerous times in my portfolio. If I hadn’t been prepared during certain moments, I would have missed out on some amazing photographic opportunities and meaningful experiences. In this case, what if I’d decided to go home after my Hindi class instead of exploring this nearby village? Thinking about that almost makes me shudder.
Children’s Commercial Shoot for MZB Personal Care
For this MZB Personal Care photoshoot, I was with cute children all morning giving high fives, drinking apple juice, and eating cookies. These photos of various children’s cold packs are FPO (for packaging only). Look for these photos and others in toy stores soon.
Beauty Photoshoot with Elisandra
Elisandra Tomacheski, from Next Models, was perfect for this last beauty shoot. When shooting clean beauty, having a model with excellent skin is essential. Slight retouching can always be done in post, but major changes to the skin leads to very artificial results.
For these first two shots, I used very soft lighting and kept the hair and makeup simple. The challenge with this type of clean beauty is getting energy from the model to match the simplicity of the concept. You don’t want too much energy, but you also don’t want her looking unengaged. I’m very pleased with how these two shots came out.
For the next shot, I wanted something much more dramatic. I brought in a fan to bring energy and movement. Adding wind is tricky because it can easily overwhelm the composition (refer to photo 3). Although photo 3 wasn’t a success, it did strike my interest when I was reviewing it moments later. I liked the direction of her hair and the angle of her face. I showed her and my team the photo, and mentioned how this was a good start. It was then a matter of working this angle again and again till everything came together. It eventually did in this fourth shot.
Album Cover Photography
George and Charles Clements are releasing a new album this December and needed photos for the front cover, inside booklet and back cover. For this shoot, I kept two primary ideas in mind.
First, the photos need to reflect their musical style. I had them send me a few of their quintessential songs and also reference photos of other musicians. Both of these steps proved helpful in understanding precisely what type of mood to convey in the photography.
Second, I had to compose the photos in a square format for the front and back cover. Even if we came away with incredible images that were of normal rectangular dimensions, these wouldn’t fulfill the purpose of the shoot. A simple remedy for this is to always shoot wide. Thanks to the 21 megapixel images, we can crop in post without losing much detail.
The shoot was a great time. As we were shooting in Prospect Park on a beautiful fall morning, I had to keep reminding myself that this was actually work. I love that feeling!
Workers in Kerala, India (Part 1 of 3) and Donnie Update
This last week has been quite busy with weddings and photoshoots. Photos from these shoots and their stories are coming soon. In the meantime, let me start another photo essay series about workers in Kerala.
Kerala is the southwestern province of India and borders the Arabian Sea. I had the pleasure of living there for five weeks while attending a language school. All of our meals were on large banana leaves. The fresh pineapple was delicious and always a daily highlight.
One afternoon after my Hindi language class, I was biking to a nearby village and came across this scene. The workers would lift these huge granite rocks onto this man’s head (photo 1). He would then carry them up a hill and dump them into a truck. The work was rather repetitive, but I still found it quite amazing to document because of the huge rocks this one man was carrying. I started photographing different visual elements of the scene; trying to capture the impressiveness of the activity (photo 2). As he lifted the last and largest rock of the day, I purposely angled my camera to include the entire rock (photo 3). This seemingly minor adjustment accomplishes two major goals. First, it brings journalistic interest to the photo: one can’t help notice the sheer size of the rock that this man is resting on his head. Second, it develops artistic/visual interest between the man’s expression and the rock.
This blending of art and story—showing and telling—is what I find missing in much of Contemporary art. Oftentimes, Contemporary art is exclusive to one or the other. Art with visual interest, but no underlying substance quickly loses its connection with the viewer. Art that focuses exclusively on content leaves the viewer perplexed and uninspired (“School: The Archaeology of Lost Desires, Comprehending Infinity and the Search for Knowledge” is a perfect case in point). Having both is necessary for meaningful art. Do you agree with this opinion? What do you think are the key ingredients to meaningful art? Do you think that Contemporary art more often than not overlooks this integral dichotomy? Feel free to leave a response.
Photoshoot with Sharina
Oftentimes when doing beauty photography, I structure the photoshoot off of a basic idea or concept. Having an initial idea provides a springboard for me as well as for everyone else on my team.
For this shoot with Sharina, from Trump Model Management, I wanted to see how her long straight hair would look directly over her face. Stefano did an excellent job styling Sharina’s hair and keeping it orderly (see photo 1). Yet, I wasn’t convinced that this was the best shot we could achieve. During a brief pause in shooting, Sharina relaxed her neck, which allowed the hair to contour around her face. This was exactly the type of visual interest I was looking to achieve and asked her not to move (see photo 2).
I was pleased with the results from photo 2, but didn’t want to stop there. We continued exploring variations of this hair concept and eventually came to photo 3. As you probably notice, photo 3 lacks numerous key visual elements like form and simplicity. After seeing these flaws, I directed Sharina to elongate her back and neck. This helped improve the shape and form of the composition. I had Stefano thin out the hair so we could see more of her face. Lastly, I had her look off camera. While this last command was a rather minor adjustment, it simplified the composition tremendously (see photo 4). As a side note: Trump Model Management is still using this last image for Sharina’s cover shot. You can see this black and white beauty photo on their website.
Wedding and Fashion Update
Here are a few of my favorites from a recent wedding at the Bowery Hotel, New York City. As you can probably notice from the photos, it was an extremely fun couple to photograph.
Fashion week just ended a few days ago. I had the pleasure of working for Swedish Elle magazine. Their December issue will be using a number of my photos, and I look forward to showing you the tear sheets once the issue is published.
