Tag: Soft Focus

Roksolana invades New York City.

Beauty, Portraiture, Portraiture in natural light, Soft Lighting

My shoot with Roksolana (Lana for short) was both fun and heartfelt. As we were sitting in the office talking she told me about her recent move to Brooklyn from the Ukraine. Her love for modeling, art and New York City. There was a certain warmth and ease to her personality. I told her about my current town of Hoboken which she knew very well, being that she has been working with an artist there. I was very engaged. In speaking I couldn’t help but notice a pronounced scar on her chest. When I asked her about it she openly spoke about having been fitted with a pace maker. Something that seemed insane at such a young age. She told about the issues she had from a very young age. I immediately identified considering what I went trough with having a brain tumor at a very young age. It wasn’t as much as sad exchange as it was a triumphant one. Both of had overcome and adversity at a very young age and were living happy, full lives. As for the session that followed. She was so natural and instinctive. Few of the shots were posed. It was just the two of us conversing and exchanging stories. Exchanges like these are a major ingredient to why I love what I do. Here’s to you Roks.

P.S. Lana, if you read this. The reason I didn’t photoshop the scar out of the picture is I thought is was an important part of the story, your beauty and your experience,

Experimenting with natural light in a new environment.

Beauty, Portraiture, Soft Lighting


Whenever I’m working at or visiting the gallery I can’t help but think what an amazing space it would be to conduct some photo shoots. It would sure take some of the pressure off working in the small space I currently use. The gallery offers the perfect location in downtown Manhattan and is surrounded by cobble stone streets and edgy nearby alleyways. The gallery itself is spacious with sky high ceilings and provides beautiful natural light. During the mid afternoon the galleries sky light offers one of the most beautiful, angelic glow I’ve ever seen. I thought about the idea of packing my lights and backgrounds to bring to the studio but realized it was completely unnecessary. I wanted to start scheduling some sessions for the beginning of the week but thought it would make sense to do a test run with my favorite new model Diana.

Diana and I met up at 2:00 and after giving her a tour of the gallery got down to business. Shooting at a gallery where every wall is covered with Photography can be a challenge but it turned out to be easier than I first thought. There was plenty of available space by the front and back windows and up in the loft. It felt good to have the space to breath. I felt less clumsy and more confident. Diana looked beautiful and elegant. She’s so natural and comfortable in front of the camera. I don’t even like to use the word “Work” when referring to the times we’ve gotten together. Her expressions in these images may seem a bit melancholy but we were both laughing and joking in between. I’ve worked with a lot of people like that. They can be fun and laughing one second but once that camera comes out they’re all business.

Needless to say the session was a success and I’m really excited to return. It’s always good to find a new spot that inspires you and allows you to try something new. This gives a lot of people an alternative to coming over to Hoboken from the city. It also gives me the opportunity to get out of the studio while allowing me room to breath.