Tag: Studio

You Can’t Tame My Monkey Style

Beauty, Studio Lighting, Uncategorized

Yesterday Jessica stopped by to shoot some edgy fitness and martial arts inspired images. Jessica is an absolute joy to work with. An actress, stunt woman and martial arts expert, she packs a lot of strength and character into her small frame. In the weeks leading up to the shoot I was hoping to include some of my friends custom combat knives into the shoot to add another level of intensity to the shoot. Unfortunately for us he was backed up on orders and had no back stock to send us. Lucky for me, Jess brought enough weaponry to scare the bajeezus out of me. During the session Jessica updated me with what she’s been up to since we last worked together and introduced me to the art of Monkey Kung Fu. Here are some favorites from that part of the session.In the future I’d like to add more fitness work to my portfolio while continuing to expand my body of work. Only time will tell.

Back in Black

Beauty, Finding your Zen, Portraiture

Last week I did the kind of shoot that has become too few and far between for my liking. The truth is, with all the shooting I’ve been doing lately, not nearly enough moves me as much as that intimate one on one studio session. Recently I forced myself to sit down and write a list of all the things that make me happy and make me feel fulfilled in life. Things like family, friends and bulldogs were pretty high on the list. (Yeah, Bull Dogs) When it comes to things of the creative nature, I’d have to say studio photography is number one, two and three on my list. There is nothing that makes me more alive or feel as if I am at my very best. With all my faults, shortcomings and anxieties, when I am shooting I am at my very, very best.

This particular shoot was to test a new muslin I had picked up the week before at Calumet Photo. If you’re a follower of the blog you might know that I often find myself switching from seemless to muslin backgrounds with varied results. Though I had grown used to using seemless almost exclusively over the last year. (Black in particular) I wanted to look into working with the muslin. So with new studio gear in tow and no one to shoot I contacted a girl who I had worked with in a duo shoot the year before. Lucky for me she had some spare time and was ready to return for here solo.

When originally shooting with Jenn a little under a year ago I was able to steal away a few solo shots when the other girl was changing and managed to get some of my absolute favorite shots of the day. As beautiful as they were I knew they were only a very small sampling of what we could accomplish.

Jenn has three of the attributes I look most for in a model. Expressive eyes, lips and an awesome sense of humor. I was a little nervous about working with her again prior to that day due to the fact it had been such a long lapse in time since we last shot. However her sense of humor and nerdy qualities (That’s a compliment kids.)  had us both cracking up from the get go. She even took the shoot to another level when she asked to revisit some shots she had seen of mine. The shoot instilled with me the fact that when I am a very, very lucky man. Thanks to Jenn for helping me to realize it.

New Photo Background and Tasty Vinyl

Record Collecting, Studio Lighting, Uncategorized

Wednesday afternoon I headed to Calumet over on 22nd Street to pick up a few  extras for the studio. I’ve been looking into getting a new muslin ever since my cat threw up on the rather large white one I had for so long. Although I’ve been using seemless for the most part. I like to mix it up from time to time. Seemless backgrounds are great but getting a couple of nine footers on the train back to Hoboken can be a bit of a haul. I picked up a nice black one that just happened to be on sale. I like the fact that I can take them down easily, roll them in a ball and toss them in the washer when needed. Once I started to use the black consistently in my shoots I didn’t want to shoot any other color again. The black adds a certain drama to B&W photos while adding pop to color. How can you go wrong. I learned early about placing the lights and the model a bit further from it  to avoid weird circles and flare ups in the background. Once I got past that it was all gravy. Here’s a picture I took with my new copy of the New Breed compilation. The Wild Style version is a limited pressing of 200 and I was lucky and grateful to get 1/200. The compilation was originally released as a tape comp. in 1989. It featured the absolute best NYHC bands of the time. It’s just be reissued for the first time on vinyl through Freddy Alva’s Wardance Records.

http://wardancerecords.bigcartel.com/

Bring Your Friend Along

Beauty, Finding Solutions

Every now and then I work with someone who wants to bring along a friend or chaperone to make them feel safer and give them more of sense of security. I honestly don’t prefer it, you know what they say,”Three’s a crowd”.  Third parties can get in the way and become a distraction at times but for the most part, my experience has been pretty damn good. I’ve had friends and even boyfriends that helped the model to let down her hair a bit or just lighten up the mood by making her laugh and feel less conscious. While at other times, just plain joined in the fun.

On this particular occasion my communication with the model I had wasn’t very good. I don’t recall what it was in particular but things just weren’t clicking as I had planned. At one time I photographed them together perhaps put the model at ease. The addition helped a lot as the strong friendship provided the chemistry  I was unable to. As the shoot came to a close I pulled aside the second girl and managed to take a few solo shots. Her eyes, lips and attentive look were incredibly sexy.

Weeks later we talked about working with one another but before we were able to schedule anything concrete she had moved to South America. Though disappointed I feel rewarded that I was able to get handful of shots.

Second Chances

Beauty, Studio Lighting

As I opened the door to greet Tara earlier today I could hardly believe my eyes. The beautiful woman with the flowing hair that reached beneath her waist now sported hair that barely touched her shoulders. It framed her face perfectly and brought out the glow in her porcelain skin.  The change added a layer of beauty that I hadn’t noticed before. There was something about her new look that made her seem warmer, more mature and open. The smile and hug made my nervous knots disappear.

The girl who came to me as a model last year was now blossoming into an actress. As we talked and sipped coffee we talked about the changes in both of our lives since our last creative collaboration. She seemed happy, focused and excited about the future. It was a cool and relaxed vibe that made for very natural shots. Our last shoot had it’s tensions due to some lateness on part of her makeup artist and perhaps a lack of planning on both our parts. Today’s session just felt right from the jump off.

The dramatic makeup and theme of last years shoot was replaced by minimal, self applied foundation and a chill urban feel. The only similarity today’s session had to last years was getting her to try some things that she might have felt, were out of her comfort zone. Later, when I went over the shots more thoroughly. I only noticed one or two that were decidedly similar to those of last year. As for me, I’ve noticed my confidence grow with each and every shoot. Overall improvement in preparation, lighting and ability to manage time are noticeable and I’m not quite as clumsy as I used to be. Not bad if you ask me.

Different Looks and Concepts

Beauty, Canon lenses and equipment, Portraiture, Studio Lighting

Whenever setting up a shoot I like to have a game plan in place. I always go over everything with the model or subject I’ll be shooting with that day. The topic of clothing, hair, makeup and approach are all addressed. I always stress,  “The more clothes you bring the better”. I provide a basic guideline of three distinguishable looks but remind them that they know their wardrobe better than me and know for sure what really brings out the best in them. There are always looks that click and those that don’t. Most of the time I find them ultimately wearing one of my dress shirts, ties or hats by the end of the shoot. “Why not?” “They always look better on them anyway.” The ultimate goal is that they’re relaxed, comfortable and in the best light possible.

For this particular shoot I had several looks I was hoping to achieve. My friends band My Rifle was set to release their first EP and I had just received their new T-shirt with the band/record logo. The second look was to capture a classic B&W vibe with a bit of a modern fashion twist. The third was to promote  her naturally sexy look while adding a sense of warmth and comfort.

My goal with anyone I work with is of course to bring the very best out of them. Showing off their unique beauty and personality. There are many times when I’ve been able to see something in them, they themselves never saw. Getting someone to take chances and maybe think out of the box can often be rewarding for all parties involved.

Here’s what this particular model wrote about yours truly;

“I love James. He is  amazing, I’ve never had so much confidence in my life… I was a cocoon hiding in the dark. Now I am spreading my wings and so proud to put myself out there and socialize with people all over the country. The more i work with him, the more i see how he brings out all of my beauty! Hence, I walk with better posture :)”

In closing (kinda formal, eh?) I find that as I grow as a photographer, so does my focus and attention to detail. I’m developing better concepts  and ideas. Though I’m still a bit clumsy I’ve found that the confidence to work quicker at both communicating and executing my ideas without sacrificing any sense of focus or intimacy.

Zoia Returns (In Color)

Beauty, Canon lenses and equipment, Finding Solutions

This Saturday I had a chance to take care of some unfinished business. Back in June of 2009 I had the chance to work with a beautiful woman named Zoia. She had contacted me recently to tell me she had been keeping up on my work and was impressed with my growth. I took that compliment as my chance to finally take care of unfinished business.

At the time of our prior session I was doing pretty good work but I was still in this phase where the real confidence wasn’t there. The shoot started off badly when I made a rookie mistake of forgetting the camera battery. I had charged it that afternoon but when she came to pick me up for a short drive to the Monroe Center I completely for got to take it out of the charger. We were half way there when I realized and had to turn back. Once we did manage to get started everything was fine but I was killing myself for that mistake. “She must think I’m complete nob.” We got some nice shots at the Monroe Center and headed back here to finish up with some studio work. Again, the work was good but somewhat rushed. She never said anything but I felt as if I left a bad impression with my amateurish mistake.      Fast forward almost two year and I’m ready. “Battery? Check. Lights? Check. CF Card? Check. Model? Check.” I fire my first shot and nothing. My Photo Wizard II is not communicating with my Genesis lights. No Flash, whatsoever. In the past when something went wrong I would panic and lose it. But I’ve learned that, as corny as it may sound, every problem has a solution. I tried everything. Everything was working but for some reason they weren’t communicating. Time was ticking and I’m thinking “I’m cursed” “Nothing is working and I’m going to have to send this woman home.” Finally, I ran to the bedroom and got my backup camera. Connected the flash and fired a test shot. Alas, I heard a pop and saw the light. “I can live.” “I have been spared the certain shame, humility and doom that would surely follow my failure.” Once we got started it was magic. I finally got to tend to that unfinished business. Zoia and I did great work together.

The red head from the former Soviet Union is now a Brunette and in those two years is even more beautiful. Later on I found out that is wasn’t the cameras hot shoe as i had briefly suspected. It was the setting. I had used it at a concert a week ago and disabled the flash. Just forgot to reset it. So yes, I’m still kind of a dork. I’m a little clumsy and forgettable. I’ve got a heavy case of ADHD but I’ve come a long way in that when I’m given a problem or hit a road block. I’m able to see it through. Find a solution or a way around it.

Every Picture Tells a Story…

Documentary, Editorial

Photography has always been about storytelling. Whether it be my story, the subjects or someone else. Let the pictures tell them for you. Sometimes a person needs time to separate themselves from a story, an argument or in my case a photo shoot. This was one of those times. Like Yoda said. “Be afraid. Be very afraid.”

A Thin Line.

Beauty, Nudes, Pin Up

I ran into a friend I hadn’t seen since April a few weeks ago. As we talked about what one another had been up to since the inevitable question came up “So how is the photography coming along?” I began to detail the various things I had been doing including some of the nude work. I told her I was looking to go outside the lines and take new chances. She looked somewhat shocked and for a moment, even speechless. Then she said it “Oh my God. You have totally crossed the line.” I laughed it off but then found myself explaining and even defending the change. Later that week I had drinks with a long time friend who by all means knows me as “A good guy”. We talked about said conversation and some of the opportunities I’m being offered. She loves me and my work. So I totally trust her instinct. She said “You could never be that guy.” meaning I’m no smut peddler. There isn’t going to come a day when I wake up and decide to forgo portraiture to go into the Adult Film industry. Though I enjoy shooting nudes and have no issues with it (growing up in my home my Mom had Vargas paintings and still has pinups and nudes in her home.) but I want to keep it artistic. There’s a line and it can be a thin one at times. I’ve pretty much decided what side of it I want to dance on.