Jake Sawyer in front of my camera. His job on this photo shoot was to show up in shape and looking good. He did that! My job was to turn the scenes I had in my mind into photographs. The tools for this job were very simple, a few rolls of film (yes film) and a camera. That worked! Are you ready to do your job in front of my camera? Send me an e-mail to SecondFocus@mac.com and we can chat about it. Thanks!
More of all of my photography for 2015 coming your way! More bodybuilding, more fitness, more lifestyle, more sports, more fashion, more with an edge, more editorial, more magazines, more advertising, more of everything. And more of you! Come be a part of it! Send me an e-mail to SecondFocus@mac.com and we can chat about it! Thanks!
Cortney CortCity Solomon was so fun in front of my camera! And like Cortney you can be in front of my cameras too, whether in the gym for bodybuilding and fitness or edgy fashion lifestyle or other sports or concepts. It could be for yourself, magazine editorials or advertisements for your products or services. Just send me an e-mail to SecondFocus@mac.com and and we can chat about it.
I want to say that I am very heartened by how many of you have contacted me over the last week about shooting. I have heard from people looking to build their own portfolios and promotion, companies looking to shoot their advertising and magazines looking for something different and unique. It shows that people are thinking ahead and optimistic about the New Year. Outstanding!
You could be looking at behind the scenes photographs of my photo shoot with you. These are from one of my shoots with the more than beautiful and wonderful Stacey Naito. This is the time that I am really giving a lot of thought to my planning for photo shoots for the coming year just around the corner. Of course I will continue to do my photography in bodybuilding and fitness whether in the gym, in the pool, or on location. I am also continuing to expand my shooting more directed to lifestyle features, edgy and nude fashion, editorial and advertising. And as I have always said, I reserve the right to photograph anything I find fun and interesting. So if you want to be a part of any of those concepts, genres and ideas or just want to get in on the fun and interesting, it is time to send me an e-mail to SecondFocus@mac.com with what you are thinking and let’s chat about it. Thanks!
I started thinking about my photo shoot plans for next year. That may include many of you. So if you have been thinking about shooting with me or planning your magazine editorials or advertising campaigns, let’s chat. Yes I will be doing my work in bodybuilding and fitness, but let’s make it really standout! I am also doing work in lifestyle including fashion, edgy and conceptual. As I often say, I reserve the right to photograph anything I find fun and interesting. But seriously, whatever your concept, let’s talk! We can make it worthwhile and fun! Send me a note to SecondFocus@mac.com.
Here is a look behind the scenes on my photo shoot in the desert and wind farms with Sergi Constance. Sergi has become enormously successful as a model and our photographs made their way to magazines and more around the world.
Another of my Holiday Season photographs. See the festive red candles on the counter. Oh, you missed those. Look again. From our photo shoot with one of the most beautiful women I have ever photographed, Ashley Owens Gulina. Makeup and Hair Styling by the wonderful Natalie Lyle. Thank You!
Stopping by for some auto repair? Maybe things running rough? Looks like he is not too busy but maybe not impressed with the idea of getting under the hood of your car. Knows his way around the garage. I’m thinking he does mostly bodywork. Ask him about getting your dents worked out. A much better idea! Jake Sawyer from our photo shoot.
I know she was there, I saw her and she saw me. It was very desolate but I am thinking she can take care of things. I came back later after dark, but she was gone. My imagination perhaps?
Recently I had the great experience of photographing Lauretta Lowell. Lauretta is an incredibly talented artist who will be the “Featured Artist” at the 14th annual Rancho Mirage Art Affaire this weekend. Her art is in mixed media assemblages but she is equally talented in painting and other art genres. But even more, she is an incredible personality who has overcome great tragedy. Read about Lauretta and also see more of the photographs in a feature for Palm Springs Life Magazine, Palm Springs California. Here is the link to that story.. http://tinyurl.com/m9hc5oy Thanks!
A big Thank You to Blanche LeBeau who did a wonderful job of Makeup and Hair Styling. And along with her assistant Emma Mesrobian did so much to help organize the scenes and wardrobe and made it all great fun. Thank You!
Thank you for all the kind comments about my photographs with Jennifer Henry. I have been getting a lot of questions about how we did this shoot so I thought I would show you. It was actually very simple.
First starting with a gorgeous woman is a big step ahead! Thank You Jennifer! Originally my plan was to do this shoot on my outdoor studio set but the humidity was unusually high so it would have been really uncomfortable. So we set up inside, hey I have 8 tons of air conditioning so why not!
Lighting as you see, strobes by Profoto USA. I believe in high quality lighting systems putting out really great light. There are only a few brands of lighting equipment I would consider. The light coming in from the sliding glass doors on the right is irrelevant because it is over powered by the strobes. And then as you can see I have a lot of room and can even create much more inside if needed.
The details that make the photographs work are good exposure, sharp focus, good posing. A big point that people miss all the time is skin tone. Go through photographs from so many and you see skin that is orange in color. Yes sometime the tanning products does throw it off but it is really bad for the photographer to not adjusting the “white balance” in post processing to get real life skin tones. There are times when artistic expression might change that. But basically if you get orange skin you have photographs that are not acceptable. It is not real and contributes to a blurry look.
Another point to remember is that photographs are easy to make look good for Facebook or Instagram because they are so small. Take them up to full size and high resolution for something like a magazine and often times they fail. Blurry and no detail in fabrics, white or dark spaces that look like they were painted on also with no detail. Those are also not acceptable.
So there you have my photo lesson for the day. Just wanted to answer a few questions. And Thank You!
Incognito at Venice Beach. I think Maria Bertrand wears a suit much better than I do. And no tie required. On the Venice Beach boardwalk it is not easy to look unique, but I think we did that! I saw no other tall beautiful models wearing a suit and Fedora out there. None!
Thank You to so many of you for your notes and e-mails about shooting with me. I just want to be clear that we cannot just run over to the Palm Springs Air Museum with lights and cameras and wardrobe and a makeup artist, set up and start shooting photographs on the tarmac with a P-51 Mustang or the four engine bomber of your choice. This is well arranged ahead of time and there are costs involved. Sharon Lim and I had discussed this early on, and with some bumps in the road, I was able to make this happen. So I would love to shoot with you with that P-51 or maybe a helicopter but send me a note and we can chat about it. Thanks!
I am asked often where I get ideas for my photo shoots. The ideas really come from my mind. But I am always looking at photographs and magazines make up a big part of that. Not what you might expect though. I will be very blunt and say that the bodybuilding and fitness magazines are about as imaginative as tan condos in a planned community. And very often, very very often, the photography is just not good. These are three of the many magazines I try to catch all of the time. Usually I get them on my trips to L.A., I make it a point to make the stop to get some. Others I get include Treats! Magazine, Blindfold Magazine, MirageMagazine, LOVE, Purple Fashion magazine, the Leica S Magazine and many more. These three magazines also are on Facebook. Also they all have websites. Anyway the point I am making is… if you want to broaden your view of photo shoots, either being in them, shooting them or just enjoying them, get your eyes out of the fitness shelf. Make it more fun!
It has always been that iron is a great supplement. That is when used as weights in the gym. I think Ashley Owens Gulina has found exactly the right dosage! From our photo shoot. Makeup and Hair Styling by Natalie Lyle.
This was a topic of conversation yesterday so I thought I would share it for those of you who have not seen this. An absolutely tremendous photo shoot I did with Charles J Flanagan actually running alongside and racing a freight train. This ran as a feature on Cardio in BODY Magazine in Sweden. A double page spread with a number of other photographs from the shoot.
A big shout out the Charles for really making this photo shoot so outstanding. And a big shout out to Body Magazine for doing such a creative feature. How many magazines do you see do a cardio feature with the same old concept of people running on a treadmill. Or when they get really creative they do a guy and a girl running on the beach together. Of course, with the obligatory adoring look on her face gazing up at her man. Boring and so trite. Anyway great job award goes to Body Magazine! Thanks!