As a photographer still getting my feet planted in the industry, I get asked all the time to do things like engagement photos, family portraits, and professional headshots. These gigs are fine and all but they certainly restrain me from flexing certain creative muscles and lack the edge that I like to bring to my work. For me they’re more about technical execution and finding a way to connect with your subject to help them feel more comfortable in front of the camera which I can always use practice in so I still take these jobs. But shoots like this one with Taylor are what really fire me up and are the shoots I want more of in the future. Shoots where I get to work with creatives or other talented people looking to make images that represent themselves in a fresh and creative way.
Taylor being a touring musician needed some new images to promote herself and had a very open mind in the conceptualization of the shoot. She gave me total control of the direction and simply trusted that I would be able to produce something dramatic and stylistic. I figured it was a good chance to take this studio portraiture style I’ve been playing with recently and apply it to a shoot that had more intentional direction than what I’ve used it for in the past.
That being said I have had one big issue with this setup which is how much space it takes up. Between the backdrop, the lights, and having room to move around and get the angles I’m looking for, it takes some real estate to get this done. My apartment is just a bit small to really have the freedom I want with all of these variables so I decided to take this outside. We ended up setting up in a small alley behind my apartment right around sunset when the ambient lighting was getting weaker. We had plenty of space and the alley lights provided just enough ambient light so my camera could still see and focus on Taylor once it was totally dark outside. Plus we were right next to my apartment which made it super easy to provide her with water, a space to change outfits, and I had access to all of equipment so I didn’t have to worry about forgetting anything. It was honestly the perfect setup and I’ll definitely be using it again!
Check out Taylor here!
-Tyler
