Editorial Portraiture.
I grew up in the business shooting editorial-style portraits. First for newspapers like the New York Times and the Los Angeles Times, then for national magazines like InformationWeek, Time Magazine, Fortune, and Newsweek.
These images represent some of my favorite assignments over the years and they taught me critical production and interpersonal skills for working as a commercial photographer in Los Angeles. I learned to think on my feet and be prepared for anything like poor weather, problematic spaces, and technical difficulties.
I learned to expect nothing ahead of editorial assignments because things often did not go as I expected and I never had the opportunity to scout locations ahead if time. Uncertainty was always the precondition for all of my shoots and expectations were just premeditated disappointment.
The weather could affect my shoots, I could have technical problems, get stuck with unattractive locations, or have only 10 minutes with the subject. The important thing was to have the ability to turn on a dime and pull a rabbit out of my hand at will.
For the images on the right, I was asked by Black Enterprise Magazine to photograph Robert F. Thompson CEO of Thompson Family Farms which farms and distributes potatoes.
The magazine wanted Robert shot in one of his farm fields, so I used a large silk to light him to create a natural look. I brought heave stands and sandbags in case of wind and I had an assistant to help with the production. I also brought strobe lights in case my idea did not work out.
In addition, I did considerable post-production to make the image work for the cover. I removed power lines and electrical towers and then added some clouds I shot earlier in the day.
The wind did kick up but the 140lbs of sandbags ensured the silk did blow away. The client loved the work so much that they put him on the magazine cover.
Next, I was assigned by the communications company GMMB to photograph movie industry talent for an advertising campaign meant to draw attention to the people affected by movie piracy.
But none of the talents were elephant trainers, so I contacted Elephant Trainer Hayen Rosenaur and asked him if he would be interested in being photographed for the campaign. Of course, he loved the idea.
During the shoot, Hayden had to leave for a few minutes which is when one of the elephants thought it would be funning to steal our 2400-watt generator, though he did not like that I had prevented him from doing so, so he tried to grab one of my assistants and then smack me of the head with his trunk. He missed and we managed to narrowly avoid disaster.
Shoots often do not go as I intend but they are always successful and very often fun and exciting projects.
