Editorial Portrait Job for Totem

Great Editorial Photography Job

Just finished an editorial portrait assignment for Totem a design firm in Toronto. They wanted an edgy picture of Jon Ikeda, the head of Acura North America.  That is unusual for me because most of the editorial photography of corporate executives has been much more conservative and there is little personal revelation between myself and the subject. In this case, it was quite the opposite.

They gave me about an hour with Jon and he was great to work with. I seldom have more than a few minutes with corporate executives and they usually want to get in and out as quickly as possible. Not so with Jon. He was possibly the most personable corporate executive at a large company I have ever photographed. Generally, I am the one asking questions but Jon was also interested in me, which helped me find moments when he was not aware of the camera.

We shot with a 21"  Profoto beauty dish and I loved the stark look it gave me. Acura loved the work as well. I had his undivided attention and buy-in from his handlers so life was good.

Production for this editorial portrait assignment was just me and my assistant and we shot on a white background. The post-production was light as the software was converting the images to black and white as I shot them so I got to see what I wanted. The challenge for the editorial portrait assignment is to find authentic moments within what you shoot. Usually that involves asking people questions about their personal lives and getting very specific. Sometimes it involves distracting them with questions from more than one person so they are so distracted that they forget, just briefly, that they are being photographed. This was my favorite editorial portrait assignment of the year. 

Edward Carreon

In the beginning, he aspired to smuggle gems from Sri Lanka and live on the island of Fatu Hiva where Gauguin painted. Instead, he moved to Micronesia and got lost for two years. Fell in lust. Slid down a coconut tree; very painful. Saw a blue moon. Was attacked by sharks but got lucky. Built houses, speared fish, Fell in love. Went home empty-handed.

Went to school, got bored then graduated. Lived in Mexico, fell in love, and got drunk with a cartel hitman. Lived in an Indian village, broke two ribs, lost all his money on a cock fight, got lost in a cave but now is found. Published widely acclaimed work. Made Mama proud. Worked for newspapers. Worked for The New York Times. Walked in the desert, got a heat stroke, thought he saw God or Jerry Garcia. Recovered. Worked for Life, Fortune, Newsweek, and National Geographic.

Went to Cuba and smoked cigars. Fell in Love. Married in Havana. She saw him coming a mile away. Fortunate tragedy. Recovered. Worked for the New York Times, Discovery Channel, Amgen, Target, etc.

Worked in Latin America. Fell in Love with the wrong woman then Fell in love with the right woman Got Married, wife, kid, beagle, and garden. The whole nine yards. The beagle ate the house. Likes tomatoes, green tea, impossible hikes, and Ayahuasca ceremonies. Most pressing question: "Who are you ?"

https://carreonphotography.com
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Editorial Style Portrait Photography