Spirit and Soul Photography and London!

This was a fun shoot I did some weeks back. It was a styled fashion shoot with two different locations, variations of clothes, emotions, and moods with one aim to project a lifestyle commercial look. My client, London Williams and I planned and worked together for approximately two weeks in preparation for the shoot. For those who know my photography, they know that I am a kid's photographer, but I took this job because it had all the elements that I associate with kid's photography which is fun, creativity, style, vision, modern and life style images.

The first series of photos, I took advantage of this great, red brick wall. London and I pre-planned this shoot by discussing type of clothes, colors and accessories he would use. We also discussed the style he wanted to portray. I kept those things in mind when selecting our first location and utilizing the second location he selected. I thought this nice red wall complimented his look and gave a natural, but modern feel. The location, and lighting brought out London's skin tones, and the textures of the brick gave a soft contrast to the textures, and patterns of his blazer.
As you can see, we were going for a cool swag look! As an artist first, I always look for compositional elements which incorporate my style of shooting.

My approach was to go for a commercial look making editorial statements along with way while still maintaining my eclectic, colorful and vibrant brand.

And that includes having the subjects look as natural as possible, not posing them in a traditional way, but capturing their personality as we move through the shoot. I captured this shot as he was getting ready to get stand...on the move. 

I have a silly personality so I often say funny things to capture a particular emotion or mood. Or I may give a directive for a particular motion. I often think about what the client is trying to capture. Each photographer has their own style. Anyone can take a picture, but for me it's the photographer 'eye' and style that permeates through.

Here I caught London as he is walking close to me, giving a detailed look at his jacket and shirt while blurring out the background for a soft and non-distracting palette.

It's great when you have a client whose look meshes with your brand, which I identify as style. It makes it easier to capture the vibe you are trying to visually communicate. Customers who are looking for professional photographers should study their work first before selecting them to deliver your needs. Their work should give you a consistent view of their style. For example, if you love muted vs vibrant colors, if you want a traditional portrait look vs a contemporary look, etc. then study your photographer before choosing. Also consider, the vision you have in mind and if that photographer can deliver based on what their portfolio shows. I love commercial, modern life style photography.

And although, I am a kid's photographer, London has a great commercial look. I love this contemplative profile look. I captured it a couple of times in our shoot. Also this angle is a great for highlighting his fashion. You can see how his shoes, bag and the color and texture of the brick wall  complimented his blue patterned jacket. It is a nice contrast.

                 

I like this shot because of the direction of the sun. It is shining from the right side of London onto his face. Normally, I shoot in what photographers call the 'golden hour', but one of my favorite photographers Audrey Woulard, gave me the courage to shoot in 2pmish' sun! It was a brave move for me, but I like how this picture came out. It's got a nice hazy look which lends itself to the swag look we were trying to achieve.

So, I said to London..."what can you do with this background." London looked at the house, took off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. I think he is thinking about it in this picture...lol!!

                       Another looking down pose. This time frontal and it offers modeling agencies 
                    and other commercial businesses looking for this kind of work another angle.

                              Oftentimes, simple is best. This is a classic look for any time period!

                  The style, the pose and the smile say an "All American" commercial look.

For this session, we used the phone to capture various emotions and facial expressions. I wanted to use another area of the lot, but the harsh sun wouldn't allow for good shots. As a photographer, you have to be on the look out for 'good light'. After, the one area didn't work, I saw this spot with good lighting. And...you guessed it I also selected it because of the blue and white backdrop, and the rustic floor went well with London's attire. Many things must be taken into consideration. Thanks goodness, no one came out the door! :)

Hush....being silly; I gave London some funny prompts in order to wrangle these great expressions.

                                                       

                                                              Work it out London! :)

Our last spot in the parking lot is a green brush area that lent itself to soft blurred background.  Capturing emotions in photography is not an easy thing to do. It's about relational interaction between the photographer and the subject. There's nothing easy about capturing natural looks. It's almost like wrangling at times, but it's worth it in the end. Traditional portraits are somewhat routine in directing their subjects, oftentimes leaving plastic smiles and stone body movements.  On the other hand, while it is more challenging to capture natural facial expressions, there has to be some of the traditional directing, but for me the magic, I believe lies in the 'soft' pull-n-tug interaction and reaction between the photographer and the subject. In other words, soft wrangling! :)

All photos up to this point are in one location in a large parking lot... just various areas within the lot. We really utilized this space well while considering available light and shade.  The camera settings to adjust for light: ISO, and shutter speed had to be changed for each area in the parking lot depending on the position of the sun, the shading of the trees. For the most part, I used a low aperture. The light and shade showing on the cement didn't bother me as London stood squarely under a tree that generally gave him open shade over his body. As you can see, he is checking his phone because we are off to our second location a nearby community center, which presented a different set of challenges but beautiful results.

In planning for this 'work out portion of the shoot, London and I talked about what he would wear and what he wanted to convey visually. He picked out some very vibrant colors that really reflected his style and personality. I threw in the grey ball to give it a sleeker look. Honestly, photographing these shots were more challenging for me because I am natural light shooter and, I really had to take my time getting the setting together because light was bouncing in many directions and my camera was only one month old. :) But,  London was patient and I'm glad he was because the color, and lighting came out perfect.

The room had several large windows behind me that gave off a lot of light, which bounced off the mirror, lit up the floor underneath him while still giving even lighting on this body.  The golden tan wooden floor and cream color walls also provided a source of 'good' light. It was a complicated lighting situation for me,  but once I got the shutter speed, and ISO together, the rest was pictorial history. Again, my aperture was low.

   It's set now..so I got a little happy with the look! You can see the soft light in his eyes and lighting
          his face with perfect tone.

The lighting in this next room was not as tricky, but I played off the frosty backdrop to help illuminate these next set of shots. The translucent glass wall gave off a frosty light and gave the rest of the space an overall pale bluish tone thus making the color of shirt, shoes and even white pants pop.  Also, the source of light above London's head added to the overall look of the pictures.

Once I really noticed the source of lighting above London's head; I made a quick assessment of the frosted background, the color of his clothes, etc., the black and steel weights, I, then asked him to hold his head back and look toward the light. For creative, editorial or chancy shots, a photographer should anticipate and envision in their mind what the picture might look. Then work to execute it correctly.

This picture above is exactly, how I envisioned it in my mind, just minutes before I took it, with his head faded into the frosted glass and his face illuminated by the light above. This full body position leaves the viewer to focus on the determination of his face and the strength of his body from his workout. A good editorial for a work out...stayed determined and focused and your results will come.

                               I would say London's commercial photo shoot was a knock-out!
                              Contact Spirit and Soul photography (aka OurSpiritandSoul) at            
                 http://ourspiritandsoul.com/ for your personal and commercial photography needs.
                            We have special rates for kid's portrait and small businesses.
                                                Email me at ourspiritandsoul@gmail.com