Color is a power which directly influences the soul.
-Wassily Kandinsky
Andrea photographed in natural light, towards the end of the day, when the sun was turning the evening light golden and a light breeze made the fabrics sway in the wind.
A 10′ x 10′ pop up canopy is an ideal structure to create an outdoor room. It’s tall enough to set-up a backdrop under the canopy to replicate a studio environment. The white fabric roof acts as a large softbox that diffuses the sun and softens sun light. One or more studio lights can be added to give direction to the light and provides an extra bounce of brightness to the eyes.
One of my favorite uses for the canopy’s frame is to hang sheer fabrics that catch the wind and reflect the rays of the sun making for a pretty and feminine backdrop to capture creative portraits.
Devi is ready for her picture to be taken for the group photo (see below).
In the late summer I was commissioned to photograph the outgoing Committee Chairs for the Marana Chamber of Commerce. Every year the Chamber has a group photo and the Chamber’s leadership team was concerned that it wasn’t going to happen this year due to COVID-19. Fortunately, I was able to photograph each person separately and then combine all the individual photos into one composited image. #missionaccomplished
Each person was photographed separately in the outdoor canopy to adhere to social distancing guidelines. Afterwards the ten images were combined in Photoshop to create a group photo.
My next venture with the tent will be to swap the white fabric for black. I am inspired by the work of Peter Lindbergh, and in particular, his “sun bounce cage”. The famous fashion photographer set-up three sided black tent to capture memorable monochromatic photographs of famous models and actresses.
One more of Andrea in the “outdoor” room.
Interested in learning more about what the studio has to offer? Click on the following links to jump to the studio’s portfolio of images, and download a digital copy of the studio’s Magazine and Style Guide to learn how to prepare for your photoshoot:
The single most important component of a camera is the twelve inches behind it.
–Ansel Adams
Andrea is photographed with white seamless paper as a backdrop. A white V-Flat on the left is used to reflect light to minimize shadows on the right side of her face.
A 9-foot wide roll of white seamless paper is a staple at the studio. In addition to white, seamless paper is available in 55 colors which makes it an ideal choice for personal branding photoshoots to complement your branding colors. Seamless paper is also a terrific option for fashion-inspired images providing a commercial look.
This image of Maddie was inspired by Stuart Weitzman’s shoe campaigns.
White seamless paper provides a commercial, fashion-style look to a photoshoot.Maddie is wearing a black bodysuit accessorized with a cage skirt. There are bodysuits to compliment every body type. Cosmopolitan magazine proclaimed that the bodysuit is one of the “7 items of clothing that look good on absolutely everyone.” This may come as a bit of a surprise because bodysuits look terrible on a hangar, but when you find the right one, with the right fit, the bodysuit beautifully shapes a figure. The bodysuit also looks great paired with fishnet stockings, thigh-high hosiery or boots, a motorcycle jacket, tuxedo tails, and corset belts, to name just a few ideas. Savannah wanted to capture edgy fashion-inspired images. Mission accomplished. Makeup by Areli Jones-Acosta and hair by Claudia Ratcliffe, the owner of Alluminare Salon. Miranda was photographed towards the end of her pregnancy. She gave birth to a handsome baby boy who is absolutely adorable. Maternity photos are treasured keepsakes for a lifetime and beyond for the next generations.
Interested in learning more about what the studio has to offer? Click on the following links to jump to the studio’s portfolio of images, and download a digital copy of the studio’s Magazine and Style Guide to learn how to prepare for your photoshoot:
Life is like photography. You focus on what’s important. Capture the good times. Develop from the negatives and if things don’t work out just take another shot.
The question is no longer IF you have a personal brand, but if you choose to guide and cultivate the brand or let it be defined on your behalf.
-Shama Hyder
Capturing a personal branding portrait at 3/4 length provides flexibility in cropping the image for a variety of uses.
Two sided white and black V-Flats are perhaps the hardest working equipment in my studio. They are predominately used to control light. The white side bounce light and the black side absorbs light. Both the white and black sides can also be used as backdrops.
Renoir said once that nothing was so difficult, and at the same time so exciting, to paint, as white on white.
-Ambroise Vollard, French Contemporary Artsit 1866-1939
When I employ a white V-Flat as a backdrop it tends to be for personal branding images. The truth is pretty much everyone in business needs a professional headshot on a light background. The old adage is true, “You only have one chance to make a first impression.” This is also true of your online presence whether your headshot is featured on LinkedIn, your website, social media platforms, or dating service.
Maddie in the foreground and the tall V-Flats are stacked up like accordion cards in the background.
“A series of experiments by Princeton psychologists Janine Willis and Alexander Todorov reveal that all it takes is a tenth of a second to form an impression of a stranger from their face, and that longer exposures don’t significantly alter those impressions (although they might boost your confidence in your judgments). Their research is presented in their article “First Impressions,” in the July issue of Psychological Science.”
-Association for Psychological Science
The white V-Flats, depending upon the lighting set-up, can be pure white or have a gradient from white to gray.
Elise is a participant in the Wise Women: 50 over 50 Project. She incorporated a personal branding set into her photoshoot. She is makeup artist who owns Boomer and Beyond Beauty LLC. Personal branding headshot for Hilda, owner of Morava Services & Consulting, LLC located in Tucson, Arizona. Dan is the owner of Danwidth, a Tucson-based company that creates customized website solutions.
White V-Flats aren’t just for capturing personal branding, this series of fun “dancing” portraits” were captured with the white V-Flats acting as a backdrop.
A “9-Up” portrait collection of Jaquesha.
And, of course, we can have a bit of fun too. White V-Flats don’t have to be all about serious business.
Savannah visited the studio to add images to her modeling portfolio.
The studio’s gray backdrops also work well for headshots, in particular the Light Gray.
Black V-Flats are also frequently used in personal branding sessions.
Interested in learning more about what the studio has to offer? Click on the following links to jump to the studio’s portfolio of images, and download a digital copy of the studio’s Magazine and Style Guide to learn how to prepare for your photoshoot:
Gray is the Queen of colors, because she makes everyone else look good.
-Helen Van Wyk, Painter
“Double Exposure” portrait of Andrea captured with a mix of natural light and strobe.
As you can see from the images in this post, this light gray backdrop can appear much lighter or darker in photographs depending upon the lighting used to make the portrait. In the studio I work with natural light, strobe light, and a mix of both natural light and strobe to create portraits that are light and airy to dark and moody and everything in between.
The goal with this backdrop was to choose the right tone of gray that would work as both a neutral and to pair well with just about any color. I also had in mind to select a tone that would work well in replacing white seamless paper for fashion-inspired images, especially when a little more texture is desired in the image.
“Socially distanced” group photo of the Marana Chamber of Commerce Committee Chairs for 2019-2020. Each member was captured individually and composited into this group photo. I made a makeshift studio outside under a canopy. Devi posing under the canopy for her participation in the Marana Chamber of Commerce photoshoots to capture the outgoing committee chairs. Personal Branding image for Erik Anderson of Scar and Pain Solutions, based in Tucson, Arizona. Pam is owner of Theia Hypnotherapy, LLC, a certified hypnotherapist.
In addition to this warm light gray backdrop, the studio has a variety of gray backdrops in inventory:
Interested in learning more about what the studio has to offer? Click on the following links to jump to the studio’s portfolio of images, and download a digital copy of the studio’s Magazine and Style Guide to learn how to prepare for your photoshoot:
Personal branding images are delivered to my clients in multiple crops for a variety of uses. For example, this landscape crop provides negative space for overwriting text.
Meet graphic designer, Elisa Ng. One of the nicest, most giving people that you will ever have the pleasure of meeting. What I also like about Elisa is that she’s not afraid of color, bold colors specifically (and neither am I). She’ll gladly add color to a design to make it pop, such as choosing magenta for her company’s branding. Her logo definitely catches the eyes. Simply stated, Elisa has the skill and experience to help small to medium businesses gain visibility in a crowded market by helping to elevate their brands.
A Personal Branding session includes clients being photographed on both light and dark backgrounds. Seamless color papers for backgrounds are available in 60 colors if specific hues are needed to blend or match with your branding palette.
At the beginning of Elisa’s career she worked as a production artist and graphic designer for large firms in the greater Phoenix area. She managed creative projects from beginning to end as part of an in-house creative services team. Collaboration is one of her core strengths. Elisa has built strong relationships with vendors and can manage print productions to provide her clients with full service solutions that save time and money.
Elisa has the experience to create and expand your brand’s image across print and digital media. Her projects have spanned across a variety of print and web media designs including print ads, collateral, signs, direct mail, emails, landing pages and websites.
Traditional square crop for headshot.
Elisa is a prolific networker and referral partner. She is passionate about connecting people with people, and people to businesses and services. In fact, I met Elisa at a networking event. She proactively followed up with me after the event to schedule a one-to-one meeting so that we could learn more about each other and our businesses. We’ve been friends since our initial meeting and from time-to-time we carpool to various networking events in Tucson. I really appreciate her enthusiasm and willingness to help me and my business and in return I want to do the same for her. It’s her enthusiasm, willingness to help, ability to listen and ask pertinent questions that make her a great designer and a pleasure to work with.
Elisa and I collaborated on the print and digital media for the Beauty from Ashes Ranch 2019 Charity Gala. Our companies were sponsors of the event for this important cause. The not-for-profit organization founded by Tucson police officer, Sara Haught is building a long-term care facility in the Tucson area for rescued children that are survivors of sex trafficking aged 11-17.
In Elisa’s spare time she enjoys donating her capabilities and energy to organizations that help improve the lives of children and animals. Elisa and I enjoy reading mystery novels. A favorite series of Elisa’s is Joanna Brady by author, and U of A alumni, J. A. Jance. The novels feature a strong female protagonist, an Arizona County Sheriff. The novels play out against the backdrop of southern Arizona with events unfolding in locations such as Tucson and Bisbee. Another fun fact is that Elisa enjoys listening to foreign music while she works, in particular Korean pop and songs from Bollywood soundtracks.
For future authors like Elisa the portrait crop is perfect for the inside of a book jacket.
When asked about the keys to her success, Elisa says, “Being authentic and friendly while listening to my clients. This builds lasting relationships and effective designs.” Well said. I couldn’t agree more.
Now that you know who Elisa is and what she does, give her the opportunity to help you elevate your brand. #LevelUp
Do you have a graphic design project that would greatly benefit from Elisa’s expertise? Learn more by visiting EL Design Studio, seeking her out on her Facebook Business Page, or calling Elisa directly at (520)369-2515.
Elisa and I had a blast attending a Marana Chamber of Commerce event. Keep an eye out for the two of us at networking events in Tucson. If you see us, be sure to introduce yourself and say hello. You can see we’re friendly. Oh! And, aren’t those magenta hued Hollyhocks absolutely gorgeous?
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