MY OBLIGATION TO MODELS - BUILDING CAREERS ONE PHOTOGRAPH AT A TIME

 
 Model:  Renee Thompson for Adha Zelma "Autumn" Collection

Hey you guys.  This has been a tremendous couple of months for me.  I’ve been so busy that I didn’t even get a chance to do a single blog for the month of October.  I vowed that I would at LEAST try to write a one blog a month.  The month of October has been a very busy one.  I shot an album cover for an upcoming artist (Ashley Carpenter).  I’ve shot Adha Zelma’s “Autumn” line with Toronto’s model Renee Thompson (I will be blogging more about it in the future).  I’ve shot for Heather B for their website.  I shot Saks Fifth Avenue Spa/Salon for their Facebook page.  The accessories editorial I’ve shot with the amazingly talented Robert Durant for Bleu Magazine has finally come out.  And I helped yet another model (Justin Shaw) get placed with an agency and he is going to make some noise, which is the reason for this blog.

When I first embarked on photography, my goal was very simple:  I wanted to learn how to operate a SLR to the best of my ability.  It didn’t matter if I was shooting a waterfall, a rock, a flower or a blade of grass.  My intentions were clear:  take the best possible photograph I could possibly take.  Now four years later, I am here transforming the lives of young models across the United States with photographs I never dreamed I would take, not to mention my images are now becoming recognizable.  I actually had someone call me and ask if I did a shot that appeared somewhere, I asked how did he know.  His reply?  “I know your work in a single glance.”  Wow.  That made my day.

But I digress.  As I was saying all I wanted to do was take good, technically sound, artistically compelling images.  As this journey set forth, what my plans may have been, the Universe saw it differently.  It was with my craft that I am able to open doors for models (especially models of color) and allow them access into places where before, no one would see them.  And I thank God for that talent for allowing me to do so.  I can’t photograph everyone that asks me (though I wish I could), but I will vow to do one thing:  I will shoot you (the model) to the best my ability and try to produce the most amazing image possible for you.  If you allow me to fall in love with you, I can promise you stellar photographs.  If you allow yourself to trust me, I will be able to teach you to reach down into the recesses of your soul and make you a better model.

Is that my job?  No.  My job is to become a successful campaign photographer.  But right now, my oath is to help you to the best of my ability with the talent that God has allowed me to developed. 

This is my oath to you.


Model:  Kortney Williams for Bleu Magazine


Singer:  Ashley Carpenter for Walking into Sunshine


Model:  Justin Shaw for NTA 


Model:  Angelique Velez for Adha Zelma "5" Collection