Adios Blogger

Blogger, I have forsaken thee.

You won't find me posting over here much these days. I've been using Tumblr as my go-to for blog action these days.

Tumblr and Flickr are where you'll find my most recent work. Head on over and have a look:

http://jeanclaudephoto.tumblr.com/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hatehills/

Thanks!

New Website is UP!

Website 2.0 is LIVE! I'm very excited about this new layout. It feels a little cleaner and just all around spiffier. Stop by and check it out:

http://www.jeanclaudephoto.com

Thanks!

Tumblr

I've been trying out Tumblr and I have to say I'm liking it. The layouts are more elegant than anything I've found for Blogger, and in general it's just a little more "with-it" in terms of how easy it is to link it up with the rest of my internet presences.

I'll probably be doing all my blogging over there in the near future. Just still working out the details. So in the meantime, here's my Tumblr address:

http://jeanclaudephoto.tumblr.com/

I'll post a final message here if I decide on migrating permanently.

Why I Love Agency Models

Around Fall of last year, I decided it was time to start shopping my portfolio around to some of the smaller LA modeling agencies to see if I could start testing with a slightly better caliber of model. While I'm grateful to have found Model Mayhem and make the friends I have, I've dealt with one too many no-shows. And the ones who do show up, well...sometimes they're not as tall as they claim to be. Or their skin isn't as clear. Or they really can't pose. Or they just plain suck. That makes for a long day.

Happily, I got some good responses from a few of the agencies I approached. One agency, Envy has sent me some great girls to test with. I've spent much of December and January shooting the girls from Envy and I'm really pleased with how the shoots have been going.



There's something about dealing with working models as opposed to internet girls that's just a treat. Maybe it's because they've learned that when they're in a room full of other working models, there's always someone prettier, skinnier, or just plain better. These are girls that had to put in the work to get signed, go to auditions, and hustle to book a gig. Internet girls seem to exist in a bubble. A bubble where their parents and friends tell them repeatedly how pretty they are, and they arrive on my set with a sense of entitlement and an ego that just doesn't match their actual abilities.

Agency girls don't whine about long days, try to ambush me with escorts, they take better care of their skin, hair, and nails, and when they say they're 5'9"...they're really 5'9". And if they can actually POSE and EMOTE...just WOW.

Not all agency models are created equal. And frankly, I've shot a few internet girls who were actually better than some agency girls. But ultimately, when I put a shoot together for my own portfolio, my goal is to be as creative as possible and put in a serious day to come out with the best images I can. It's good when you can say the same about everyone you're working with. I feel fortunate that I'm feeling that way more & more often lately. Hopefully the proof is in the photos!

Random 2010

Here's some random shots I liked from 2010, just to wrap up the year. I swear I'm going to update more often in 2011. I swear, I swear...

Blogging Is Hard

Why is it so hard to constantly update a simple photo blog? Admittedly, I have been super busy shooting which is a good thing. But still, everytime I plan on updating, I think, "Oh, I'll wait until I finish editing this new batch of photos so I can post them too." And so on it goes until nothing gets updated.

At any rate, here's some personal favorites I've shot lately. The one above hit #9 on Flickr's Explore which was kind of cool. That's Averil, a great local model with the Otto Agency whom I found on Model Mayhem. She was a lot of fun.



Arguably one of the best models I've ever shot with was Rosaline Hart (above). Watching her process was fascinating. She has that rare gift where she can visualize what the photo will look like as she's posing. She would ask me, "Can I try this?" or "Just a few more frames, I want to try this." At times, I found myself challenged to keep up with her and that's a really inspiring feeling.

Here's a couple of a great young model (17!) named Jessica Spangler. She has tremendous potential, and just recently signed with Models International.





Finally, a few more random favorites from the last couple months. Enjoy!

Film is Good

Here's a couple portraits I shot on film recently. I've been terrible about updating lately, but it's only because I've been shooting so much.

This is a scan from an actual 8x10 enlargement I did. It looks better in person, but I do like the contrast in the scan:



Here's a scan I did from a Portra negative. Man, that's good film. Even when Costco screws up the development.

The Portfolio Grows

I've been a busy fellow for the last couple of months. Joining Model Mayhem has proven to be a real boon in my pursuit of portraiture. There is definitely something to be said for shooting subjects who enjoy being in front of the camera. It's almost cheating!

Pictured above is Rachael. She's an aspiring actress and a lot of fun to shoot. I had a few ideas from my notebook that she was willing to execute with me. Check out the Flickr set for more.

Here's another handful of recent shots from the girls I've worked with recently:



Emilee Wilson. Powerful. Everything she does is big. She's a model, poledancer, actress, producer, you name it. Check out The Vertigirls for more on her.



Shelley Dennis. Amazing figure and loves Seinfeld. We discovered this as Bethany Ruck (see previous blog post about the inimitable Bethany) was doing her makeup for this shoot. That was a fun night.



Heidi Heaslet also came to me via Bethany. A true redhead, inside & out. I love being around people who are opinionated. And if they like having their pictures taken, even better.



Adriana has some of the most interesting eyes you'll ever see. Take a closer look and you'll see what I mean. Oh, and she's a chemist?! How cool is that? I see she's made one of my photos her Model Mayhem avatar. That's always the sign of a satisfied customer.



Desiree Brajevich...Great eyes, very expressive. And just about the sweetest kid ever. We were lucky enough to have her makeup done by the talented Adriana Quicano. She did a gorgeous job on that face.



Megan's a young model who I think is going to have a bright future. There's a light bulb going on over this kid's head and she's got the perfect face for beauty and commercial photography. Flawless skin and great expression. And she gets excited about what we're working on. You show her shots in the middle of a shoot and you get a "Wow!". I live for the WOW! Jeff Siegel did her makeup for the shoot. Check him out here.

Here's another shot of Megan, with makeup done by Bethany.



I still have a lot of catching up to do, as well as website updating. Milady & I spent most of last week in Denver. Why Denver you ask? Why not! Cheap tickets and a desperate need to get away for a few days was all the impetus needed. If you've never been, you're missing out. This is no cowtown if that's what you're thinking. And if you enjoy riding a bicycle, they have miles of some of the most pleasant bike paths ever paved by man. I promise to post some photos from our trip soon. Stay tuned.

Things I've learned lately...

1. Models are flaky

2. Modelling isn't as easy as it looks

3. Models are flaky

There are rare exceptions to the flaky part. Case in point is Bethany, whom you see above. Talented, creative and a pleasure to shoot. In addition to being awesome in front of the camera, she's an amazing makeup artist. Which you can see in the job she did on herself here. This is a few we recently shot with more on Flickr.

If you're in Los Angeles, and you're looking for a great girl to make photos with, look her up here.


I've got some more cool stuff on the way, just gotta finish processing it. Stay tuned!

True to my word...sort of

I made myself two promises for 2010. Shoot more portraits and update this blog more often. Well, I've been doing a really good job of following through on the former, if not the latter. I'm giving myself an A for effort, dammit.

After a good first shoot with Katie just after New Year's, I felt confident in seeking out more willing subjects. First up was Maryam, whom you see above. We met briefly once at something called FMLY Presents. FMLY is a collective of creative types, and among their many endeavours, they put on a monthly bike ride that includes live performance from local bands at the various stops. Needless to say, the venues are non-traditional, and sometimes the police show up to spoil the fun. Sucks for the band who get their set cut short. But the ride continues, and with any luck the next stop might be cop-free. It's a great idea and Maryam is one of the organizers. She befriended me on Facebook after she tracked down some photos I'd shot on one of the rides. Although I didn't know her well, she seemed like just the right kind of person to be up for a little experimentation in front of the lens.

Turns out I was right. And it also turns out I was fortunate to make Maryam's acquaintance. She's a pretty fantastic person. When the girl grabs her guitar and sings "Folsom Prison Blues" while you're setting up lights, you know you're in the presence of someone pretty special. Many thanks to her for a great day.

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Next up was my pal, Hanako. Hanako is one of those people you're just glad to know. She really gives you a genuine smile when she sees you, and lets you know that she's happy you showed up. She knew she'd be helping me out immensely by modeling for me, and she was all too happy to volunteer. It's really great to have friends like that.

I met Hanako nearly 3 years ago at Santa Monica Critical Mass. I didn't know a lot of people in the bicycling scene at the time, and she was one of the first to help me feel welcome. Hanako is car-free (and has the sexy legs to prove it) so people usually see her in cycling attire. Since we were travelling by car for the shoot, I thought it would be cool to shoot her in a dress and heels. The cemetery shot (below) is so somber, but she pulled off just the right attitude, and did it with panache. I'm really happy with that one.

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Most recently, I had the pleasure of shooting Cyntia. Also a friend I made via cycling, Cyntia hails from Germany and has one of the most charming accents that perfectly complements her diminutive and sassy persona. Of everyone I've shot lately, Cyntia was probably the most enthusiastic. None of these ladies have been shy thus far, so that's saying a lot. With every shoot, I find myself pushing to try new things and ideas. Cyntia was game for whatever I came up with. She's comfortable with herself, her body, and really knows how to enjoy herself. I admire her confidence, and I think it comes through in these photos.

I am so grateful to have these friends. It takes a certain bravery to be vulnerable in front of a camera for hours on end. I don't even know if I could do it. Thanks to one and all!

See more from all these shoots on Flickr:





...Oh, and I got my Pocket Wizards. They definitely don't suck. (see previous post)

First Shoot of the Year

The first shoot of 2010 is in the can. In my last post from '09, I vowed to start doing more "arranged" type of shoots. I couldn't have asked for a better first model to begin with than Ms. Katie O'Shea. Her charm and natural ease in front of the camera came through in every shot and I'm very happy with these early efforts.

We did our photo-making in two different locations. The first was a tunnel that runs under PCH that has long captured my imagination. One end of it literally leads directly out onto the sand. It's yellow walls are textured and graffiti'ed and make for a great backdrop. You can see the gels I received for Christmas are already being put to good use.

Many thanks to the City of Beverly Hills for our second location. For the holidays, they erected all these little houses made of Christmas lights. The signs said to "Keep Out", but you can't hang all those lights and expect an intrepid photographer to obey. Fortunately, Katie was game so we got in there and it was truly magical. Light never ceases to amaze me.

I'm working with some cheap flash triggers I ordered from Hong Kong, RF-602's. I was pleased with their performance throughout the entire shoot. I was not so pleased the next time I went to use them and found one of my transmitters was completely dead. Not exactly built to last. I think Pocket Wizards are on my horizon.


I've got another shoot slated for this weekend. Very excited about it, as I've got some cool ideas cooking. It's raining very heavily here in Los Angeles this week. But if the weather does what we've been promised, this weekend should be absolutely gorgeous. Fingers crossed...stay tuned.

2009...It's Been Real

The photo above is my favorite shot from this past year. It came out exactly how I was imagining it in my head, and there aren't many things I can say that about.

It's a toss-up which is more gratifying. The ones that came about through imagination or the ones that are pure serendipity. As long as I go home with something I'm proud of, keep them both coming.

This coming year, I plan to focus on doing more portraiture and "arranged" photos. I'm looking forward to it.

...And I solemnly swear to update this blog more regularly as well!