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Jeff Harris
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Jeff Harris' studio, located in the Flatiron District of midtown Manhattan, was a
busy place when I paid a visit on a day the local weather forecasters described
as 'sultry'.
New Yorkers have far more colorful ways of
describing high levels of heat and humidity, but that’s
a story for another day. Despite the wilting pedestrian
traffic 3 floors below, the studio was cool and busy.
Two sets were live while a retoucher was busy at one
of several work stations putting the final touches on a
third project completed earlier.
Although Jeff Harris has been shooting for over 20
years now, he acquired a taste for the business from
his father who was in advertising. Shortly after
graduating from New York University Film School,
Jeff found himself earning a living with a camera by
shooting displays, boxes, bottles, and assorted odds
and ends his father would steer his way through various business contacts. Using an
old 8x10 studio camera, an ancient strobe pack and a couple of heads he inherited, he
basically learned studio photography by the seat of his pants, and without Photoshop
to ‘clean things up and fix the details’. There was no money for retouching so
everything had to be lit properly from the start.
Today, the work that keeps Jeff’s studio busy covers
the gamut of editorial, advertising, catalog, and most
anything else that requires placing people and/or
products before a camera. His client list includes
Vogue, Saks Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman,
Neiman Marcus, Marie Claire, Lowe Worldwide,
Smart Money, Travel & Leisure Golf, Women’s
Health, Spin, New York Magazine, Men’s Journal,
and GQ to name a few.
Jeff truly runs a full-service studio in every sense of
the word, and there is a familiar, family feel about
the place. Aside from Jeff, there are two Associate
shooters, Stuart and Charlotte, John, the resident
techie and Photoshop wiz, Ben, the resident
carpenter/magician, Kate and Emily who keep
everything under control, and a rotating group of
interns lucky enough to be learning the trade from a tight group of professionals.
A great deal of he work that flows out of Jeff’s midtown
studio is fashion and fashion accessory oriented, and
one of his biggest challenges is being able to keep the
look of his imagery fresh looking. After all, how many
ways can you shoot a pair of shoes? A quick flip
through Jeff’s portfolio will answer that question with a
single word- ‘many’, and whenever possible with a
touch of whimsy.
“We often do 60 to 80 shots a day, especially when
shooting catalogs, and our broncolor system has proven
year after year to be able to handle the use and abuse
of producing over 10,000 dead-on exposures a year.”
Jeff makes good use of a battery of Topas packs, along with broncolor Boxlites (which
he truly loves to use), Unilites, Fresnel Spot Attachments, Pulsospot 4s, and Satellite
beauty dishes, for which he finds numerous
applications.
Jeff is always looking for a new way of showcasing
the ‘same-old, same-old’ in a new light and for that
reason he illuminate his efforts with broncolor lights.
The limitations of a lighting system greatly impact the
results of the finished photograph. With the help of
his creative team, Jeff truly enjoys creating worlds
within a studio setting, and the cameras and lights he
uses are an intrinsic part of the creative process. The
exposure times and color consistency of each shot is
critical, and Jeff Harris broncolor lights bring a level of
reliability he depends on day after day, and year after
year. |
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＜プロフィール＞
ニューヨークのマンハッタンにスタジオを持ち、主に雑誌やカタログのファッションやアクセサリーの撮影を行っているフォトグラファーです。独特で印象的な写真を創造し広告業界で20年以上ご活躍しております。主な顧客：Vogue, Sak Fifth Avenue, Bergdorf Goodman, Neiman Marcus, Marie Claire, Lowe World wide, Smart Money, Travel & Leisure Golf, Woman’s Health, Spin, New York Magazine, Men’s Journal, GQ など
＜主な使用機材＞
トパス、ボックスライト、ユニライト、フレネルスポットアタッチメント、パルソスポット4、サテライト、など
＜コメント＞
カタログの撮影をする場合、1日に60-80ショットもすることがあります。ブロンカラーの製品は1年で10,000ショット以上行っても完璧なライティングをすることが可能で、何年も安心して使用できます。
鮮やかな空想の写真を撮り続けることが私の一番のチャレンジとなっています。靴の写真を撮るには何通りの方法があると思いますか？私の中では簡単な言葉’many’という答えを用意しています。そしていつでも様々な角度からの手法ができます。
ストロボの世界には限界がないと思っています。スタジオをセッティングする際にいつも新しいクリエイティブな世界を作るよう考え、使用するカメラ・ストロボ機材が創造世界への過程の一部となっていきます。ブロンカラー製品には撮影に非常に重要な照射時間や撮影の色の一貫性があるため信頼性を持って使用することができると言えるでしょう。
＜ホームページ＞
www.jeffharrisephoto.com |
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Luis Alvarez |
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No. 2-3112/09_dr June 2009
Luis Alvarez comes to photography from the point of view of a freelance hair
stylist who learned the craft of photography by working alongside the likes of
Victor Skrebneski and Francesco Scavullo. Today, Luis just might be the only
photographer in Cleveland, Ohio shooting fashion and beauty on a full-time
basis, and for a wide range of clients.
Luis began shooting professionally
when, as Creative Director of Aquage,
the hair product supply company he
co-founded, he decided to take an
active role in shaping the visual image
of his new company. Having no
lighting equipment of his own, he
headed over to Dodd Camera, the pro
shop, and rented his first lighting
system, which to his great satisfaction
was a Broncolor system. By the end of
the day he was in love with the only
lighting system he has since used.
Today, Luis Alvarez describes himself
as a Creative Director with a camera,
and as such shoots all of the product
and model shots found on the Aquage
website (www.aquage.com) as well as
photography for all other Aquage
promotional vehicles including
advertising, brochures, marketing and show banners. Aside from his work for
Aquage, Luis also shoots products, fashion and beauty imagery for outside
clients along with a considerable amount of editorial work.
He enjoys shooting editorial for the open-ended aspect of the assignments,
which makes them a nice break from the structure of shooting products and
catalogs. Alvarez estimates the time he spends shooting for Aquage and his
freelance assignments clientele to be about 50/50 between the two.
Luis Alvarez is somewhat unique
in the sense his lighting system
consists almost exclusively of
Broncolor Mobil packs. Because
a majority of his assignment work
is on location, and therefore out
of reach of wall outlets, he
designed his system around
Mobil packs and back-up
batteries. The fact his Mobil
packs are rugged enough to
withstand the rigors of being constantly shipped from city to city and continent-tocontinent
doesn't hurt either. He occasionally supplants his system with
Broncolor Verso packs on assignments where he needs to be able to power
down to very low out put levels. These occasions aside, Broncolor Mobil packs
remain at the heart of his system.
To go along with his Mobil packs, Luis depends on the superb lighting qualities of
Broncolor Para FB umbrellas, Pulso heads, Pulsospots, and Satellite beauty
dishes. “When I shoot hair, I never use a softbox. Softboxes simply cannot
capture the nuances of hair. I love the 'pop' I get from my Para umbrella, and I
depend on my Pulsospot to bring snap and life to my imagery.”
Luis also makes good use of Broncolor reflectors and grids to achieve the lighting
effects he continuously strives for. “When I'm shooting I want to have true control
over how and where the light falls on my subjects, especially the transitions
between highlights and shadows, and my Broncolor system affords me these
controls.”
Luis makes it very clear he
depends on others on his team - the assistants, stylists, and models - to create the imagery he has
become well known for. He treats
his efforts a collaboration of all
involved and believes each
member of the team has something
to contribute to the end result. He
leaves little to chance, and
estimates about 90% of each
project are carefully planned out before he touches the shutter button.
On a similar note, Luis Alvarez makes it very clear he truly appreciates the
professional support he gets from his Broncolor dealer, as well as his regional
sales and technical reps, because in many ways, they too are a part of his team. |
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＜プロフィール＞
オハイオ州のクレブランドでファッション、ビューティー分野で活躍しているフォトグラファーです。主にAquage（ヘア用品メーカー）：http://www.aquage.com/ の広告、カタログ、マーケティング資料、バナーに掲載する撮影を行っています。他のお客様への物撮り、ファッション、ビューティーの撮影も行っています。
＜主な使用機材＞
モービル・バッテリー、ベルソ、パラFB、パルソヘッド、ビューティーディッシュ
＜コメント＞
ロケで使用することが多いので、モービルとバッテリーが重宝しております。モービルは丈夫なので、都市間、大陸の移動の際にもまったく傷つくことがなく、気候の厳しさにも耐えることができる点がメリットかと思います。小さい出力が必要な際にはベルソを使用していますが、撮影する際の中心機材はモービルが主です。
モービルで撮影する際にアクセサリーとして使用するのが、パラ、パルソランプヘッド、ビューティーディッシュです。髪の撮影する際、ソフトボックスを使ったことはありません。ソフトボックスの場合、髪の微妙なニュアンスの表現が難しい。そこでパラから得られる独特な光、活気と活力を創造の世界へ引き込むことのできるパルソスポットに信頼を置いています。
光がどのようにどこに照らすかという光量のコントロールができるような撮影がしたい。そのためにブロンカラーのリフレクターやグリッドも活躍します。特にハイライトと影の間の光の推移が重要でそのコントロールが可能なのがブロンカラーなのです。
＜ホームページ＞
なし |
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GASUZA MEDIA |
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No. 2-3107-09_dr June 2009
Gasuza stepped back from his digital camera to
wipe the perspiration from his brow. Though late
in the day, the relentless Ugandan sun was still
punishing everything it touched, but the light was
changing quickly. He knew he must capture the
quintessential moment when the majesty of the
setting sun framed his exotic female subject in the
most dramatic way.
There it was!
He tripped the shutter and his broncolor flash
heads splayed a split second of light across his
young model’s face. He looked to view the result,
and marveled at how her luminous African beauty
complimented the timeless splendor of the land in
which she lived.
And the land in which he had been born and
raised in as well.
After journeying to America as a young man,
Gasuza worked as a graphic art’s assistant where
he developed an editor’s eye for image selection.
Always an admirer of Gordon Parks, the
legendary “LIFE” photographer, Gasuza soon
found himself working with Riccardo Tinelli, a
brilliant fashion hotographer for “Elle” and
“Vogue” magazines.
“I loved his thought provoking approach to
portraiture, and to this day my own work reflects
many of the concepts I learned during our three
years together”, he says.
The result of these fruitful apprenticeships is
GASUZA PHOTOGRAPHY, his preferred
professional moniker derived from his Ugandan
name, and an enterprise that embraces many
and varied photographic endeavors. Together
with his wife and two young children, he now
calls New York City home. Proud of how far he
has come, he looks forward to growing GASUZA
while nurturing his own creative development in
the ever changing world of modern photography.
Both of which, incidentally, have benefited
greatly from the discovery of Broncolor
equipment.
“I probably took more than a thousand shots that
day in Uganda” recalls Gasuza. “In anticipation
of this challenging assignment, I had been
searching for a power source that provided all
the technical capabilities I needed, as well as the
guts to keep me in the field without worrying
about running out of juice. I contacted the
broncolor distributor and was supplied with the
brand new Mobil A2R power pack”
It was a match made in heaven.
“My old lighting gear was cumbersome and
difficult to transport. My new broncolor gear is
very compact, and the Mobil A2R has given me
the freedom to shoot anywhere I want with
flexibility and confidence. Uganda is terribly hot
and humid, but I had no problems with the Mobil
A2R all week ? and it handled the African power
surges during recharging without a hitch. It was a
pleasure to be able to concentrate on my work
and not potentially disastrous equipment failures.
I couldn’t have been happier with the
performance and peace of mind it provided”
GASUZA PHOTOGRAPHY. Remember the
name, and be assured that the talented and
ambitious man behind it will find a way to survive
even these most difficult of times.
“The opportunities will always be there”, he says
firmly, “All I have to do is try a little harder…” |
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＜プロフィール＞
ファッション、ビューティー、人物撮り分野を中心にニューヨークを拠点に活躍しているウガンダ出身のフォトグラファーです。情熱と技術を均等に融合させ、20台のストロボもしくは自然の太陽光で美しく印象深いイメージを創り上げます。主な顧客：ソニー、ユニバーサル、Island Def Jam Records;Uptown、Travel Saavy, Town and Country, and African Woman Magazine; The Ladders; and Nubian Heritage Cosmetics
＜主な使用機材＞
モービルA2Rパワーパック
＜コメント＞
ウガンダで屋外での人物撮りの撮影が入りました。この撮影のため、必要な技術や機能が付いていて充電が切れる心配のないストロボを探しておりました。そこでブロンカラーの代理店へ問合せ、モービルA2Rを紹介していただきました。以前使っていたストロボは使い勝手が悪く、重かったため持ち運びが大変でしたが、ブロンカラーのモービルA2Rは非常にコンパクトで、柔軟性・自信を兼ね備え撮影したい場所どこでも撮影できるのが魅力でした。ウガンダはかなり暑く、湿気が多いが1週間のロケ撮影でもなんら問題はありませんでした。チャージが遅れることなく、アフリカのサージ電流でも使用することができたのも嬉しい機能の一つです。機材に不具合がなく、撮影に集中することができました。まさに希望の星のような機材であると思います。
＜ホームページ＞
http://gasuzaphotography.com |
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