Arizona Commercial Photographer - Commercial Shoots

Running a photography business is educational and incredible in so many awesome ways. We are in our 8th month and have completed 67 shoots. This post is dedicated to what I've gotten out of doing commercial shoots thus far.

I did a commercial shoot for GE at the end of April and it was a great experience. It was my third commercial shoot since EKP has been operating. The first was for an airplane company in Florida and I shot one of the Cubs' pitchers during spring training for them. The second was for an alumni magazine at the University of Texas, San Antonio and I photographed a leader in our community. Commercial shoots are unique experiences that, for me, have brought new opportunities to expand my skill set and comfort zone with photography and people.

Here are some of my take aways:

1. Stay committed to your vision. My goal is to "capture the love and energy of the good life" and while circumstances beyond my control (time to shoot, time of shoot, quality of environment, celebrity status, purpose of shoot) dictated these shoots, I eventually realized that my vision must always be the priority. I wasn't able to fully grasp this until the third shoot. I was star struck with the baseball player and mired in the hiring group's details with the community leader but finally found my groove with the GE employee. I spent 10 of the 20 minutes I had with her doing what GE wanted and then 10 doing what I liked. It wasn't long enough to achieve total perfection but I walked away feeling as if I had created some images that made her feel beautiful AND I accomplished what I was hired to accomplish.

2. Read the contract - not just the summary - but the whole darn thing. I read the summary of an 11 page contract and it matched my proposal so I signed it. Later, I learned that I signed off on some very basic things that you sinply don't sign off on...sigh - live & learn - and read every word.

3. Be quick on your feet and be flexible. For each of the shoots, I was fortunate to have access to open shade even though 2 of the shoots were at high noon, per the subjects' schedules. I arrived early to each shoot (on each subjects' home turf) to scope out available light, available shade, mood of the space and prospective backdrops. The extra scouting gave me a little more room to be flexible and fast with whatever circumstances presented themselves.

4. Gather & Disperse: Aside from the fact that commercial shoots can be more lucrative than highly personalized portrait sessions, another bonus is that commercial jobs have inspired a new level of spontaneity that I've been able to apply to all types shoots. This level of spontaneity is truly a gift!

5. Clarity matters. For each shoot, the subject was not interested in being photographed. I had to elicit something from them to get something in the images. In each shoot, I spoke with each subject maybe 3 minutes prior to clicking the shutter so I had to develop rapport AS I shot which is not always easy. Being clear in my direction and secure with my vision allowed images to emerge that met the demand of the project as well as my own aesthetic demand.

Arizona Event Photographer - A Film Premiere

I was privileged to photograph the film premiere event of _Afghanistan: Between Light and Darkness_ directed by Dr. Penelope Price. Held at Filmbar Arizona in downtown Phoenix, the middle eastern decorated venue was intimate and artful. As far as photography is concerned a theatre is, of course, a challenging place to shoot with its lack of light. The images turned out rich and dreamy with the glow from ornately colored ceiling lanterns.

The film was incredibly beautiful capturing a side of Afghanistan I've rarely seen depicted. From the wide and peaceful snow covered mountainside imagery to smaller scaled details of every day life, the film offered a glimpse into the culture and country that seemed fresh and pristine on one hand and also heavily encumbered on the other. I was struck by the child throwing a rock at a donkey and the sense of danger that emerged in stories about the pursuit of education in a Taliban run society. I was captivated by the careful stitching of imagery, sound and storytelling. It was a well paced 22 minutes offering a wealth of information in both image and narration.

From the Q&A, I learned a little more about the sense of hospitality demonstrated toward the filmmakers by the Afghans. I was left inspired to share more of what I have with those around me and I was inspired to learn more about what motivates people like Mary MacMakin and Marnie Gustavson to make a difference in our world through organizations such as http://www.afghanistan-parsa.org/. The stories of Yasin and Palwasha were somewhat inaccessible for me, not sharing the same social and cultural history, but their visible courage and perseverance were universally recognizable.

I was left with a sense of gratitude for the abundance in my life and with a strong sense of humility about my place in this world.

Elaine Kessler Photography - Arizona Event Photographer

Arizona Event Photographer - A Baby Shower

My friend is having a baby and she asked me to take a few pictures at the shower. It was a mid day event and it was held outside on the patio at a restaurant. The light was harsh but I think the overexposed background looks kind of interesting with Kim in the foreground. She had a mountain of gifts to open - she and baby Trevor should be all set!

Elaine Kessler Photography - Arizona Event Photographer