[7-24] Ten questions

01
Should I start with horizontal or portrait shots?
> I start with horizontals (camera flat), because I can position the person on the very bottom left or right corner, which makes them feel less conscious of the camera.

02
What is your favorite lens?
> I switched from an 85mm 1.8 to a 105mm 1.4 at the end of 2020. Being somewhat resistant to change, I realized I wanted shallower depth-of-field and went for a lens that offered that.

03
Do you prefer shooting indoors or outdoors?
> I enjoy the studio. Over the years, I’ve crafted the ambience to set a mood, with art on the walls and music in the background.
> Of course, I like photographing outside, too. The studio is like replicable slate, but the outdoors tend to be varied, if not overly varied in what can be included.

04
What are your favorite Instagram photographers?
> I do not really use Instagram. My inspiration tends to come from the portraits found in magazines, book covers, and articles in NYT and WSJ. Newspapers also dig up portraits of the past, but two strong living photographers I can think of right now are Mamadi (@mamadivisuals) and Celeste Sloman (@celestesloman).

05
I heard you started shooting events?
> Yeah, so short story long, I emailed an event photographer two years ago, he got back last month and added me to his staff. I’ve done four events in the last four weeks. In late 2019, I did a bunch of events for free, but actually got some paid gigs as well.

06
What are your goals for 2022?
> I would like to practice my editing (to create more defined visual styles/signatures), and do a few group portrait assignments, ideally for a university or large company (50-100 people). I also hope to improve my event photography skills.

07
I heard you got into law school?
> Yes. I recently deferred my acceptance to start in 2022.

08
What is your favorite part about photography?
> Doing everything I can to ensure the person being photographed loves their images.

09
What camera mode do you use?
I would never not use manual (fix aperture and shutter) and manual iso for the studio. For outside, these things are not that important, but I would probably use manual with auto-iso, or aperture-priority with manual iso.

10
Nikon or Canon?
> Why does it matter? They do the same thing. Whichever is a better deal on Craigslist. I do recommend starting with a DSLR, if not a 35mm SLR (film camera).