Back in January, my friend Elly asked me if I could help her photograph her SS14 collection. I met Elly during my freshman year at Pratt, and I'm so glad that even years later after studying in different departments (fashion design vs. graphic design) - that we were able to come together post grad to do this fun shoot! Elly's collection is inspired by various different aspects of Korean culture, and I love her eye for color and pattern - as those are two things I am a mega fan of myself. ;) I absolutely couldn't wait to do a collab shoot with her!
(click any of the images below for a full screen view!)
I came across this epic street mural by MOMO back in November / December while wandering the Dumbo (Brooklyn, NY) area. My first reaction was: "HOLY PHOTO SHOOT LOCATION GOLD!" It has easily become one of my most favorite walls in the city - so about a month later when Elly came to me - I basically pooped my pants with excitement. I suggested the location to her, and we both agreed that it would be the PERFECT place for the shoot. I thought that the primary color scheme and geometric shapes / patterns of MOMO's wall would pair really well with Elly's aesthetic. I also really liked that because the mural was so wide - we could create a variety of images that were different yet felt cohesive as a series - ideal when shooting an entire collection on one model.
Because we would be shooting outdoors, we decided to wait for warmer weather to roll around. It was the longest wait ever, but once we finally met up in late March (a couple weekends ago) - the end product was totally worth it!
I had never shot a full line of clothing before, so this was a new and exciting experience for me! I shot all of the look book shots as well as a series of more creative shots. I've always had an interest in portrait and fashion photography, and am definitely looking to do more of it in the near future! (no but seriously hollllllerrrr if you wanna work together!)
I got to shoot alongside two other fellow photographers (both of whom I hadn't met until the day of the shoot) - Mira and Simon. I think all of our creative energies worked really well together. It was particularly helpful when coming up with poses - as I didn't always have back to back ideas in mind. It kept the photoshoot moving at a pretty fast pace, which was good because it was kinda a chilly day for March. Serious props to Taylor - our faaaaabulous model who braved the wind for all 5 looks and dealt with our super ratchet "dressing room!" To avoid the hassle of walking to a bathroom between every look, we opted to hold up a bed sheet to get the job done. We definitely got some weird looks, but ya do what ya gotta do! ~
A few people came up to us (some nicer than others... lol), which I wasn't anticipating since the wall isn't located on a busy street... but I guess when you have a large group of people, a giant mountain of stuff sitting on the ground, a fierce model, and 3 photographers on deck - it's pretty hard not to be drawing attention haha..
For the last look, we decided to wander away from the MOMO wall to get a change of scenery. Although less saturated, it still kept within the primary color scheme, and I think it still went well with the way the other 4 looks were shot.
Overall, I think it was a really successful and creatively explosive day. By the end of it all, I was completely burnt out (but in the best way)! I met a handful of new people and got to do some work that I really felt excited to be doing. This shoot is hands down one of the best photo shoots I have ever done.
I didn't upload the full set of images here (because there are so many) - but you can view the full series of photos on Behance if you'd like! :) I'm still reworking / reorganizing my portfolio here on my website, but have been actively uploading new projects to Behance in the time-being.