Environmental Portraiture

Environmental portraiture is kind of an old fashioned term. It was my specific focus in grad school. Working inside a studio setting there is so much control and opportunity to mold the experience of the subject and final image. It’s highly creative and very impactful. But there is something so magical about taking subject and camera out into the world and merging all with the elements available. The surroundings begin to tell a story a studio never could. Allowing the available light to influence and comment on the subject(s) rather than trying to control and shape it allows a bit of magic into the process. The shapes of window frames, fields and furniture dictate the models physicality. Emotion tends to feel more natural and less self conscious.

This style of portraiture is also highly collaborative and playful. It's a story telling approach to portraiture. A little movie in a frame. Whether the mood is sanguine, romantic, thoughtful or playful it is always more authentic in communicating the inner world of that person in the photo. That is one of the reasons I love to work with my clients in their personal, inspiring or sacred spaces. We all know where we feel most safe, most ourselves. When we allow a witness into that space and invite connection through photography or video we are really gifting a truth about ourselves to the world.