Brotankery Shoot

This weekend was tough for certain reasons, which I will not go into, but at least I got to immerse myself in doing something I absolutely love… and that is photography of course. I don’t know why I like it so much. I like everything about it- I like creating poses, I like finding locations, I like interacting with my subjects, and I love editing. I really do. And doing this shoot, it made me realize how much I love this hobby of mine. It’s something I can definitely see myself doing forever. If only it were so easy to do what you love.

Yesterday (Sunday), I did a shoot for a company called Brotankery, which is one created and ran by some people that I know from high school. I read about their business from The Daily Bruin, and immediately facebooked Charles Ma (the creator, who goes to UCLA) asking if he wanted me to take pictures. I am so nice huh Jk, I really wanted to do it because 1). I love photoshoots, especially legit fashion ones w/ models 2). I need more exposure and potential clients 3). I want to help out and support fellow Troy entrepreneurs. And I am very glad I volunteered to take pictures, because the shoot was a lot of fun. I think I’m getting more confident behind the camera. I remember my first fashion shoot for my sister’s clothing line last year with FAST models… and at first, I was really awkward and didn’t know how to pose them at all. Eventually, I got into it and gave better directions, but I was still kinda shy and didn’t know how to direct them. But this time… I knew what kinds of shots I wanted. I was very inspired throughout the whole shoot, and kept finding locations that made good shoots. Lately, I’ve been really inspired by my surroundings. There’s just so much beauty in the world, and it’s sad that not many people take a step back to enjoy it. I definitely think Royce and Powell and all the “touristy” UCLA buildings are pretty, but what I find more intriguing are all the hidden spots at UCLA that nobody really takes notice of. I definitely believe these locations are better than the typical Janss Steps or sculpture garden. Actually, I think any place can be a good location for a photoshoot. It is really what you make of it.

Anyway, I realize it’s easier for me to come up with poses now… I guess the 10+ years of fine art training did me good :p Of course, I have MUCH more to learn, though. I realize that I lack a lot of technical skills, especially with lighting… but like everything, it just takes more practice and time. This weekend, I finally learned how to use Lightroom… and oh my God, it just makes editing so much easier. Editing every single picture in Photoshop, even with actions, is such a pain. Lightroom is super userfriendly, just like Picasa, and is a really good tool to have for photographers

Anyway, here are the pictures. I want to thank my assistant Charlie Wang for helping out on Sunday, as well as Charles Ma and the models  of course. Thanks! Hope you enjoy them.