portraiture & celebrity photography May 2016

Alessandro Bianchi is a photographer based between Florence and Milan, with well-acquired experience in travelling. Among his clients are top celebrities and people from the world of fashion, but also industrial designers and advertisers willing to provide quality images of their products.

His aim is to create an emotional and psychological bond between himself and his subjects; he likes to shoot whoever he wants, wherever he is.

"Craftsmanship needs no fuss." At least, that’s what highly experienced photographer Bart Brussee knows. "All the more important are inspiration and a personal vision."

Bart works for major national magazines and international companies. In so doing, he chooses to keep it small: the concept, the team, the location. "To subsequently excel with a grand result! Where the light communicates and the moment is captured."

Bart masters the art of omitting in detail. In this, his images speak for themselves. "Read them. Each one of them tells a story. Just listen."

Blake Little is an award-winning LA-based photographer known for his ability to capture the energy and personality of his subjects.

Starting with his portrait series of artists included David Hockney, John Baldessari and Ed Ruscha. Blake has photographed celebrities including Tom Cruise, Mike Myers, Jeff Bridges, Donald Trump, Julianne Moore, Steve Carell, Samuel L. Jackson, Gwyneth Paltrow, Colin Powell, kd Lang, Brett Favre, 50 Cent, Glenn Close, Jane Fonda, Jack Black, Adrien Brody, and Jane Lynch, among many others.

His work has appeared on movie posters, magazine covers, book covers and in major ad campaigns. His corporate clients include Sony Pictures, Warner Brothers, Paramount Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox, Simon & Schuster, Penguin Random House, Virgin Atlantic, and more.

Recently, Blake's 'Preservation Series' of fine art photographs captured international attention with successful gallery shows, while the accompanying video caused a social media sensation with more than 2.75 million views on YouTube.

Since 2003, Mathias Braschler and Monika Fischer have specialised in elaborate projects focusing on people from all backgrounds and cultures. They have created critically acclaimed projects like 'Faces of Football', 'China' or 'The Human Face of Climate Change'. At the same time, the pair have worked regularly for corporate clients such as Swiss Re and Nike and have partnered up with the United Nations for awareness campaigns.

Braschler & Fischer have won numerous awards for their diverse works, including a World Press Photo Award. The company's photography projects have appeared in countless international magazines and have been published as photo books. Their work is also exhibited in galleries and museums in Europe, Asia, and the United States.

Today Mathias Braschler and Monika Fischer divide their time between Zurich and New York and enjoy working for clients worldwide.

Brian Bloom is an award-winning commercial and editorial photographer whose work was most recently selected in 2014 by American Photography 30.

At the root of his creative process is preparation. Beginning with hyper-focused pre-production, location scouting, and attention to minutia, it ends with an on-set environment that allows his subjects to be at ease for Brian to capture authentic, spontaneous images. He photographs landscapes, celebrities, athletes, and real people with a passion and affection for the unfiltered truth.

When he isn’t shooting, Brian can be found cycling in Prospect Park, Brooklyn attempting to keep up with his wife and five-year-old daughter.

Select clients include American Airlines, Lenovo, Alcatel-Lucent, Runner’s World, Dell, and Gadget Software. Brian is a Media Partner for 1% For The Planet.

Christian Siebold is a German celebrity and portrait photographer, known for his dark and dreamy portrait and people imagery. He has photographed celebrities including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, mountaineer Reinhold Messner, former German Minister for Foreign Affairs Hans Dietrich Genscher, and many more.

He has also worked for well known magazines, TV stations and advertising agencies such as Kneipp, Getty Images, Condé Nast, and more.

Christian likes to shoot in the studio and on location. His images are often straightforward photography, but also often consist of post-production and photo compositing elements, if necessary including CGI. He handles his own digital editing to achieve the intended look.

Christian studied photography at the University of Applied Science in Dortmund and is based in Munich, Bavaria.

Besides fashion-productions, Christoph Köstlin recently worked on his portrait portfolio. With a good sense for strong characters he manages to capture the portraits of famous German artists as well as international stars such as Joe Cocker and Skin of Skunk Anansie.

Always balancing between fashion and portrait productions, Christoph works independently, allowing him (besides taking photos) to follow his other passion: travelling to exciting places around the world! From vibrant cities in Thailand, the high-levels in Ethiopia, or the Bolivian Andes mountains, the view through his lens always brings new creativity.

He has worked for clients including Aida Cruises, Lacoste, Lavazza, Nike, Porsche and  Universal Music. Magazines include Cosmopolitan, Madame and SI Style.

Christoph is represented in Germany by PAM-Mirjam Böhm.

Christopher Hunt works as a portrait and still life photographer, splitting his time between London and Stockholm shooting for both commercial and editorial clients.

Being half Swedish this split comes naturally. His work crosses over the fields of fashion, advertising and straight on portraiture, as well as still life with a relaxed atmosphere coming across his subjects.

"Attention to detail is key in my work, and I just love meeting different people that all have something unique to give to the shoot."

Clients include Hewlett-Packard, Volvo, Specsavers, Universal Music, Vanity Fair, Vogue and Esquire, to name a few.

New York-based, award-winning, advertising, entertainment and editorial photographer Dale May has been creating iconic images for over 18 years.

Best known for his richly stylized, character-driven, conceptual work, Dale has captured some of today's most recognizable personalities, including Daniel Day-Lewis, Charlize Theron, Benedict Cumberbatch, Daniel Radcliffe, Elizabeth Banks, Jared Leto, Amy Poehler and Christina Aguilera.

Most recently, Dale has photographed ad campaigns with Danny McBride (East Bound & Down, Tropic Thunder) for Southern Comfort and John C. McGinley (Scrubs, Office Space, Platoon) for Speed Stick.

Gabo's inimitable style is life-affirming, expressive, critical and always close. She takes pictures of all kinds of humans, including famous international characters from politics, sports, music, film and television.

Her latest project was a portrait shooting for the IHK (International Chamber of Commerce), where there is now one Gabo shot in its ancestral portrait gallery.

As a self-proclaimed "best-side-finder", she aims to tease out an honest approach from her subjects, showing vulnerabilty alongside fun. The most important for Gabo is transportating soul and truth in her pictures.

Gabo also loves to work as a film and video director, mixing pictures with speech and music. Her director's hands are on two new videoclips for Andrea Berg.

Visit her website for more information.

Guillaume Megevand is a photographer based in Geneva, Switzerland. He shoots travel, lifestyle and portraits for local and international clients.

His positive attitude allows him to click right away with his subjects. This added to his creativity results in stylish, spontaneous and natural photos.

If he is not shooting for clients such as Swiss, Red Bull, UBS or Monocle, he can be found in his kitchen cooking super spicy Thai food for his friends.

Bad-boy celebrity, ex-convict, reclusive author? Everyone has a story, and telling those stories keeps Harry Zernike going.

"Wielding a camera is like having a license to enter worlds I might otherwise never see. I can be a fly on the wall, listening and looking, but when direction is called for I’m happy to accost strangers, or tell dignitaries to hug. The aim is always to make pictures with with candor and humanity, and sometimes a bit of humour."

Since starting out as a photojournalist with Gamma Press in 1999, it has been Harry's good fortune to be awarded the Johnson & Johnson/ICP travelling fellowship, to have his work exhibited at ICP and The Bicycle Film Festival, and to have been recognised in the PDN Photo Annual and The Magenta Foundation’s Compendium of the best Canadian Photographers (Yes, Harry is Canadian. And Dutch. But mostly American).

His approach to image-making is continually evolving, but at the end of the day he says, "I like to follow my curiosity, and feel lucky to be able to do so."

For James Hole, his camera is a passport and an invitation. An opportunity to begin dialogue, to satisfy his curiosity with the world.

His de-cluttered and direct images seek to capture simple moments of insight. Be that an atmosphere or a narrative, he wants to amplify and concentrate our interest in his subjects, to reflect his own sense of wonder and encourage that of the viewer.

Recent clients include The Telegraph Magazine, Sony Music and Warner Music.

"I have been shooting editorial, corporate and educational institution jobs in the Washington DC area and around the world since the mid 90s.

My clients have included Forbes, TIME, USA Today, National Geographic Channels and Television, Leo Burnett, The Smithsonian Institution, Smart Money, Barrons, Peace Corps, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, Medstar National Rehab Hospital, PreKnow, The Riecken Foundation and The Broad Foundation, among others.

Whether it's a Washington DC headshot or a large production shoot, I always enjoy shooting people and the interactions which occur along the way. I would love to talk to you about your next project!"

Jeremy Kramer is an editorial and advertising photographer based in Cincinnati, Ohio. Jeremy brings a unique approach to connect with his subjects and convey his clients' vision utilising his midwest charm and passion for creating.

From his start as a kid taking pictures of BMX riders and skateboarders to working with national clients as an adult, the arts have always been a part of Jeremy's life.

Visit the website for more information.

Jeremy Shaw has quickly established himself as a sought-after image-maker. Studying at both the National Arts School and the Australian Centre for Photography in Sydney, then going on to assist Australia’s top advertising photographers, he believes learning and practising the craft is a never ending process.

Jeremy surrounds himself with a diverse collective of creatives which brings a different perspective and opinion, helping to enrich the process of creating his photography. Juggling time between personal work and commissioned work is extremely important for him, while producing personal projects helps him to stand out and identifies who he is as a photographer.

In 2013 and 2015, Jeremy was selected as a finalist for one of Australia's most prestigious photography awards, The National Portrait Prize.

Jeremy excels in problem solving and collaborating to come to a creative solution, concentrating on delivering successful campaigns that demonstrate a close and creative attention to detail.

Jeremy works out of his studio in Chippendale, Sydney.

Klaus Dyba is a freelance photographer based in Cologne, Germany. His main focus is on everything surrounding people and animals, and his background as an art director in the lifestyle and action sports genres greatly assists his photography.

Klaus strives to capture character and mood in his pictures, and not just the moment. He feels at home on location as well as in the studio, and his  educated knowledge of flash photography helps build up the moods he wants to create.

Besides commercial work across people and lifestyle, he is specialised in animal photography in which it is said that he succeeds in showing the souls of the animals he shoots. Klaus just thinks he knows how to use light and the right moment to get the inner feeling out of his subjects!

His work has been exhibited throughout Germany and is shown on a permanent basis at WHITE WALL stores in Berlin, Munich and Dusseldorf. Klaus speaks German and English and is able to work on projects all over the world.

Visit his website for more of his work.

Mark Carter is an internationally awarded photographer with a love of being in the outdoors and a passion for creating moments that capture true emotions from his subjects. Known for his relaxed, down-to-earth manner and his ability to connect and collaborate with both talent and crew alike, he brings out the best in people.

Mark’s specialties include portraiture, lifestyle and landscape photography. His images are rich with a vibrant mood and texture to them; they are immersive, capturing real moments that speak to the viewer.

Mark’s clients include Zyrtec, Pfizer, Mountain Dew, Samsung, Air New Zealand, Warner Music NZ and Tower Insurance, among others.

His work has been featured in Communication Arts Photography Annual and is represented by IDC Photographers worldwide and in Australia by Hellstudios.

Born and raised in Southern California, Michael Scott Slosar took his first photography course in 7th grade and didn't stop there. After attending Northern Arizona University and Brooks Institute of Photography, he moved to Brooklyn, NY in 2002 to pursue his career in photography.

Michael loves to travel and be on the go, and gets restless if he stays in one place for too long. This is why he currently splits his time between NY and CA.

Michael wishes the world was still film and Polaroid and believes film is the new vinyl. He loves anything vintage, "classic", and/or antique and never misses a good BBQ!

His clients include Toyota, Lacoste, British GQ, Playboy, Sony Records, Ed Hardy, Zoo York, Puma, Asics, Honda, Acura, Time Out Magazine, Italian Vogue-Black, Procter & Gamble, Bridgestone, Hollister and Abercrombie.

Mitchel Gray is a photographer and author with two best-selling photo books to his credit, 'The Lingerie Book' and 'Lingerie Fantasies' (St. Martin’s Press). He has two new books currently in production and has illustrated many more, particularly in the active lifestyle and health and fitness fields.

Mitchel has photographed over 60 magazine covers, including about 30 for Men’s Health, Men’s Fitness, Muscle & Fitness, M & F Hers, Runner’s World, Mountain Bike, Bicycling, Fitness and more.

He has shot many hundreds of magazine and ad pages for publications and ad agencies around the world. Much of his portrait work in recent years has focused on sports celebrities ranging from Tom Brady to Derek Jeter, and a whole lot of people in between. His fine art work has been shown in galleries in both the United States and Europe.

Mitchel is presently partnering with the United States Olympic Committee and the New York Athletic Club on a new fine art series, 'Bodies in Action', part of which has already been featured in the National Art Museum of Sport, and for which a new show has been scheduled in June 2016. Elements of the series are featured in a previous Spotlight.

Ralph Wentz is the head and eye of RAW, a studio for photography and design based in Cologne. Two hearts are beating in Ralph's breast: one for the great photographic shot, the other for timeless visual design.

"I’m really curious and interested in meeting people. Getting to know them, getting connected, so that they feel comfortable and relaxed. At the end that is the foundation for a great photograph and a good life. Photography is about being happy and I try to make all the people I photograph - the rich and famous as well as the unknown - feel the same way!“

As a photographer, Ralph has a reputation for the clear and precise image, specialising in people, portrait, interior and exterior images as well as kids and teens. Above that he gets commissioned to do a lot of fine art portrait work.

The team at Robert Wilson were thrilled to be selected by Ogilvy and Mather UK to shoot two campaigns for Philips. A couple of ads are featured in this Spotlight, but keep an eye on the website for more as they go live.

Also featured are various commissions for The Times Magazine with cycling’s road and track superstar Sir Bradley Wiggins, BAFTA award-winner Chiwetel Ejiofor, distance runner Mo Farah - the most decorated person in British athletics, Eric Underwood - soloist with The Royal Ballet, naturalist, photographer, presenter and author Chris Packham with his beloved dogs, and the legend who is Dame Joan Collins.

For updates, follow Robert on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.

Robert is represented in London by Catherine Collins.

Sally Rose is a London-based photographer who specialises in portraiture and fashion. She has won multiple awards for her photography from the likes of AOP and NME Music.

Her clients include Topshop, Topman, Selfridges, Harvey Nichols, Amazon, The BBC and Channel 4.

More information and images can be found on her website.

"Sean Allard has been working in the media industry for over 10 years, and his photography has attracted increasing attention due to its bold, uncompromising aesthetic power. His love of travel is reflected in much of his work, which seeks to convey his sense of wonder: the breathtaking beauty of his natural landscapes is juxtaposed with the striking, almost brutal power of his cityscapes; his portraits convey the unique personality of each subject; his fashion photography is luxuriant and seductive.

Each photograph is meticulously planned; Sean favours slower-speed photography and his patient, uncompromising approach ensures that each image is fundamentally aesthetically pleasing. He has collaborated with numerous well-known advertising companies and worked with charities on various campaigns, has photographed celebrities and royalty and has been published in a number of magazines. Significant television and film work has influenced his eclectic, powerful and dynamic style." Betsy Vriend.

Stephen Greeff is a conceptual visual narrative image maker. He creates eye-catching content in portrait and lifestyle, for above and below the line media platforms in photography and film.

"I enjoy shooting people with the aim of capturing the origin of what makes the subject noteworthy and interesting. A portrait is not just a close-up. There is more to be told in their stories - that is where the lifestyle comes in. Researching and understanding my subjects helps capture a meaningful narrative. I have taken this formula into filmmaking, and this can be seen in my latest film for Black Betty Jewellery, entitled "A story about her." The film was recently selected for La Jolla Fashion Film Festival."

Don’t just take Stephen’s word for it. Here’s what Mona Nortier from Episode Media Productions says about him: “Stephen is very professional and gets the job done with a positive attitude. Stephen's ability to capture light and emotion is an added benefit to any shoot and he adds value to any brief with his creative input and experience. He understands what is expected of any international shoot. He has the ability through his visual media to connect people with their lives and connect their lives with the world."

Swiss-based international photographer Sven Germann specialises in commercial, people and portrait photography for editorial and advertising clients.

Sven has a huge passion and talent for capturing beautiful and strong imagery, with a good feeling for the 'human‘. Whether it‘s creating an editorial or shooting advertising campaigns, Sven brings a signature style to all of his work.

Recent clients include Hugo Boss, AXA, BMW, Volkswagen, UBS, Samsung, Zurich Insurance, Credit Suisse and many others.

Visit his website for further information and take a look at his fortystudio.net website which is also available to rent.

Tal Givony is known for clean, edgy imagery that is used in magazines and major ad campaigns across a range of industries internationally.

"I consider myself to be a citizen of the world. Hence, the places I draw inspiration from are vast and the resources are inexhaustible. Having said that, you could most likely find me either in Tel Aviv or New York.“

Some of his recent work includes shooting Claire Danes for the popular Showtime series 'Homeland'.

Ty Foster grew up in Connecticut and began his career as an insurance underwriter and, to his dismay, realised there was no photographer position inside the company. Promptly quitting, he photographed anything he could get his lens in front of and settled on animals.

Ty is a published author as well as an internationally recognised animal photographer whose work has been seen on ABC, MSN, The London Times and The Daily Mail.

When Ty isn’t photographing he is spending copious amounts of time outdoors or dreaming of travelling.

Based in Hamburg, celebrity and business portrait photographer Wolfgang Wilde started as a freelance photographer in 1993 with focus on celebrities. Over the years, Wolfgang has taken pictures of many of Germany's most famous actors, sportsmen, entertainers and politicians, from German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Minister of Defence Ursula von der Leyen, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Til Schweiger, Katarina Witt, Boris Becker, Vitali and Vladimir Klitschko, and Jogi Löw. He is renowned in the business for transferring good ideas into stunning visuals, and celebrities love to work with him.

Wolfgang also specialises in business portraits. He has worked for Siemens AG (Joe Kayser President and Executive Officer), Daimler AG (Dieter Zetsche, CEO), Mercedes- Benz (Ulf M. Schneider, CEO) Fresenius AG, Otto Group (Michael Otto, CEO), and RyanAir (Michael O`Leary, CEO) to name but a few.