A last minute call came in from Golf Digest/World Magazine for a last minute job to shoot an ex LPGA golfer for their “Where are they Now?” section. The job, which came via my agent, Wonderful Machine, needed to be done quickly over the weekend with a super fast turnaround. Of course, this type of job is just down my alley. I love the pressure, the over-the-phone art direction, the uncertainty, and the challenge to make an image as quick as possible.
So after a few hurried txt msg, a few emails, and a phone call, I got in touch with my subject, Lori Castillo, and set an 8 AM call time on Kahala Beach this past Saturday. I begged my number one assistant, Jamm, or Jacques, as his real name is much more interesting than his nickname, to wake up early and come with me. The lure of fast cash and a dim sum breakfast got him on my team.
So come Saturday morning, Jacques and I drove out to Kahala, quickly scouted the beach and found the right place and parking to make the job happen. Lori showed up and, with lights and cameras in hand, we walked out to the spot where we’d shoot her in a couple of set ups. I talked with Lori for a bit while Jacques set up a beauty dish on a Profoto 7B pack. Lori, who was a great sport, brought along a sand wedge as a prop as we were standing on the beach. She took a few whacks at the sand for a few shots but it proved to be a better prop than an action tool.
As usual Jacques showed me up by being more interesting and talkative than me which was a great as he broke the ice with Lori as she was a bit nervous about the whole picture thing and I have a hard time talking when I’m thinking about f-stops and light ratios. She and Jacques had the conversation going which allowed me to get her laughing and smiling naturally making a for a great portrait. There is nothing better than having a good first assistant.
Our photo shoot, which lasted under an hour, did have its problems (as if you can call standing on a sunny Hawaiian beach a problem.) As the beaches are public, beach goers walk up and down while swimmers and surfers splash around the surf. At times I had to shift Lori into a different positions to avoid a walker on the shore or a swimmer in the water. Its tough to get that clean background.
And out of nowhere, we had had an uninvited guest walk onto our set. A little wet dog decided he wanted to be part of shot and saunter over to where Lori was standing and preened for the camera. The dog, a mix of some terrier and God knows what else, sat at my feet staring at Lori as I took pictures of her but the little mutt decided he rather be part of the picture plopped down right in the middle of the set. The dog, whose calm energy was so apparent, felt we were part of his pack and real never had much to do with us other than show he would be the one to have his picture taken. Now talk about being upstaged! The owner came and apologized for her dog’s obvious boorish manner but none of us cared. We all scratched and tugged on the salty little mutt and it was more than obvious he enjoyed the attention from the three strangers that we were.
The dog, with his wiry hair and under bite, really stole the show. He was the best little thing. Too bad we couldn’t pack him up and take him with us.
