Behind The Sensei

In frame - @shesagent + @alimedina53 + @ganjatune (IG) 

One thing I learn from this shoot was that it’s worth to wake up early in the morning for a shoot. Man, sunrise is so pretty and I can’t thank Anna enough for pushing the time to shoot in the morning lol I have never felt so easy to edit that morning after the shooot, because the color from these photos are gorgeous and very litttle editing has been done. Some of the shots I’ve captured during this shot I felt were very editorial. This was the beginning of my summer beach series. More to come from my island trip last week! 

I met Ali during my trip in Chicago. This set is from her first outfit shoot. There’s like 2 more outfits, which I will post the sets later in the month. Anyway, Ali is super fun to shoot with, and just overall very cool to chill with. We ended up spending about 4 hours shooting and going around Chicago.  Also, Ali can eat as much as I can and drake like me too haha our love for food is evident in this set of photos, don’t you think?

This week I haven’t shot anything new really so I thought why don’t I show you all something cool I shot back in March. This beach has the best overcast lighting. Thanks to my buddies, DJ & Anastasia for shooting this! It was so cold hence my sweater on a beach lol I can’t wait to go back to Portland sometimes this year, but I’m more excited for a short trip I’ll be taking this weekend. Follow me on Instagram to find out where I’m off to this weekend!

Sidenote~ it’s so weird calling someone else “Kimmy” haha 

I wanna create something different there. I wanna take it back to the 90s with a 2016 twist. So her denim jacket was perfect for the shoot. Her look & the denim jacket definitely gives off the film vibe which inspired me in my post editing of this shoot.

The first time I met her, I didn’t get to shoot with her because I forgot to charge my camera the night before. I met her through a friend by chance. I met her at a photo meet up with other photographers. After that day, she kept popping up on my feed, all the photographers that I met that day posted her photos for like a week straight. At that time, I was on that travel mode so I wasn’t shooting portraits with models. I finally got to shoot with her last week when I decided to start shooting portraits with some new faces A really good friend/photographer friend of mine, Amy arranged the shoot. Amy is also another friend I made at that photo meet I talked about earlier. Now, Amy is like best buddy to the both of us, Jissa & I. Jissa was really easy to work with, total natural. I barely gave any directions. It was such a good shoot, we shot briefly at her dorm and then we walked around NYU and shot some more. Now, we are friends, I guess. 

The color and the texture of Zin’s fabric influenced my process of the shoot especially during the post editing process. That pink fabric of the top & the coat was silky, and soft. That’s how I want you to feel when you look at the photos and I think I definitely achieved that. I want you to feel how silky and beautiful that fabric is through your eyes. 

This was our first shoot of 2016 and man they don’t disappoint you! Just look at them!! This was initiated by @alimedina53 who found a skating space in BK but then @shesagent came up with the whole “Suits on Boards” theme. Lately, I’ve been really into only doing shoots that has some type of concepts so this was actually perfect! Seriously, it really matters who you surround yourself with and I can’t be happier than these 2 cool cats are around me. 

This bag went through all types of weather with me. As you can see on these 10 photos, it was with me in the rain, in the desert, and in the snow. I cant stress enough how much this bag can hold. I have a full frame DSLR inside my bag, with 2 laptops, and a mirrorless with a selfie stick on the side. Moreover, I have like my 3 SD cards, 2 Canon battery chargers, laptop charger, 2 portable hard drive and an iPad. Some parts of the trip, I sometimes put my adidas shoes in the backpack. So if you’re like me always on the move and traveling every month, this bag will save you time and organize your life for you. 

I’m obsessed with movements as you can see in all of my shoots. I think just a simple movement as taking a step makes photos look effortless. I’m not a model by any means lol but I wanna show that the ponchos aren’t just for femmes/girls. I’ve been really into this poncho thing during this trip. It suits the places I’ve visited and the weather as well.

Strictly Portraits with Michael Robert Young 

This shoot was very spontaneous. I was walking around near NYU and I had the urge to take photos of myself in the snow. I asked Apoo to take photos of me in the snow. I always wanted photos like this in the snow of myself. I guess I was just feeling myself. I didn’t plan to have this shoot at all. I was sorta dressed up just cause I was coming back from a fashion show earlier. The coat I’m wearing here is my favorite coat this winter. I wear it at least 3 times a week lol I hope everybody in NYC had a good snow day, I know it was a good day for me at least. 

Also, two things I love about this shoot were his outfits and how the snow made Lancaster look so different and fly. I never thought I could make photos at F&M, my alma mata lol I was surprised at myself when I finished editing these photos. An hour before I shot with him, I walked around the school and I took some landscape photos but they weren’t amazing as these. I just feel like my portrait game is way stronger. I also like that when there’s a subject involved, it adds substance and depth to the photos. I love his outfit, I told him I wanted all black everything but he added white polka dots buttondown underneath his sweater which was a beautiful touch. The contrast looks amazing. And it was only right to shoot a local Lanc boy in Lancaster! 

In preparation for the shoot, we decided shooting in Soho to give that downtown chic vibe. For her outfit, it was best for her to avoid bright colored clothing since the glass was a crystal clear frame. I especially love the way she layered her jackets, a leather jacket topped with a fur vest. That’s such a nice touch! If you’re into chic style, you should definitely follow her Instagram to keep up with her looks!