Portait Work for a Friend

Some portraits I did for a friend's family a little while ago.  I used a different lighting strategy than I usually go for and lit these with a 5 foot Octa close to the subject using the edges of the light source to get a less directional look.  The day was overcast and I was trying to be a bit more subtle with the lighting by using a lower power setting and not pointing my light directly at the girls.  Hope you enjoy

"Car Culture" Solo Exhibition @ Dennis W. Dutzi Gallery, CSULB

(18) 12"X18" inkjet prints face mounted on sintra

40"X60" inkjet print face mounted on sintra

Statement

 Culture is defined by Anthropologists as the learned patterns of behavior and thought that help a group adapt to it’s surroundings.  My work is both a study and interpretation of individuals who participate in the driving culture of the greater Los Angeles region.  The space that these individuals inhabit while participating in this cultural behavior exists in a public space that also has a certain amount of perceived privacy. This perception serves to shield a vehicles occupant from the surrounding public arena.  By highlighting the occupants and interiors of vehicles I bring normally private moments into the public space that surrounds the zone of an occupied vehicle. This is an effort to create portraits of an extensive and permeating culture that has a large group of members but often has little communication, interaction or bonds between individuals.

These are some installation shots of my first solo exhibition "Car Culture" in the Dennis W. Dutzi Gallery at California State University Long Beach.  The show recently ran from 10/14/12 thru 10/19/12.  Although only up for a very short period the show was well received and was an invaluable experience in planning and executing an exhibition.

The images can be viewed here: http://www.jonmichaelphoto.com/#a=0&at=0&mi=2&pt=1&pi=10000&s=0&p=0

I want to thank the following people for their time spent sitting in traffic with me monitoring computers, operating lighting equipment, driving and just being so generous with their time: Roger Mendoza III, Scott Freeman, Conner Velarde, Matt Grashaw, Sara Sandor, Chris Peters, Zack Robertson, Ingrid Sanchez, Mitchell Isaiah Dembitzer, Dalia Lama, Shawn Greenwood, Taylor Childs, Eva Wer and Chad Jones.

I would like to make a very special thanks to my girlfriend Bri Pattillo who literally was there helping on every day of this project. Without her help this series would not have been possible.


There were a lot of different days this project spanned over the last couple years and If I have forgotten anyone I apologize but I know that without the help of all my friends this work would not have been realized.

Why Try Blogging?

I am a collector of information, particularly when it comes to online photographic resources.  I have wanted for quite some time to have a place to organize and share the the things I come across online.  These discoveries could be anything from technical tutorials to an interesting artist's work.  Along with my online finds, I would like to share personal stories about my own work and post some behind the scenes examples of what I do and how I work.  Questions are welcome and I hope this blog becomes something enjoyable and informative for other image makers out there.

Best, Jonathan Castillo