behind the scenes

Ever wonder what goes on behind the scenes of a commercial photo shoot? Maybe you don't; like movie sets, it's kind of boring. But fun. And silly; but serious.

I recently had the opportunity to assist a friend of mine on a stock shoot of two couples in the SF area. This was a December day, but we were lucky enough to get lots of gorgeous blue sky and sunshine - until the wind picked up around noon and threatened to blow us away!


She had the models, a stylist for wardrobe finessing, and me to hold the reflector all day. That is pretty much the life of a photo assistant - carry the gear, hold the reflector. The photos she took were AMAZING and look way more glamorous than these behind the scenes/ documentary shots. And I like to think part of that is due to my exceptional reflector-holding skills. Well, not really, but, it was HARD to keep that thing from blowing away! : )

You may notice a lot of self portraits (it can get boring); an encounter with the police (no one was arrested); models huddling for warmth and goofing around. It was a gorgeous day, very fun and inspiring (I am always trying to make time for more shoots myself but get so busy with weddings); but COLD!

Enjoy the slideshow, it's short.