Photos of this life: Vintage Fashion

As August winds down and comes to a close, I can't help but look back at a busy summer. There have been trips, events, paid gigs, and lots of personal art created. Saying it's been a productive summer would be a spot on assesment. Back in Late April, I picked up my beloved Canon 6D camera (which my next post will be all about, including full review) and have been using it non stop. My first major shoot to test out my new camera? A highly planned Vintage Fashion shoot 100+ miles away in Bisbee, Arizona. Planning for this shoot began the previous year while visiting with my girlfriend Vanessa. It was at that time I desperately wanted to come back, armed with a full team of talented individuals. The location of choice was the Gym Club Suites, "rainbow's end" room. It's a two story suite located right in downtown Bisbee, equipped with a private deck lookout. I picked this room for the large size, location, and old charm it would bring to the shoot. I can't even begin to stress how difficult it can be to create the concept, coordinate, plan, and execute gathering 8 people together for a shoot. Including transportation, meals, wardrobe, MUAH, and keeping morale high. The concept consisted of two days of actual shooting with different looks for each day. First day was all about the roaring 20s-40s. Second day consisted of a hybrid 50-60s look. I say those decades loosely because even though we sourced, scoured, and purchased everything we could find from those eras, not everything was going to match perfectly. After arriving and setting up shop in the suite, it was time to start beautifying everyone with hair and make up. I can't even begin to express my gratitude for my girlfriend Vanessa. This amazing woman did ALL the hair and make up for every model involved in the shoot, including herself, so very impressive. While the glam was happening, I took that time to setup my lighting and go over the storyboards I created beforehand. Once the team was all ready, the sun had started to set, and we were in business. The beginning of the first look was mostly done on the private deck, with various group shots and individuals being taken. I really liked shooting here due to the large open space, accessible electrical outlets (for strobe flashes), and scenic panoramic view over downtown Bisbee. The second location proved to be a bit more difficult considering the run and gun nature we were going for. Downtown Bisbee at night is quite a dark dramatic place so multiple speedlite flashes mounted on a bracket with stand were needed. Considering our large group with full blown outfits and flashes going off, we created quite the buzz for bystanders. Multiple people complimented the group, including two police officers asking what were doing. After a long first day of preparing and shooting it was time to wind down. While relaxing the group got the idea to go ghost hunting around town. The Copper Queen at night time is definitely an interesting place to visit. If you hang out by the spiral stair case on the east side of the hotel. They say you can smell the perfume of a prostitute who hung herself in the adjacent room, crazy right? The second day of shooting was a much hotter and quicker affair but still very productive regardless. The high temps beating down on everyone really made it difficult to withstand direct sunlight for too long. Hiding under shadow canopies and behind old buildings was the name of the game. The first look was shot right outside Bisbee, next to the huge open pit mine. This area is really cool because of all the colorful rocks surrounding everything. Further down the road is a very old crumbling building and vintage shell gas station. Luckily for us there was a classic car parked next to the non functional gas pumps. It turned out to be a great prop for one of my favorite photos from the trip. Overall, I couldn't have asked for a better team to help me create this vision. It really was a huge learning experience that I will never forget. Its not often such plans come together the way they did, but I plan on making it happen more often, for the sake of art! A HUGE thank you to everyone involved in any capacity, I love you all so much. You all made this happen. Until next time

Model: Dakota Tudisco @d_a_kota

Model: Eanondra Romero @lavadalove

Model: Vanessa Ballesteros @sin_of_vanity

Model: Laura Lacanette

Model: Cassie Acedo @cassiwolf

Model: Matt Acedo @cassiwolf

Model: Nick Ybarra

MUAH/Styling: Vanessa Ballesteros @sin_of_vanity

Concept/Photography: Ricardo Chao @chaophoto