rmjblog.

photographer. stylist. overall artist: r a m a j c u l t u r e .
untitled on Flickr.From my #Tampa shoot w/ @RockStone86, Oct 2012 #photography #editorial #models #tropical

untitled on Flickr.

From my #Tampa shoot w/ @RockStone86, Oct 2012 #photography #editorial #models #tropical

Pentagon City, a set on Flickr. A dope fashion editorial shoot with dope models & a dope team in a dope city. Photography allows me to connect with great talent anywhere the soles of my feet tread. Christian may not be the most timely person on Earth, but his style expertise is top-notch. Since our shoot, Christian accepted a managerial position with Henri Bendel; an upscale women’s specialty store that just opened its newest location @ Pentagon City. This is a major move for up the ladder for him. Christian had been with BCBG Maxazria for 7 years; first, in Charlotte…then in DC/Virginia. Much success to him…and me, b/c I will be using thee shit outta his resources. I hope to work with David more in the future. There’s more to his look than meets-the-eye & it’s gonna take multiple shoots to evolve his potential. Kea is a fun chick who does mostly vixen/eye-candy modeling. My goal is to get her completely outta that lane. Kea’s not exactly a high fashion model, but she definitely has a versatility unmatched by some of her contemporaries. Kinda reminds me of…Rihanna.
kea.

Pentagon City, a set on Flickr.

A dope fashion editorial shoot with dope models & a dope team in a dope city. Photography allows me to connect with great talent anywhere the soles of my feet tread.

Christian may not be the most timely person on Earth, but his style expertise is top-notch. Since our shoot, Christian accepted a managerial position with Henri Bendel; an upscale women’s specialty store that just opened its newest location @ Pentagon City. This is a major move for up the ladder for him. Christian had been with BCBG Maxazria for 7 years; first, in Charlotte…then in DC/Virginia. Much success to him…and me, b/c I will be using thee shit outta his resources.

I hope to work with David more in the future. There’s more to his look than meets-the-eye & it’s gonna take multiple shoots to evolve his potential. Kea is a fun chick who does mostly vixen/eye-candy modeling. My goal is to get her completely outta that lane. Kea’s not exactly a high fashion model, but she definitely has a versatility unmatched by some of her contemporaries. Kinda reminds me of…Rihanna.

Shooting David & Kea together was interesting. 

We had SPOT-ON wardrobe, a killer location, and a brightAzz sun. Although this was my 2nd time shooting Kea, it felt like I was shooting a completely different model. The new hair color was an added bonus to the colors in our wardrobe. Also, she was real hyped about working with David, her ‘dream model’ [lol]. She took direction well…most of which was toning down her vampy-sexy steez. This was a fashion editorial shoot for selling clothes, not back-breakin’ :D

With David, I could tell that he was used to shooting very directly with little-to-no-emotion in his face. I don’t think I brought the emotion fully out with him, but I did have him do a lot of interesting poses. As with all my models, I instructed him to use his body & surrounding environment to his full advantage. In one scene, I had him utilize construction cones:

                         

He expressed how appreciative he was of my feedback & shooting style; a boost of encouragement for me. 

[More behind the scenes photos taken with Christian’s iPhone]

[Photos from behind the scenes taken by Christian with his iPhone]

We shot on the top roof level of the parking deck at Pentagon City Mall. Direct sunlight poured down on us as I assessed which parts of the deck I was going to have us utilize. There were an infinite amount of options. Aside from the views of DC & Pentagon City, I was captivated by these solar panel structures on the roof-deck. 

I decided to incorporate those in the first look: Kea in a red jumpsuit & David in electric blue pants. The combination was winning and for a second…I caught myself being overwhelmed with joy; the joy of seeing a vision manifest itself far beyond my first thought for it.

Kea’s jumpsuit gleamed so powerfully in the sunshine while it flowed with the breezes & the rest was history…

Time was passing on by as me & David waited on Christian & Kea to get to us. We waited on those two losersfor AN HOUR! It’s funny looking back on it now, but on that day…I had thee shitface plastered on my head. This was our first time working with David & I did not want him to get a fucked-up impression of us or worst…LEAVE. To add insult to injury, Christian had the entire wardrobe for the shoot.  After text-after-text saying ‘10min away’, Christian finally speeds around the corner w/Kea’s blonde hair flying out the side of the car window. He couldn’t apologize enough; I was mad & he saw it aaaallll in my grill. Miraculously, Christian quickly made up for it. All the clothes had been steamed & he had already categorized each look for both of them. He also added a few key accessories to the bundle. Guess’sha cain’t knock a professional’s hustle, hunh. The wardrobe for the shoot was nothing short of stunning. TaQue’s selections from her new boutique venture were bold, bright, and full of summer color. Unfortunately, the shirts & blazers for David were too fuckin’ small for him. Not sure what hpn’d with the sizes, but this forced us to improvise the shit outta his look.

Time was passing on by as me & David waited on Christian & Kea to get to us. We waited on those two losersfor AN HOUR! It’s funny looking back on it now, but on that day…I had thee shitface plastered on my head. This was our first time working with David & I did not want him to get a fucked-up impression of us or worst…LEAVE. To add insult to injury, Christian had the entire wardrobe for the shoot. 

After text-after-text saying ‘10min away’, Christian finally speeds around the corner w/Kea’s blonde hair flying out the side of the car window. He couldn’t apologize enough; I was mad & he saw it aaaallll in my grill. Miraculously, Christian quickly made up for it. All the clothes had been steamed & he had already categorized each look for both of them. He also added a few key accessories to the bundle. Guess’sha cain’t knock a professional’s hustle, hunh.

The wardrobe for the shoot was nothing short of stunning. TaQue’s selections from her new boutique venture were bold, bright, and full of summer color. Unfortunately, the shirts & blazers for David were too fuckin’ small for him. Not sure what hpn’d with the sizes, but this forced us to improvise the shit outta his look.

Shootdate had arrived. May 13, 2012. Meeting time: 8:30am.

I woke up @ the azzcrack of dawn so I could be sure to make it on time. Christian called me a few minutes after I’d awaken to confirm everything. ‘Super. Things were on track as planned.’

Not long after, I was out the door breezing down Connecticut Ave. I was taking the Metro. Beforehand, I stopped at Burger King for a quick breakfast; didn’t want to shoot on an empty stomach. 

                         

It was…such…a beautiful Sunday. Picture perfect, of course. It was hot, but I thrive in hot weather. My fav’rt part of my journey to the shoot was riding the Metro. At one point, the train sped outta an underground tunnel onto a bridge crossing the Potomac River from DC to Virginia. The views of the monuments & the cities across the river needed award nominations. SIGH…I CAN’T WAIT TO MOVE.

All along the way, I’m texting Christian & David…making sure we’re all on the same page in our separate travels. I was running late & felt quite shiddy about it: ‘Maybe I shouldn’t have stopped for those breakfast biscuits @ Burger King. Fuck THAT. I was hone’gray.’ 

I arrived @ the mall sometime around 9:30am. David got there 15min later. This was our first physical meeting & I appreciated his enthusiasm. But where was Christian & Kea?

I was connected to David through Omari. They both attended Howard Law together. Initially, Omari brought David to my attention during my first DC visit. But I didn’t really pursue him until I was planning THIS shoot. When I brought David to TaQue’s attention, she was very excited. We look for diversity in models & David’s look presented a new dynamic to us. He’s a really cool guy with a impressive resume of work including stints in Europe & South Africa. In the weeks leading to the shoot, he provided me with his measurements & I forwarded them to TaQue for wardrobe.  I didn’t chose a location until the day before shooting. I wanted a contrast where the viewer could instantly point out DC without it looking too familiar. So, I chose the parking deck of Pentagon City Mall in Arlington, VA. It’s located across the river  [& a freeway] from the district…in direct view of the Pentagon & the Washington Monument. With it being surrounded by an urban district & beneath direct sunlight, I chose wisely. Plus, Kea and Christian both work in the mall; convenient for us all.  [Photo above is a shot taken in between shooting w/Christian styling Kea while David watches patiently]

I was connected to David through Omari. They both attended Howard Law together. Initially, Omari brought David to my attention during my first DC visit. But I didn’t really pursue him until I was planning THIS shoot.

When I brought David to TaQue’s attention, she was very excited. We look for diversity in models & David’s look presented a new dynamic to us. He’s a really cool guy with a impressive resume of work including stints in Europe & South Africa. In the weeks leading to the shoot, he provided me with his measurements & I forwarded them to TaQue for wardrobe. 

I didn’t chose a location until the day before shooting. I wanted a contrast where the viewer could instantly point out DC without it looking too familiar. So, I chose the parking deck of Pentagon City Mall in Arlington, VA. It’s located across the river  [& a freeway] from the district…in direct view of the Pentagon & the Washington Monument. With it being surrounded by an urban district & beneath direct sunlight, I chose wisely. Plus, Kea and Christian both work in the mall; convenient for us all. 

[Photo above is a shot taken in between shooting w/Christian styling Kea while David watches patiently]

I can’t stress enough how much I love the District of the Columbia.  I was so PSYCHED to be back in such a dynamic urban setting in late Spring. This second visit centered around Omari’s graduation & my fashion editorial shoot. With the latter, I once again collaborated with stylist Christian & model Kea. Wardrobe was [again] provided by Charlotte stylist, TaQue via her new Blake Riley & Co. boutique venture.  My last shoot with Kea was rushed. It was cold…windy & we were pressed for time. I really didn’t want a repeat of ALL-LUH-DAT with this shoot…and naturally, there wasn’t going to be one. The whole mood of the city was different this go-around. It was May and the weather was so agreeable: miles of sunshine and summertime warmth. In the weeks since the last visit, Kea had dyed her hair blonde w/tones of brown & I had connected with male model, David.  [Photo above is male model David in b/t a few shots during my shoot]

I can’t stress enough how much I love the District of the Columbia. 

I was so PSYCHED to be back in such a dynamic urban setting in late Spring.

This second visit centered around Omari’s graduation & my fashion editorial shoot. With the latter, I once again collaborated with stylist Christian & model Kea. Wardrobe was [again] provided by Charlotte stylist, TaQue via her new Blake Riley & Co. boutique venture. 

My last shoot with Kea was rushed. It was cold…windy & we were pressed for time. I really didn’t want a repeat of ALL-LUH-DAT with this shoot…and naturally, there wasn’t going to be one.

The whole mood of the city was different this go-around. It was May and the weather was so agreeable: miles of sunshine and summertime warmth. In the weeks since the last visit, Kea had dyed her hair blonde w/tones of brown & I had connected with male model, David. 

[Photo above is male model David in b/t a few shots during my shoot]