This is and will always be my comeback photo.  I had been out of photography for 10 months before I was able to restart my 14 year photography career from scratch.  2011 was a horrible year for me.  Once I replaced the camera, I hit the ground running, starting with Warren, the model you see here.  He, too, was turning over a new leaf and by working together, we made art come to life.  During a wet, rainy day, I was able to capture the perfect angle and bounce the soft light shining through the gaping hole in the roof of an 1800's German farm house.  The bamboo cage concept came to me days before when I saw it hanging in my Dad's garage, it was his retirement hobby left unfinished.  I decided red would be a bold color that would signify my passion for photography, And the head gear is a constant reminder that no matter how secure a "cage" can be, everything can still be taken away in the a blink of an eye.

One of the best parts of working on America’s Next Top Model for me obviously are the photo shoots. They have been called extreme, over the top, unrealistic, crazy and more but the reality is they are a lot of fun and we have always been about pushing the boundaries on ANTM.  My first shoot this cycle was at the Sepulveda dam in Los Angeles, an iconic location where many a movie and advertising campaign has been shot.

With 11 girls to shoot on location in just one day we have our work cut out for us. We are dealing with constant light changes as the sun shimmies across the sky. We have a bunch of props in the form of low riders – super cool vintage cars with tricked our hydraulics in candy colors. Several male models covered in tattoos  and of course I want to change the position of the cars and the angle every shot.

We always start bright and early on ANTM but with shooting the lead in and getting the girls ready through hair, make up and styling we rarely get started with so many girls until the early afternoon. Which means 11 shots in just the afternoon hours, well at least that’s the best light in my opinion.

As always I am shooting with my Sony A900 DSLR with the Zeiss lenses 85mm and 105mm. Lighting wise we used Profoto 8A packs, a beauty dish with a grid and various magnum reflectors for backlight and side lighting. We also utilized a fog machine to add atmosphere.

The girls were dressed in flowing gowns with classic English hats commonly worn at events like a day at the races in Ascot by designer Philip Treacy flown in from England specifically for the shoot. Fashion loves juxtapositions and what better than gowns, hats with low riders and tattoos!

let me know any questions you may have about the shoot and I’ll do my best to answer

best Nigel

Hello Nigel,

        This is the photo I tweeted you. It is one of my favorites that I have shot. It was part of my final for my fashion photography class. I would love to know your thoughts and critiques.

   Best Always, Leslie Palafox