Bryan Christian Dahl: Dark Eyes, Pink Soul
CALEB SCHAFTLEIN,
I work with Discover Magazines in San Diego and shoot for brands, fashion shows, and pageants in Los Angeles.
As a pianist and singer I often filmed performances for rock bands, orchestras, dance recitals. After many years in videography I started shooting portraits.
While in grad school in Chicago, a friend asked me to shoot her in beautiful dresses along the shore of Lake Michigan. It was such a beautiful experience to capture that I was also captured.
Color and composition are a language. Like French, it’s a language that should be spoken beautifully or not at all. Even in black and white, the long, defined and flowing lines are the soul of the photograph. Every element of the lighting, background and color should support the subject in this way.
I never had any formal training in photography, but I took a few classes in high school and college in oil painting. I think recognizing beauty with dignity is so important. It’s no surprise that classically trained dancers are such natural models- they give every picture the perfection of a painting.
My background in music and theater makes me want every shot to look like it could be a promotional poster. The composition and model’s expression should create a moment, a story.ptate id quam harum ducimus cupiditate similique quisquam et deserunt, recusandae.
Shooting for the magazine, at beautiful historic mansions, resorts, with classic cars, with five models at a time, sets a higher bar for composition. In situations that require so much more direction it’s so important to have an amazing team. Yet, the most perfect and beautiful experiences in photography can more easily happen in simple shoots with just one model, when there is more time to perfect the moment, with all the elements supporting the sincerity in her expression.
For me, there is some instinct with any portrait to look at the eyes first, and then explore the rest of the frame. The next most important element is the dress or figure- the color and lines that fill the majority of the frame. These two elements can always create a treasure map for the eye to follow through the composition.
One of the greatest compliments of my life was a model telling me after a boudoir shoot, “Thank you for making it so…comfortable.” The gift of shooting with women is their unique ability to appear both vulnerable and powerful in the same moment. I think this is something natural for women and nearly impossible for men. So, there is not much point in pushing a model to do more or give more for the camera if you can’t make her feel comfortable first. There are so many pictures on social media with wonderful lighting and composition, but with a model’s expression looking so manufactured. Isn’t it just better when she looks genuine?
I always adored the movie Funny Face with Fred Astaire and Audrey Hepburn. His character, Rick Avery, was based on her actual photographer Rick Avedon. So many photographers created beautiful images with her, but his connection with her, immortalized by that movie, is a great inspiration.
I edit as little as possible-balancing whatever light and color I arranged in camera, removing distracting elements in the background- the goal is always to support the model’s organic beauty. I will spend hours refining a background to remove people or replace heavy negative spaces with a more even texture if it can give more energy to the model.
Working with horses is the most stressful. They are the most glorious creatures to build a fashion shoot around but also the most unpredictable liability.
Composition and direction will go farther than expensive gear. In my first years of shooting I went to some meetups with a dozen different models and photographers and watched top of the line gear create very boring pictures. Models will appreciate when you guide them to adjust slightly, lift or drop the chin or elbow or turn the heart or eyes towards the light- just be gracious and courteous with whatever you need to say and you will both be so much happier with the final result.
The recent Día de los Muertos shoot with Discover Magazines was a new favorite. And every year with Smita Vasant’s LA India Fashion Week is fabulous..
instagram.com/share/BALcnKoqlX
instagram.com/share/BATcIWHP5S
Early next year will be a promotional shoot for an opera and ballet based on the classic film, Casablanca.
I had shot two fashion shows in Hollywood and San Diego with Aleah Zuberi as the showstopper, and saw she had such a magnetic presence on the runway. Photographers can always see instantly a model’s confidence in the way she uses her hands, if she rushes, if she takes her time to really look into the cameras. We appreciate this patience and grace so much. She mentioned she had South Asian heritage, and so not surprisingly she was absolutely perfect in the way she could blend both the ancient and modern styles so naturally in the same setting.
Ig @dahl.memoirs
bryandahl.com
