Steve Belkowitz has photographed top models and pro athletes, but he’s not afraid to keep it real when it comes to talent. “The client was nervous about using real employees for the Del Monte shoot – it can be uncomfortable for folks who aren’t used to the camera,” says the accomplished people photographer. “But I knew with a safe, relaxed environment they’d do great.”

Shooting for just two days with employees of the company’s fruit processing plant in Dallas, Steve needed to get the group in the groove quickly. “We wanted them to do funny things, so we played good music and kept things really light on set,” he explains.

Once the shots were solid, Steve relied on skilled retouching to tweak the look just enough to make the employees look heroic, but not perfect or unnatural. In a few cases they also dropped in props that were shot separately. “We probably did about 5 rounds of revisions for each image,” he says.

The shots are being used for branding materials for Del Monte’s fresh fruit division, including print ads, social media and collateral. “It’s also the company’s 125th anniversary, and they want to authentically connect with their consumers,” Steve explains.

That’s a perfect match with Steve, whose photos often leave the viewer with a smile. You can see more of his lifestyle and people photography here.

Andrew Maguire has scaled epic cliffs and skied snowy ravines to get the perfect shot, and now he’s conquering the jungle to bring home adventure photography for outdoor brand Merrell.

Andrew and a small crew recently spent five days traversing the rainforests and beaches of Puerto Rico, covering active lifestyle and sports shots for Merrell’s website and social media campaigns. Andrew directed the motion shoot for the effort as well.

With Andrew’s deep portfolio of outdoor and active living shots, he’s perfectly suited for a brand whose mantra is “Find Adventure Anywhere You Go.” In fact, Andrew and Merrell have embarked on many projects together, including a just-wrapped shoot in Southern California.

With other recent shoots in Iceland and on Mt. Whitney behind him, Andrew is gearing up for his next adventure. You can see more of his sport and active lifestyle photography here.

Photographer Brian Smale has roamed the planet capturing people photography for clients as diverse as Panasonic, USAA and Microsoft. But his latest project kept him right in his own community.

“My daughter’s school is hosting their annual fundraiser and asked if I’d do some portraits of some of the girls and teachers for the event,” explains Brian. “I get creative freedom, they get free,” he laughs. What started out as a small portrait project grew under Brian’s direction to 12 foot high posters of the girls doing what they do best – being themselves.

Brian added the photoshop ‘cutout’ filter to make the portraits more representational of the student body as a whole. “Plus,” he adds, “at 12 feet high with zero budget, going to simplified images with just 3 or 4 tones was a no-brainer.”

Having spent a career shooting portraits of luminaries, gangsters, Nazis and politicians, Brian isn’t phased by much. Still, facing off with a gaggle of teen age girls, “I was terrified, of course!,” he says. “But they were such a nice bunch.”

The focus of the all-girls school is building leadership, independence and confidence, so Brian wanted to make sure those values were reflected in the photos. “And,” he adds, “I wanted the girls to have fun.” Check and check. You can see more of Brian’s wide range of commercial people and places photography here.

Americans love our cars, and brands know it. Graphic designer and illustrator Filip Yip helps those brands connect with their audience, creating car graphics that speak to people’s lifestyles and loyalties. “I do love cars, but not in that car-guy kind of way,” says Filip. “To me, cars represent where you are in life, what your needs and dreams are at that moment.”

Filip has conjured powerful racecars for companies like Kingsford and Havoline and cars with throwback charm for Eddie’s Premium Salsa and Sierra County Chamber of Commerce, along with many more. “With cars, and really all brand design, you’re trying to create a shared experience between the brand and the viewer. That’s where my process starts,” Filip says.

The relationship between company and consumer is one Filip takes very seriously. A decade into his successful design career, he took it upon himself to earn his MBA so he could fully partner with his clients on their strategic communications efforts.

Some may not immediately see the connection between Filip’s hard driving business instincts and his inspirational idols Van Gogh, Matisse and Gauguin, but for Filip, that’s the power of design and visual communication. “I try to create something authentic and emotional every time because those are the building blocks of strong branding,” he says.

With clients from Anheuser Busch to FedEx to EBay to Clif Bar, Filip’s vast portfolio reaches far beyond driving machines. Check out his cowboys, monkeys, schooners, skyscrapers and much more here.

“Stuffy corporate headshots are going the way of car phones and retirement watches,” says photographer Eric Frazier about portrait photography. Modern companies use employee photos both as a brand tool and a recruitment tool, luring clients and applicants with energetic, highly personal portraits.

Eric recently shot a series of portraits for NicholsBooth Architects – a San Francisco firm that prides themselves on truly listening and responding to clients. They wanted to make sure their team photos supported the same message.

In addition to the requisite individual portraits on the website, the rollover state of each one showcases the person’s favorite shoes. “We shoot all over the office, trying to capture each person in a way that makes you feel you’re really getting to know them,” says Eric.

“It’s smart because these industries have so much competition – good portrait photography is one way you can show potential clients – and even future employees – how very friendly/clever/creative/helpful/easy to work with/smart your team is.” In a world of tight competition for business and talent alike, a positive company culture has become invaluable.

In addition to saving companies from the stiff, boring headshot, Eric also shoots compelling sports and lifestyle photography, recently working with San Francisco Opera and MUFG Union Bank. You can see more of his work here.

If you grew up on comic books like Illustrator Shane Johnson did, you won’t be surprised by his approach to character design. “Superheroes are so compelling because they reflect our own hopes and flaws, on a magnified scale.”

Shane has lent his comic style to commercial and editorial illustrations for clients from Nickelodeon to Dreamworks, Smithsonian Magazine to the Wall Street Journal. And while he may not always draw literal superheroes, that classic raw energy and the dynamic struggle between good and evil is frequently the subtext of his work.

His latest series, created in black and white with a strong noir feel, was inspired by 1930s comics. “I’m a big fan of older films and radio shows and the original Bob Kane Batman,” says Shane. “I’ve always wanted to create something that harkens back to that, but I needed it to be in my own style.”

“Superheroes reflect our own hopes and flaws…
on a magnified scale”

Per his usual process, he began with rough thumbnails, gathering reference materials once he decided on the layout. “I sometimes even shoot photos of myself for the character poses,” Shane explains. “Or, for more extreme poses, I create models on the computer using Poser Pro.” Shane’s next step is pencils, which are scanned and then inked and shaded in Manga Studio.

Shane continuously revises each of his illustrations over several days, always finding “just one more detail” he wants to perfect. It’s the kind of self-improvement his own favorite comic hero, Spider Man, would applaud. Come check out more of Shane’s character design and heroic artwork here.

Jack Hutch has spent decades shooting athlete photos of everyone from Jerry Rice to Spud Webb, Kristi Yamaguchi to Joe Montana and hundreds more, so he doesn’t get nervous around high profile personalities anymore. But he still gets a thrill. “Sports photography is just one of the most exciting things to shoot. You’ve got these bodies at their best, doing things they’ve perfected – If you bring your best, you’re going to get something great,” he says.

To bring his best, Jack prepares often and early. “Never once in my career has any athlete given me the amount of time I was promised by the agent. If they tell me ‘an hour,’ I think ‘12 minutes.’ Jack heads to set hours before the athlete arrives and sets up multiple shots, various lighting, wardrobe changes and props. “So when the athlete gets there it’s just bam-bam-bam, switch, bam-bam-bam…and we got it.”

This training has served him well with another time-pressed population he’s often called to photograph – Silicon Valley CEOs. But with subjects who aren’t as accustomed to being in front of the camera, he sometimes has to slow down.

“Very accomplished athletes who aren’t super famous may not be as comfortable,” says Jack. “But they all know how to get in the zone. I lay a scene for them: ‘You’re in the semi-finals of the Olympic trials. You walk up to the blocks, you get prepared.’ Immediately, they’re in it.’ Then it’s up to me. Do I want to go low to show the clothing movement as they take off from the blocks? Or from up high, looking down on the lines of the track for a graphic look as they stretch?”

Jack also considers the exact way their bodies will move as he shoots, taking into account which hand might come up first, which hip is coming around or what the follow through looks like. He times his lighting against all these variables to get the shot he wants.

“Being an athlete and shooting athletics works together,” says Jack. “You can get the essence of the shot because you understand it.” Jack grew up playing a wide range of sports, starting with ice hockey and evolving to include golf, quarterback of his football team, and butterfly swimming and hockey at the college level. He still plays sports when he can and coaches his son’s hockey team. “When you know how the body works, how the action works, you can get the shot.”

What he can’t always control is the restrictions on the athlete. “Everyone gets approval now,” Jack says. “The athlete is under contract, so the sponsor, the agent, the PR firm – they all have rules about what the athlete can’t do. It can get really limiting. But I like a challenge,” he laughs.

That challenge forces him to continually think outside the box, reinventing athlete portraiture when necessary. A portrait of Willie Mays, for instance, became a black and white shot of just Willie’s hands holding the ball. “With these one-of-a-kind athletes you have a chance to create something that will speak to their legacy. Those old, beaten up hands – that’s the history of baseball right there.”

In addition to athlete photos, Jack has also amassed an impressive body of work in lifestyle, industry and architecture photography. Based in San Francisco, he shoots both locally and on location from his fully-equipped Mobile Studio. You can see more of Jack’s work here.