EMULATING A PROFESSIONAL PHOTOGRAPHER: MIKE RUIZ

For this project I was to choose a professional photographer that inspires me and I would like to emulate. I chose photographer, Mike Ruiz. 

Mike Ruiz is a world renowned artist in the fields of photography and video directing. His uniqueness is described as vibrant and ultra stylized, bringing the fantastical to life through a creative vision that has no bounds. Mike Ruiz uses unconventional materials and mediums that distinguish his visual art as bold, graphic and detailed. Because of this he has been coveted as a fashion and celebrity photographer and featured by many editors at Elle, Vanity Fair, L’Offciel, Paper, Brazilian Vogue and many more.

As a performing artist that is extending into the world of design, I try to merge both experiences because I’ve realized they are not that different. I like to translate what I’ve learned as a dancer, choreographer, actor, and director into focused and well-thought elements in not only in design but my overall aesthetic as a visual artist. I believe this is why Mike Ruiz’s style resonated with me the most because it is a facet of what I aspire to be. I respond to a lot of color, textures, patterns, movement and rhythm that are abundant in his images. He is able to create layers of mood and interest with these various design principles, concept elements and photographic techniques. There is plenty for the eye to see and a lot of detail to come back to, but Ruiz is still able to direct your focus throughout his compositions. His overall work has immense attitude and personality: from his concepts to his subjects, in a photography and editing style that is distinctly his.

After initial concepts and realizing the ambitious requirements of my first concept: outdoor shoot with multiple models and smoke bombs. I’ve decided to consider all the factors and simplify. Luckily, from my initial sketches I had another option. I came to this decision because of a variety of circumstances leading up to the shoot: production time, model and makeup artists’ schedule, weather variables, smoke bomb duration, etc. I decided on a portrait shot featuring graphic style makeup by Tony Nguyen. This was also inspired by Mike Ruiz’s portrait beauty work that I’ve showcased in my photography examples. This gave me more flexibility with the time of everyone involved and the location. It will be an indoor studio shoot, with lights and a colored backdrop. I will be taking photos of the models individually and together. Would like to capture close-frame interactions together, while the individual shots are backup if some compositing is required.

SHOT DIARY