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When exploring and wandering on trips, I tend to see and shoot in squares. Though I carry a camera, I often shoot with my iPhone because it’s so fast as I’m walking. So here’s some of my iPhone squares from this event mentioned in the previous blog post, the B&H Bild Expo in New York City.
And until next time, America.
I recently went to New York for the B&H Bild Expo. It’s a huge multi-day photography conference and tradeshow for photographers. I of course took a ton of photos. I’ll share more of those in another post, but here’s a couple abstract squares and the Statue of Liberty (to set the scene).
I went to New York on behalf of BLACKRAPID.com, one of my big commercial clients. I do all the studio photography and videos for BLACKRAPID, and long before I did work for them, I have loved and used their strap. If you catch me photographing a wedding or family somewhere, I’ll be wearing a BLACKRAPID camera sling.
The Bild Expo was advertised all over New York and in neighboring states. The turnout was huge! When we arrived, there were ads like this one around the city.
For this show, I designed the BLACKRAPID booth, photography and graphics, plus the postcards to hand out. I was then hired to go to NY and run the booth and talk to photographers. I was happy to do it because I personally use the products and can talk as a working photographer and honestly answer people’s questions. Looking around the show and comparing booths, I thought ours looked great!
B&H did an awesome job. On the first day, over 25,000 photographers were in attendance! There was a sea of photographers in all directions, on multiple floors.
My wife and I ran the booth, talking and answering questions constantly. We never had a moment to even sit down or eat. Before we knew it, the first day was over. The second day was much the same, crowds of people asking about the brand, and wanting to try on the slings.
Most everyone talked about comfort. If a photographer had already heard of the brand (many were wearing BR straps already), they talked about how comfortable they were and how they were able to shoot longer without pain because of it.
If someone had not heard of the brand, their most common question was about solving their neck pain. Typical straps cause aches and pain points, particularly in the neck.
I had straps to demo and try on, and it seemed that everyone who tried one on, could feel the difference. I even had some big, heavy cameras and lenses to hang on the strap, knowing they’d be heavier than most people carry daily.
There was a calmness to the mornings, as we set up and got ready, with the show floor empty. Then the doors would open and we were flooded with people for the day.
At nights, B&H had dinners and events including a catered boat tour of New York and New Jersey, and a rooftop party. Last time I was in NY, I didn’t get to see the Statue of Liberty. This time, B&H took us all out there on a boat tour.
I even ran into photographer Louis Medes, known for his street photography using an old Speed Graphics camera. I paid him to do a quick street portrait of me, and I took this of him with my iPhone.
I also took a ton of photos of buildings and textures, and other things that caught my eye. I’m still finding favorites in those, but I’ll share more of them in an upcoming post.
So, until next time, America.
On a hot summer day recently, I photographed a beautiful wedding up the canyon in a private mountain area. I’m currently designing the album for my clients, but had to share a couple of my early favorite portraits.
This first image is so stunning! I love the deep colors, the body language of the bride and groom, and the soft sweep of the bride’s dress. Of course I use studio lighting, even on location, so that’s why their skin tones and faces look great while the background has deep rich tones too.
In the canyon, the sun sets quickly, As it was going down, we used the lake for some gorgeous images, here with the bride’s veil flowing.
I really love this reflection from afar off. The rich colors, the beautiful couple leaning in to each other, and the soft lighting from the area mixed with studio lighting makes for a beautiful image. I’m thinking this may be a double-page ‘wow’ spread in the album.
And one more to share from the very end of the night. In almost pitch black night, I created some final photos to end the album – again with studio lights. I love how they’re each looking at each other in this portrait.
There are so many beautiful images from this wedding. They had a stunning flower arch they were married under, all the details of the day looked beautiful, some amazing family portraits, candids too, and much more. When their album design is finished, I’ll share it with you.
But in the meantime, if you’re getting married, contact me and let’s create something wonderful for you that you’ll love for a lifetime!
And until next time, America.
Thank you to everyone who came out and attended the Plaza +Art event and helped make it wonderful. Thanks to the organizers Janean Toone and her team, Mayor Overson, and everyone involved in helping the event go so well. The turnout was great, the facility was spacious and beautiful, the food was great, and I met a lot of great people. I think it’s great and inspiring that the city of Taylorsville puts on events like this regularly.
Knowing there’d be a mix of artists at the event (painters, sculptors, photographers, musicians, and more), I decided to talk on creativity and share some tips for anyone who’s creative.
I also shared various portraits and told stories about how the images were made, and how I worked to make them better. I talked about balancing the two halves of the creative brain (organization and chaos), controlling what you can while also allowing some chaos for personality to shine through, and how to add light continually to truly capture a person’s inner personality in a portrait.
At the end of the evening, I donated some art prints from my Italy collection for the raffle. We had three winners and I had each winner pick their favorite set of three images each. I wanted each winner to have a set of three that would look great together on their walls. So we ended up giving away nine matted prints that evening.
Thanks again to everyone who came out and made the evening so great. (Photo with Mayor Kristie Overson.)
And until next time, America.
Taylorsville City is hosting a Plaza +Art event where I’ll be speaking on art and photography on May 20th, from 7:00-8:00 PM.
A good photographic portrait can captivate and draw you in, but many things need to come together to make that happen. The secret is light. Lighting sculpts a person, creating highlights and shadows in just the right places to bring out the best in someone. And to truly capture emotion, that person’s inner light needs to shine too.
Come for an evening of art and inspiration, and hear how Bry Cox uses techniques of a Certified Master Photographer to make all of his clients look as good as his many famous ones.
Meet artist and Master Photographer, Bry Cox at Plaza +ART’s next Evening of Art scheduled for Tuesday, May 20. All are invited, and the event is free. Cox will speak about his work, love of art, and show some of his art pieces.
Bry Cox is a Gold Medalist out of 25,000 international photographers, and has owned a studio in Utah for over 25 years. He’s taught lighting and photography workshops throughout the United States and abroad. As a Certified photographer, he’s on the Adobe Software Evangelist team, and is a PPA Master/Craftsman 15 times over.
The name of his studio is “BryCox.com – Celebrity Style Imaging” because he photographs everyone the same way he photographs his VIP/celebrity clients – including families, children, weddings, and headshots.
Bry’s work has been featured in various magazines and on covers in the U.S. and abroad. His photographs are used by record companies, VIPs, filmmakers, TV anchors, and musicians including Capitol Records, CMT, Billboard Magazine, TV Guide, American Girl Magazine, American Photo Magazine, and Professional Photographer Magazine to name a few.
He has photographed prominent people such as LeAnne Rimes, Olivia Newton-John, Dennis Prager, Larry Elder, Natalie Cole, Kenny Loggins, Linda Ronstadt, David Archuleta, Steve Forbes, Mitt Romney, and four of the last five Utah Governors.
There will also be a $1 raffle drawing for your choice of three of my Italy collection art prints. If you win, I’ll have a number to choose from at the event.
This family portrait turned out so beautifully, I’ve been wanting to share it for a while. With warm weather coming, and people thinking about familiesI thought it’d be great to showcase this beautiful family portrait.
As families grow in size, it’s hard to get everyone together. Often people live in different parts of the country, and with little kids and multiple schedules, it seems impossible for everyone to all be together at the same time. Such was the case here. But because of a family event, everyone was going to be in town for one day. We took advantage of that opportunity and scheduled this portrait.
It was a cold day, and due to where everyone would be passing through, we chose to use the Utah Capitol. I called ahead to make sure we were okay to shoot at that time, and we lined everything up.
I always bring studio lighting with me. No “natural lighting” (which of course is just another way of saying, “haphazard lighting”). Nothing is left to chance when creating a family portrait. The lighting must be perfect so that when all the kids are smiling and laughing, the shot will be perfect too. No dark faces, no muddy skin-tones, everyone’s eyes glowing, and perfect poses and expressions – all captured without having to repair the image in Photoshop.
Then, while everyone is together, we photographed all the smaller individual families. These are great as a wall gallery for the parent’s house, but also work for each family if they want something for their own family home. Again, great lighting and cute expressions on all the little kids’ faces.
We met and measured walls, determining the perfect size of each print. When the order was completed, I delivered and hung the biggest portrait.
The perfect spot was in the dining room, where all the family spends time together. Measuring the wall, it seemed a 60-inch wide canvas was perfect. Once it was finished, I came and hung the portrait, and it looks beautiful from any angle. The faces are big enough that you can enjoy the image from a comfortable distance, but up close you can enjoy the small details too.
Spring is here, and it’s a great time to capture a new family portrait. Contact me and let’s plan when we can get your family together.
Until next time, America.
This week I did some portraits of this little cutie in my studio. She’s just turned 3 years old, and is so full of personality. Her name is Lyla, and some of my favorite images are on the dark painted canvas background with some soft, close-up portrait lighting.
She’s got her lipstick on, her hair done up, and has big eyes and big expressions. I quite like this thoughtful, serious portrait of her.
Here she is smiling and glowing after a little laugh. I love getting kids to really smile genuinely, without the fake smiles. And she really sparkles in this one.
These three images are great displayed together as trio wall collage, as they’re both similar enough and also different enough to tell a story about Lyla.
I also did a series of quick expressions with her too, and seeing them in a series like this just makes me laugh.
Of course we mixed in some full length and close ups of her too.
I’ve got even more great portraits from this fun session, but I just had to share a few of these early favorites, as they’re just so cute!
If you’ve got some kids that are growing up fast, now’s the perfect time to capture who they are and what they look like. Great portraits are so powerful and meaningful later in life.
And with indoor studio portraits, I can use master lighting techniques to make your child glow.
Give me a call at 801-728-3317 and let’s plan some beautiful new images of your kids.
And until next time, America.
It’s getting time for high school senior portraits, so I wanted to share the images I did for Davis. I like incorporating the personality and interests of seniors in their portraits. Every senior shoot, I create a custom art piece, just like I’d do for a commercial magazine design. For Davis however, I created two of these pieces. These two collage designs show off who he is and what he loves to do.
Davis loves golf and track. He’s a top golfer and javelin thrower, so I created two different pieces for him. These final designs went in his senior portrait album.
Notice how they incorporate different portraits, his awards, and even his name in the background. To create this effect, various layering techniques are used as well as shadows have to be painted in. The result is a 3D feel that keeps your eye moving throughout the piece.
From there we also did a series of images both color and black & white, as well as inside the studio and outside. First we started with his iconic black t-shirt.
Then moving out into my studio gardens, I still use studio lighting so skin tones and values look amazing. When newer photographers say they use “natural light,” it really means they don’t do any lighting at all. That sub-par approach creates dull skin tones and washed out backgrounds. A more expensive look requires a knowledge of custom lighting so that even outside, the portrait has punch, and people look amazing without excuse.
In this image we have a deep background with rich colors. Davis is brighter than the background, so the attention goes to him. Plus the lighting makes his eyes pop and adds a defined shadow on his cheek for dimension. Finally, his skin tones are perfect, so the image will print perfectly.
We also did some portraits of Davis in his Layton Lakers team golf shirt, inside the studio and outside with his clubs.
These are just a sample of some of my favorite images, but these and many more were compiled into his final senior album. I love creating finished art pieces like albums. Time is spent to make sure every page prints perfectly, then the pages are coated and mounted so that the final product can be enjoyed and passed down to future generations. They are amazing to hold and look through.
If you’re a senior, now is the time to get your portrait session booked. Give me a call at 801-728-3317 and let’s talk more about what makes you unique, and how we could create some beautiful art pieces that capture that. Let’s make you and your family some portraits you’ll love for a lifetime.
And until next time, America.
I love photographing little kids and capturing their personality artistically. Often after I photograph a wedding, the new couple will have kids and continue to come in for portraits of their new babies over the years. It’s really neat photographing families and seeing them grow over the years.
And with little babies, because they change so fast, my favorite way to photograph them is to create an album of them growing up. I start with a newborn shoot, then continual shoots for the first year so that by one year old, I have a series of beautiful images to design an album. The design is a beautiful collection of art that shows personality. I know these albums will be cherished for decades.
Little Megan is one of these babies I’ve been able to see grow, and photograph all along her journey. I have to share her 7 month old shoot because I’ve been enamored by how cute and adorable she is.
Megan came in with wavy, wispy hair, cute round cheeks, and a big smile. We set her up in the studio with high-key, white on white. The above portrait with her propped up on her arms, is one of my favorites of the shoot. Her expression is perfect.
As you can see, she had a great time wiggling around, smiling, and pulling faces at me.
I did a series of her sitting in my white chair too, and these various expressions worked really well together as a series. Aside from capturing her personality, you can see her little feet and toes,
I love creating beautiful portraits of little babies and kids. If you have a child and would love beautiful portraits, give me a call at 801-728-3317. It’s the perfect time to come into the warm studio where I can use perfect studio lighting to capture their personality. Let’s create something magical that you can enjoy for decades to come.
And until next time, America.
I was interviewed by Salt Lake City Weekly about the portraits I created for the Faces of Salt Lake County.
They quoted me as saying:
“Everybody comes in as a stranger,” Cox says. “I start with, ‘Tell me about yourself,’ and they share some aspect of themselves, and they light up. I like to have conversations with people as I’m photographing them. … These were stories of gratitude, and they love living here.”
Cox also notes that, as much as the interview subjects were able to tell their stories through their words, his goal is also to tell a story through the portraits. “You have all these unique people, unique stories, unique faces, and how do you present it so it feels like you know a person?” he says.
“I sculpt people with light to capture their emotion—powerful, split-second moments frozen in time to tell the story of an individual,” he adds. “In some people I see strength, others excitement, and in others apprehension. But overall, I experienced their gratitude for the opportunity to live here in Utah.”
The printed version had a beautiful layout. Here’s the article below too, with my mentions and quotes highlighted.
I’m excited how the gallery show turned out. If you need a new portrait, give me a call, 801-728-3317. It’s a great time for family portraits before Christmas.
And until next time, America.
Fox 13’s show ‘The Place’ talked about the portraits, gallery show, and book of portraits I did for Salt Lake County, called “Faces of Salt Lake County.” They interviewed Chris Jones, Communications Director for the Salt Lake County Mayor’s office about our project. He does a great job explaining what this is all about. Here’s that interview.
Here’s a direct link to the story on Fox 13’s website.
This gallery show turned out beautifully, and soon I’ll post some images from that event.
And if you need a new portrait, give me a call, 801-728-3317. It’s a great time for fall family portraits before the leaves are gone.
And until next time, America.
For a few months I worked on a series of portraits for Salt Lake County called, “Faces of Salt Lake County.” These images were showcased in a gallery show and accompanying art book.
The county had interviewed a number of people – mostly immigrants – and gathered their stories, then hired me to create the portraits. I did a number of sessions over a few months with custom lighting, setting up a portable studio at the county building. I individually photographed each person for about 5 minutes, custom lighting each one to quickly get powerful images that emphasized character and personality.
I custom printed 25 of the main portraits as 30 inch prints for the gallery show, and second set of smaller images as well. Plus the images were all printed in an art book along with the stories of each individual.
The images turned out wonderfully and I was excited to see all my hard work displayed at the gallery show in April, where we also unveiled the book. The gallery show was put on by Mayor Jenny Wilson’s Book and Media Club.
The portraits and art project was showcased by the TV news at the time, and I was interviewed by a local paper.
When the project first started, I scheduled three different photo days in Salt Lake over a series of weeks to make sure we could photograph everyone. I set up a portable studio which included a solid, neutral background and a series of studio lights and modifiers. As each person came, I looked for parts of their personality to bring out and highlight, and lit everyone with a unique artsy style using a tight, directional light to show character.
The results are fantastic. I can’t share how excited I am to have these images published in a book and on display for the gallery show.
I have more to post about this project, and will do so in the next article coming up. But in the meantime, it’s fall and the leaves in the canyon are perfect, and fading fast. If you’d like some beautiful family portraits in the fall leaves, now’s the time. Give me a call at 801-728-3317.
Until next time, America.