Riley Brandt Photography

Brooklyn

Rye — Fri, 11 May 2012 21:19:46 +0000

It is always so fun to get a group of professionals together to collaborate on a project. For this shoot with Brooklyn I was lucky to have such a talented makeup artist, hair stylist, and model to work with.

Model: Brooklyn – Sophia Models International
Makeup: Krista Ho Lem
Hair: Jag – The Ginger Group

Urban Safari

Rye — Sat, 25 Feb 2012 17:52:32 +0000

The original idea for this shoot was to have a slight business professional style to the clothes, and place the model in an urban environment. Things evolved a little during the execution (as they often do) and we ended up with a more casual look for most photos, and a really sexy little purse.

I’ve presented the photos like an editorial spread in a magazine. Many thanks to those involved:

Model: Jerica – Sophia Models International
Hair and Makeup: Krista Ho Lem

Trojan Women

Rye — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 23:19:42 +0000

Surprisingly, after two years of working with Fast Forward Weekly (FFWD) and almost two years at a university with a drama department, I’ve never taken photos of a play before.

I’ve photographed actors. I was lucky enough to cover some improve at the Loose Moose Theatre once (I feel this is different from a traditional play). I even photographed the artistic director of Alberta Theatre Projects. But never an actual play.

So I was excited to get the chance to snaps some pics during a rehearsal for Trojan Women, a modern adaptation of the classic by Euripides, which is being performed at the University of Calgary.

New Spaces

Rye — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 16:11:54 +0000

I’ve been taking photos at the University of Calgary for over a year and a half now. Even though the campus is huge with lots of great locations for photos, I find myself wanting new locations.

Thankfully, several new buildings have recently opened up so I have some brand new spaces to work with.

I’ve had a lot of success shooting portraits tight, so it has been my goal lately to open up the photos and include a lot more of the environment. This was the case with these photos of a Neuroscience student in one of the newest buildings on campus.

Yoga

Rye — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 03:52:20 +0000

The owner of Yoga for Health was nice enough to let me take these photos in her great little yoga studio in Bonavista.

The fun yoga-themed shoot got me thinking that maybe I should finally try it out for myself :)

Model: Kira – Sophia Models International
Makeup: Shana O’Neill

Guy

Rye — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 03:31:09 +0000

This set of photos was supposed to follow a yoga theme. But when I started going through the images, I thought they looked too much like stock photography. It was a style I didn’t want.

In the end, I decided to drop all the yoga photos and just use these outtakes where the model has more of a statuesque quality.

Model: Guy – Sophia Models International
Makeup: Shana O’Neill

Convocation

Rye — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 18:52:51 +0000

Even though I have been to many convocations to take photos for the University of Calgary, it is still challenging.

Part of the challenge is that most of it takes place in a pitch-black gymnasium, which is the last place a photographer wants to be.

But a lot of the difficulty is in capturing genuine, candid moments. I think that is where the best photos come from. The excited graduates getting ready, the proud parents, and the celebrations. These challenges keeps a repetitive ceremony interesting.

Student Life

Rye — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 01:23:34 +0000

When working as a university photographer (that is a real type of photographer btw, just look here) one can never get enough “student life” photos.

The basic requirement is that there be young, happy students (with books, computers, backpacks, pens, notepads, etc.) caught in a candid moment on campus.

The student life photo is to the university photographer, what the feature photo is to the newspaper photographer. A “slice of life” photo that you can never seem to have enough of.

Tiare

Rye — Sun, 09 Oct 2011 05:36:33 +0000

Things don’t always go as planned at photoshoots and you are forced to improvise at the last minute. This was the case for my shoot with Tiare.

Despite making reservations, I couldn’t take photos at the 50-year-old vintage motel that my whole concept was based around. C’est la vie… So these photos are the result of a lot of improvising.

Model: Tiare

Exaggerated Motion

Rye — Thu, 06 Oct 2011 02:23:49 +0000

As I slowly expand my post production skills, the aesthetic of my photos change.

I really wanted to bring out the warm colours in the artificial wood walls and use dramatic light for the subject. The look reminds me a little of the deep yellows and oranges found in some Baroque oil paintings.

Model: Tiare