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SHARE A SHOOT: Jamie Norman's Shoot With Rodrigo Castelhano

Header photo: This sofa ain’t big enough for the both of us by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Jamie Norman is a hobbyist photographer based in Cheshire East, United Kingdom, with more than 2 years of experience.

After sharing his shoot (featuring model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio) with the PurplePort community, Jamie generously gave us his time for a quick interview, where he shared how these fabulous images were created, the inspirations behind the shoot, how it was planned, the camera gear he used, and much more.

Kick back by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

plain white tee by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

SHARE A SHOOT with Jamie Norman

How did you come up with the concept? Did anything inspire you?

We didn't really have an overarching concept for the shoot. This was the first time Rodrigo and I had shot together, and with Rodrigo previously doing a lot of commercial work, he wanted to be creative and get some shots that were more of a reflection of him.

We discussed things beforehand and did the usual mood board stuff, and it turned out we had a lot of the same taste and wanted to get the same kind of feel in the shots. He's a huge fan of black and white, so it was good to take some while you're shooting or lighting with that intent rather than just converting it afterwards to see if it looks better (we've all done it, haven't we?).

In fact, the only shot we did aim to get conceptually, we didn't end up doing, which can often be the case when you get absorbed in the shoot. It involved make-up, so we were going to do it last, then ran out of time. So maybe next time...

I quite enjoy the freedom of being creative in the moment, as opposed to planning every single scene or shot. To some, this might sound like a lazy approach, but I find it quite interesting to see how inspiration takes you (though you always have some kind of idea to start with).

If you are very prescriptive about it, this can lead to you being disappointed if the plan doesn't match the outcome, whereas some of the best images from shoots can come from things you just thought, "Let's try this, and if it doesn't work, then it doesn't matter".

This was shot at Kiln Studios (Creatingthestudio) in Staffordshire where I have shot many times before, so one thing we did want to do was make use of the variety this space offers.

marrom by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Reflective by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Seeing double by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

What did you do to plan the shoot?

Like a lot of photographers on PurplePort, most of my portfolio and work has been with women, so I wanted to look at working with more men. I feel there are different creative challenges there, and I wanted to do something to redress the balance a bit.

I somehow came across Rodrigo, who has recently joined PurplePort and lives fairly close to me. I just reached out to him, and we hit it off. Once we'd booked a date and secured the studio it was mostly chat via PurplePort and sharing ideas and mood boards.

We both had mood boards on Pinterest. I've got a general mood board for male portraits, but choose a select few to create one for this shoot. I tend to prefer to create one for a shoot rather than just having one big board.

Rodrigo had only recently moved to the UK, so his wardrobe was a little light. Some of the items in the shoot were, in fact, my clothes, so that's a first. And they look far better on him! In fact, Rodrigo took such a shine to the imported Japanese-style casual trousers in some of the shots, so I gifted them to him at the end of the shoot. They definitely look better on him.

In the frame by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

This sofa ain’t big enough for the both of us by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Like a prayer by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

How did you arrange the shoot?

All the arrangements were made on PurplePort and booked in the calendar.

I've worked quite closely with the owners at the Kiln and shot there often, so I reached out to them to book the time in.

Image by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

King of the swingers by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

What was it like shooting at that location?

I can't praise the Kiln enough. The studio is based in the heart of the Potteries and is a beautiful listed building that used to serve as a pottery Kiln.

The owners have created a fantastic studio space without losing any of the building's character. It is a huge space with really varied settings and, if the weather is on your side, the most beautiful natural light.

There's a very generously sized infinity cove, painted brick and beautiful windows, the black 'ink gallery' area with its grand piano, lots of corner spaces and furniture to make scenes with, not to mention the moody kiln space itself downstairs with its exposed brick, original kiln, and towering chimney.

Then there's outside. We did some shots on the roof space using the bodywork of a car (A TVR, I believe). There's just so much choice here. This also meant we had the option of both natural and studio light.

As our shoot was early evening, from about 6pm, we started with the ambient light and then, as we lost the light, we switched to the strobes.

Image by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Going my way? by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Tell us about the gear you used.

I shoot with a SONY A7RV, and my favourite lens is a 50mm GM 1.2 (which I shot most of these images with, but for some of them, I would have switched to a Tamron 28-75 Di III RXD 2.8).

As I mentioned before, most of these were with ambient light, but the studio shots used the studio lighting, most of which was a 2 light setup (Keylight and fill), with the studio strobes plus softboxes.

With my first camera, for a long time I only had one 50mm lens, so I got used to the zoom 'technique' of just walking backwards and forwards. I found this was a good discipline for not just standing or sitting still and taking multiple versions of the same shot or angle. It really encouraged me to move about and think about composition.

The pixel resolution on these cameras can also be a bit of a cheat code because you can essentially 'crop zoom' without losing a lot of information. In the past, I've taken full-figure shots that I've ended up cropping to a headshot.

Rodrigo’s house by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Window seat by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

What's your favourite image from the shoot?

That's a really tough call. I don't think I've done a shoot with so many shots I wanted to edit and share. It's always a challenge to pick the best ones and not flood your portfolio with pictures from the same shoot.

I think it's between a few, actually. The outside shots with the car have a very cool mood and really suit Rodrigo's 'look'. I'd usually go for the shots that tell a story or use a scene, but the ones I'm drawn to from this shoot are actually two of the studio shots.

I really love the simplicity of the head and shoulders shot in the white T-shirt (Plain White T). but I think my favourite is the one I called Fired in the Kiln in the leather jacket (my leather jacket!) and the hat. Not for the shot itself there's nothing overly technical about the lighting and capture of the shot (although I do like the light on the jacket). I think there's something very stoic about the whole pose and look, and I really like the feel of this shot. Sometimes, it's hard to put your finger on what it is.

I'm sure other people will have different favourites from this set, and that's the great thing about what we do. Everyone can take something different from it. On that note, I find it really interesting that if I share a picture and the model shares the same one, we can give them quite different titles depending on what it invokes in each of us.

Fired in the Kiln by photographer Jamie Norman with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio

Thank you, Jamie Norman, for sharing your creativity, experience and images with us. We loved learning all about your photoshoot with model Rodrigo Castelhano at Creatingthestudio!

We hope you all loved it, too. Don't forget to check out the links below to see more of Jamie Norman's work!

Here's where you can find more of Jamie Norman's work

PurplePort: Jamie Norman

prpl.pro: prpl.pro/jabomb

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