Benjamin Parks Photography

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama

2009-10-31T00:58:00.000-07:00

Today I went to a talk given by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, and took some photographs as well. I went there out of fascination: with someone who has been through such an amazing struggle, and who seems to emanate spirituality. The Dalai Lama does indeed have a strong spiritual aura - he seems very relaxed, confident, and in tune with both himself and the world around him. What I wasn't expecting was the wit and humor of the man: he made many jokes, saying at one point, 'China expects me to be a trouble-maker, so my job is to make trouble!' The third photo also shows some of his humor - pretending to have horns sprouting from his head. In his talk, he emphasized the need for compassion, for tolerance of all religions, and also the importance of scrutinizing the media.

Tsukiji Fish Salesman

2009-10-27T23:37:00.000-07:00

The Tsukiji fish market - the biggest outdoor market in the world - is famous for its many vendors, and for its atmosphere of hustle and bustle. While on assignment for Simply You magazine recently, I noticed how many amazing characters there were at Tsukiji - faces that had seen a lot of life. So I returned, and started a series of portraits. In this one, an elderly fish salesman poses proudly in his impeccably clean outfit.

Bluetooth SIGnature Magazine

2009-10-17T17:10:00.000-07:00

Bluetooth's SIGnature magazine has just been published, with some of my portraits inside. The portraits were shot for the 'Man on the Street' story, in which they interview business professionals about Bluetooth. My challenge for these portraits was to keep them simple and natural, and ensure that the models felt comfortable, relaxed and self-confident.

Something We Like

2009-10-07T01:23:00.000-07:00

I was recently contacted by 'Something We Like,' a blog on all things artistic, to write a short piece on 'what I wished I had known at the beginning of my career.' Great question, and I was happy to provide an answer. Check out the whole thing here:

http://www.somethingwelike.com/inspirational/clarifying-scope-of-work

Anatomy of a Photo: Koji Shiraishi for Metropolis

2009-09-30T00:51:00.000-07:00

This month I photographed horror movie director Koji Shiraishi for Metropolis magazine. The challenge was to show his profession clearly, while not doing something cheesy or ridiculous. Each detail of the picture was important.

1)     The lighting. For this picture, I back-lit Koji from both sides, then bounced light back into his face, holding a Photoflex LiteDisc next to the camera, with the gold side towards his face. This provided just enough light - too much would have ruined the back-lighting effect.

2)     The knife. We needed something sinister-looking, and this knife - all steel, no wooden or plastic handle - fit the bill nicely.

3)     The blood. My initial attempts at making blood were somewhat disappointing, so Koji mixed up a concoction of syrup, corn starch, red food coloring, coffee grounds, and soya sauce.

4)     The tie. We initially looked at bow-ties, but settled on a conservative blue tie, to contrast with the scarier elements of the photo.

Naked Tokyo Exhibit

2009-06-27T21:54:00.001-07:00

I have been working on a personal project called "Spirit of Yoga." Male and female models strike yoga poses, as I "paint them with light." This is an in-camera process, involving long exposure times and various lighting tools, to create a magical-looking effect. One of these works was featured at the latest Naked Tokyo exhibit, and received a lot of attention.

Photo Collaboration with Shantell Martin

2009-03-26T06:10:00.000-07:00

I was recently invited by Shantell Martin, an English artist, to collaborate on a photo project. Shantell does these amazing, indescribably beautiful and imaginative drawings, using black ink on paper, or doing live drawings at clubs, creating an "aura" around models using a wacom tablet. More info on Shantell here: http://www.shantellmartin.com/.

The models were Sophie Knight and Stratos Hermes Konstantinos Kyriakopoulos, both Tokyo residents and very creative people - Sophie has mastered Japanese and does shiatsu massage, and Stratos is one of the foremost DJs in Tokyo.

Check here to see more about Shantell's project:

http://jeansnow.net/2009/03/26/pen-tribe/

Shinjuku Fashion Shoot

2009-03-06T03:56:00.000-08:00

I recently did a fashion shoot with Justin Berti in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Justin's a highly photogenic model, with Italian and Spanish heritage. He had a natural and fun propensity for bringing theatricality and animation to every situation. The light was just right, and thankfully the security guards didn't stop us from shooting, even when we attempted a photo of him jumping into a water fountain!

Portrait of Gabby the Dog

2008-11-19T16:57:00.000-08:00

While doing a portrait shoot recently, I started photographing the person’s dog – “Gabby” had this incredible personality, very big eyes and these wonderful ears, one of them pointing down and other pointing up. I couldn’t resist the temptation to photograph her, and this picture is the result.

犬のギャビーのポートレート

最近のことですが、ある肖像写真を撮りながら、私はその人の犬の写真も撮り始めてしまいました。その犬はギャビーと言い、大きな目をして、素晴らしい耳を持っていました。一つの耳は下を向き、もう一つは上を向いていたのです。私はその犬を撮らずにはいられませんでした。そしてこれがその写真です

Photo Shoot of My Father

2008-08-13T05:18:00.000-07:00

Photo Shoot with My Father

I recently photographed my father while he was visiting Tokyo. The shoot was done in my studio, and it was the first time I’d done a serious portrait shoot of my father, and actually tried to take meaningful pictures of him – not my dad beside a statue, or next to a tree, or standing in front of a famous building, but my real dad, the dad I had known from the moment I existed, and who I had been through so many experiences with. How do you put all this into a single photograph?

More than once, my Dad asked me, “Why are you taking so many photos? They’re all the same!” Of course, they were all different. The human face changes every split-second, reflecting a person’s feelings and thoughts, and ultimately their “spirit,” in ways they’re not aware of. I think the resulting portrait reflects my father’s “analytic” quality – always thinking deeply about life.

父のショット写真

最近、私の父が東京に来ている間に、父の写真を撮りました。
撮影は自分のスタジオで行いましたが、父の肖像写真を真剣に撮ったのはこれが初めてでした。そして実際、意義のある父の写真を撮ろうと試みました。つまり、彫像の脇にいる父でもなく、木のそばにいる父でも、有名なビルの前に立っている父でもない、真の父の姿である写真を撮ろうとしたのです。それは、私がこの世に生れて以来ずっと知ってきた父の姿であり、私と共に様々なことを経験してきた父の姿でした。
あなたはこれらすべてをたった一枚の写真の中にどう表現するでしょうか。

一度ならずとも、父は私に聞いたものです。「おまえはどうしてそんなにたくさんの写真を撮っているんだい。みんな全く同じじゃないか！」もちろん、全部一枚一枚違います。人の顔は一瞬ごとに変わるものであり、気のつかないやりかたで、人の気持ちや考えや究極的にはその精神を表すものなのです。私はこの肖像写真は結果として父の人生について、いつも深く考える「分析的な考え」の資質を表していると思います。

Doctor Nakamats

2008-05-03T22:04:00.000-07:00

I recently had the pleasure of photographing Doctor Nakamats, the famous and eccentric Japanese inventor. He lives in a large, very unique-looking home near Shibuya, and the impression he creates is similar to Willy Wonka, from "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

Quem Fashion Shoot

2008-03-10T06:15:00.000-07:00

This is a fashion shoot I did for Quem, a Brazilian magazine. The clothes were by the amazing designer Ronaldo Fraga, who uses bright colors and quirky designs. We shot in an ancient temple in Tokyo, since the editors wanted a classic “postcard” image of Japan. Everyone had a great time, and Ronaldo even gave me a gift: a beautiful pair of bright blue sneakers, of his own design.

Quemのファッション写真

これはブラジルの雑誌“Quem”のために私が撮ったファッションの写真です。この衣装は驚くべきデザイナーであるロナルド・フラガによるものです。フラガは明るい色を使い、一風変わったデザインをします。写真は東京のある古いお寺で撮りました。編集者が伝統的な日本の「絵葉書」のイメージを望んでいたからです。みんなとても楽しんで仕事をしました。ロナルドは私にプレゼントまでくれたのですが、それは彼のデザインによる、鮮やかなブルーの綺麗なスニーカーでした。

Onward Kashiyama Clothing Shoot

2008-02-11T23:17:00.000-08:00

Onward Kashiyama, Japan’s largest clothing retailer, selected one of my images for their 2008 New Year’s card. Misha Janette, who styled the shoot, also did graphic design for the card, which was distributed to 200 of Onward’s closest clients. You can see more of Misha’s work at http://www.mishajanette.com/. This photograph is part of my “Modern Love” series, which explores different facets of love in the modern age. In this one, the theme is narcissism, expressed by the twins putting on each other’s lipstick.

この度、国内最大の小売業企業であるオンワード・カシミヤ様に、今年2008年度の年賀状用に私ベンジャミン・パークスが撮影させて頂いたイメージ写真の１つをご選択戴きました。
オンワード様のお取引先、主要200店舗様方に配布となりましたカードの撮影でスタイル担当を致しましたミーシャ・ジャネットは、グラフィック・デザインも手がけております。彼女の経歴をwww.mishajanette.comにてご確認頂けますでしょうか。この度のイメージ写真は、モダンエイジ内での様々な愛の側面を探求する私の『モダン・ラブ』シリーズの一部でもあります。イメージ内にてご確認頂けます、双子がお互いに口紅を付け合うことで表現致しましたナルシズムをテーマとしております。

2008-01-01T23:00:00.000-08:00

人物ライティング　ワークショップ

with ベンジャミン　パークス

Join Benjamin Parks in his lighting workshop, and learn how to light! All classes are small and intimate, and students have plenty of time to take their own pictures and share with others. Each class takes place in a professional photo studio with a full set of lighting equipment, and a professional model and makeup artist, so that students can not only learn, but make great images for their portfolios. An interpreter will be present to translate everything into Japanese.

ビューティーライティング

-キャッチライト
-バタフライライト
-リムライト

ドラマチックライティング

-ライティングを使用したの様々な表現方法
-メインライトとフィルライト（補助ライト) の使い方
-モディファイアの使用
-キャラクターに応じたライティング

アウトドアライティング

-フィルフラシュ
-日中シンクロ
-シンクロ撮影
（自然光とフラシュの併用）
-スローシンクロ

特殊効果ライティング

-グリッドとスヌートの使い方
-ラインライト（シルエットライト）

Time
December 3, 10, 17, 24 (Thursday night)

Hours
6:30pm-9:30pm

Place
Mejirodai Studio
Ikeda Bldg. 4F, 3-15-2 Mejirodai, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 112-0015, JAPAN

What to Bring
DSLR camera, and a 'normal' range lens - i.e. 50mm - 70mm, or a zoom that covers this range.

Cost
50,000 yen for 4 classes.

For more information, please contact me at 090-6006-5432, or email me at info@benjaminparks.com.

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