Tis The Season For Client Comfort

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season; To-do lists unroll to the floor, coffee is taken through IV drips, and the studio always vaguely smells of cookies.

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During the holiday season we understand you would rather be at home with a book and warm cup of Stash Tea, so we have done what we can to bring the cozy here.
Cue the elves (aka Studio 3, Inc.’s production team,) sit back, relax, and let us make your photographic dreams come true.
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We have decked the halls, strung the ornaments, and lit the client area with holiday cheer.
The Studio 3 Inc. creative team not only does whatever it takes to make your project a success, we do it while feeding you cookies and telling you jokes.
…We have even been known to have Fashion Santa drop by every now and then (We know him!)
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Our studio is equipped with ample snacks, coffee as strong as our wifi connection, tea, any magazine you could dream of, and a crazy amount of crayons for the kid in you.
There are multiple conference rooms available for those times when you just need to be alone. Client meeting, business call, or impromptu dance party; We’ve got you covered.
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We pride ourselves in providing a comprehensive client experience. Not only can you expect top of the line photography but also a welcoming work environment, great food, and even better company.
Drop us a line, let’s talk photography! We’re here 24 hours a day, it feels like, but let’s say 9-5. We can’t wait to work with you.
Happy Holidays!!

Digital Retouching, Can you Didg’ it?

“Keep away from people who try to belittle your ambitions. Small people always do that, but the really great make you feel that you, too, can become great.”
― Mark Twain

The million dollar question: What sets us apart from all of the other photography studios in the PNW? Well, quite a few things. But it’s hard to talk about them all in 500 words, so I am going to focus on our in-house digital department.
Not only are our digital artists pixel-perfect, they have the ability to turn photos around faster than I can type this sentence. No, we’re not a marketing agency, but we love working with them. We are photography pioneers. We look past the norm and find answers to questions you have yet to ask. How? Magic. Or Intuition, as they call it nowadays.
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Our award-winning photographers work closely with clients and the digital artists who render our images flawless. Communication is our biggest secret for success.

“Without each other, the quality standards we achieve here would not be possible.” -Craig Wagner, Photographer

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“Having an in-house [digital department] allows me to have face-to-face conversation before, during, and after a shoot. Whether we’re discussing how we should approach a job, or what my intention was in how I shot it, I have the asset of having a digital team that feels like an extension of myself.”
Craig Wagner, Photographer

Our digital team not only makes photos look better in post, they help the photographers shoot more efficiently. It’s photography plus.

“I have the opportunity to talk directly with clients, nipping problems in the bud, saving everyone time and money. We remove a step for the client without compromising the photos.” –Michelle Smith, Lead Digital Artist

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Working with a vast array of clients, we have shot some behemoths over the years; trains, planes, and automobiles to name a few. That’s a lot of surface area to make drop-dead gorgeous, which is why we keep stylists on the ready to spot check, scrub out smudges, and make sure each vehicle’s best side is showing. But we don’t have favorites. Whether it be a fleet for Freightliner, or a detailed shot of a Leatherman tool, each job gets the same level of attentiveness and digital mastery.

“It all breaks down to textures and tones. Fifteen minutes of proper styling and lighting prep during a shoot can save an hour of digital retouching.” –Michelle Smith

So what’s next? We are dreaming up bigger and better ways to make you look fabulous. Stay tuned, we’re 40 years young and constantly evolving.
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Stepping On-Location with Studio 3, Inc.

Three weeks into the job and it was time for my first on-location shoot with Studio 3, Inc. I boarded Bolt Bus, a company favorite, and set off for Seattle, eager to see Studio 3, Inc.’s cool studio space in the shadow of the Space Needle.
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The day started with Chanel Everett, the studio’s Princess of Production, hand selecting an Adidas wardrobe that interpreted the clients’ art direction. With a mood board compiled of different lifestyle, apparel and shoe photography, we set off for the previously scouted Seattle setting.
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Two vintage cars, a cooler, breakfast, lunch, snacks, racks of athletic apparel, dope enough to make any rapper weep, and the slaying photography skills of Studio 3, Inc.’s Trevor Boone—all the ingredients needed for success. I loved the Seattle cityscape, lifestyle photography theme and getting to assist with production stills.
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The location was picked to compliment the Seattle rapper’s song “Hometown.” Bringing the urban background of the city into portrait photography, Trevor Boone was able to capture stunning duality that showcased not only his professional talent, but the personality of Raz Simone and an edge to Adidas footwear photography.
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Images just came through the Studio 3, Inc. digital team, and we are stoked! Our in-house digital department works closely with our photographers and marketing team—removing power lines, clearing alleyway undesirables, and bringing the client’s vision to life every time. Check out a few of our favorite shots from the day.
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We will be dropping more images from the shoot, so be sure to follow us on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. When you decide to become a part of the fun, give us a call or stop by one of our studios to talk photography, video and serious retouching skills.
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Written by: Eva Goldfarb, Marketing Coordinator @ Studio 3, Inc.

Spirit Week in the Studio

Ready? OKAY!

In the Studio with Dehen

Our PDX location had its very own Spirit Week as Dehen Cheer paid us a visit. Dehen manufactures custom cheer and dance uniforms. Thusly our spacious, new northeast studio was overtaken by color, hairspray, pom poms and tons of pep!

Maekup time in Studio Dehen

Glamourous photoshoots require glamourous setups. There was no shortage of makeup on hand. Our studio has lots natural light to get the models camera ready.

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Being a high schooler on the set doesn’t mean getting the day off. These young women were hard at work in between shots. We asked what their favorite part of being in the studio was:
“There are so many good snacks!”
“Getting to know others teams outside of the competition.”
“I can nap on the couch until it’s my turn to be in front of the camera!”

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Emerson showing off her patented “Cheer-Rex” pose.

We love working with kids! Emerson, the youngest person at the photoshoot, had a lot to say regarding her first modeling gig: “It is exciting. I like when they did my hair. Everyone is kind here and it is fun” adding, “I hope to get into karate next year.”

Big, grand productions are a specialty of ours at both the Portland and Seattle locations!  We are more than a photo studio; let us handle the model releases, food, and all other behind-the-scenes needs. Give us a call and take over our studio.

Time Will Tell…

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LaCoste’s stylish watch blends elements of dignified grace and exquisite fashion. Its dynamic look requires a dynamic image that only Studio 3 can deliver.  Photographer Trevor Boone pulled out all of the stops, shooting in Seattle’s Union Station, a backdrop uniquely suited to reflect LaCoste’s class and refined elegance.

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Using mostly natural light, Photographer Trevor Boone turned the bustling public area into his own personal playground as he navigated through the uncontrolled environment with skill and precision.  The result is a backdrop with character, proving that Studio 3 can shoot anywhere and everywhere.

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Not only will our team locate a picture-perfect setting, we’re also experienced in hiring the right talent for your project whether that means partnering with agencies or holding open casting calls in our studios…. and if you need some cute kittens to get the puurrrrrfect image, we can handle that too! 

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 Studio 3 is the premiere photo studio in the Pacific Northwest specializing in long-term partnerships with the top companies in their field.  Now is the time to reach out and bring a spotlight to your brand with precision and authority.

Commercial Lifestyle Photographer Matt Jebbia Summer Fun!

This shoot was a fun collaboration between many of us here at the studio. What made it work was having access to some great vintage props, a great model and a perfect morning of Seattle summer weather. A few words from Commercial Lifestyle Photographer Matt Jebbia!

We came up with the concept of using Dick’s burgers due to the upcoming 60th anniversary of “Dick’s Drive-In”, and we were lucky that fellow Studio 3’s Commercial Product Photographer David Bell had the perfect vintage VW that he allowed us to use.

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Since we were a bit worried about taking this awesome vintage car on location I decided to use the Studio 3 parking lot. It provided a nice backdrop and allowed us to utilize some studio equipment that would have been harder to use out on location.
We set up a 6×12 foot sail in the parking lot that helped to diffuse the harsh noon sun, added a medium soft-box to add some light to our models face, and played around with some different camera angles and props to bring this shoot to life.  We use a variety of camera systems at Studio 3 but for this shoot I opted to use the Hasselblad H2d with an 80mm lens.  It’s not my camera of choice for location shoots but since we were 10 feet from the studio door it made it easy to use and allowed us to shoot tethered for quick image review.

Commercial Lifestyle Photographer

I have a coca cola image in my portfolio already and decided to add the coke bottle at the end of the shoot, just to add a different prop and I felt that we had the perfect model, vehicle, and location to make it work. It was a bit stressful working so closely with a vintage convertible owned by our Senior Photographer. But once we all got into the flow of creating the perfect shot, it all seemed to come together. And luckily for all of us no vehicles were damaged in the process!

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To view more Commercial Lifestyle images created at Studio 3, Inc. click here!

Product Photographer Matt Jebbia Dior Brush!

Product Photographer Matt Jebbia set out with a goal of showing movement in a still object. His inspiration of the beauty product industry shines below in his latest image.  Read below for a few words from Matt.

Its well known around the studio that I have a little fetish for beauty products.  Not for personal use per se, but I find them a lot of fun to photograph.  For one there are so many different varieties, with all kinds of colors, glass, metals, and plastics to choose from.  I started a few months ago shooting a couple of Dior products and decided to continue to add to my portfolio with this Dior brush.  My goal with this image was to add to the current series of beauty product images centered around the Dior brand and I wanted to add some life to the Dior brush given that it’s a static object.
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So I decided to throw some powder onto the brush and blow it away.  I started by setting up two rim lights accenting the brush from just behind and to the right and left side of the brush.  Studio 3’s photographer – David Bell uses this lighting setup for some of his shoots and I decided it would work perfectly for the image I wanted to create.  Adding a small silver reflector in front of the camera added some light to the front of the brush and brought out the silver tones in the brush banding.  With the static image in place I added powder to the top of the brush and a Nikon SB 800 speed-light from below to add some light to the powder as I blew it off the brush with canned air.  It took a bit of trial and error to get the desired powder bursts, but in the end I loved several of the captures so much I decided to have our amazing digital artists composite several of the powder bursts into the final image. – Matt Jebbia

Product Photographer Matt Jebbia Hydrate for Life!

Product Photographer Matt Jebbia puts his creative skills to use by breathing life into an ordinary subject.  Utilizing water to help add drama and movement brings this image to life.  Read below for a few words on this shoot by photographer Matt Jebbia.

Working with glass objects is probably one of my favorite products to work with.  That combined with water just always seems to enhance an image and bring the subject to life.  I planned the image out in my mind and on paper but it wasn’t until I assisted Studio3 photographer Craig Wagner on a Nixon watch photo shoot incorporating splash photography that I was able to create this image exactly the way I had envisioned.  In a previous blog post we mentioned a shoot that Craig Wagner and I participated in utilizing the Broncolor Scoro S power packs.  We suspended objects in a water tank and dropped objects into a water tank and captured splash images.  Before striking that set I decided it was my time to finish this image the way I had planned.

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I suspended the Dior Hydra-life product from a piece of round plexi into the 33 gallon tank upside down. I know in previous attempts that dropping an object like this into water is a time consuming adventure so I decided for this image to suspend it.  I really only wanted the object to have nice lighting and the real splash came when I removed the Dior bottle and went to work on the perfect water ripple.
To get the perfect water ripple we used a small eyedropper and a cup full of water.  I did several takes but as it works out sometimes the perfect shot is usually the first.  When our digital team and I began working on the retouching I thought something was just missing from the final image.  So I asked our Digital Artist Alex to create a droplet of water suspended and falling off the side of the Dior bottle.  I think with that addition it brought the whole image together.  – Matt Jebbia

To see more images in the Dior Collection photographed by Matt Jebbia click here!

Lifestyle Photographer Dana Jonas: Dumped Series!

When we first saw Dana Jonas’ Portfolio these are the images we viewed. Searching for a new Lifestyle Photographer can be a challenge these days, but we were very intrigued. The entire hiring crew at Studio 3 was awestruck by the creativity and inventiveness. We later learned these images were a collaborative brain-child of stylist and set designer, Dennis Turner and of course photography was exclusively by Dana Jonas. This project aimed to put a visual face on the feeling of rejection and loss. If you’ve ever experienced either of those emotions then you understand we immediately had to meet her. We  loved her drive, passion, personality, camera technique, and lighting ability. She shoots exclusively with the Canon system, into Lightroom, and finesses her images in Adobe Photoshop. As far as lighting she enjoys being able to control her subject in a set environment. One of Dana’s many strengths is her ability to preconceive the image and follow through to the end. It is very rare that you meet a Photographer that also brings Digital Art into her creativity. Now that she’s part of the team she will have a full Post Production crew to support her efforts! We look forward to showcasing more of her amazing talent in many future blogs and for years to come.

Here’s a sneak peak at our very own Dana Jonas’ infamous “Dumped” Series!

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To see the entire “Dumped” series by Dana Jonas, please visit the Vermillion on Thursday evening September 12, 2012.

Vermillion Art Gallery and Bar: 1508 11th Ave, Seattle, Washington 98122

For full event details please follow this link.

To view more Lifestyle Photography by the Studio 3 team, please click here.

Or you can go directly to: www.studio3.com