Switching to Tumblr

I am changing to a blog on Tumblr. Pls feel free to follow me there!

New Kodak 400 Color Film

I have loved Kodak film since I began shooting. The colors, grain, ability to push and pull in processing, the sensitivity to slight changes in light....the list goes on and on.
I was lucky enough to test the new Kodak 400 Color film before it came out a few months ago and it is quite an amazing thing. The grain is incredibly fine, so much so that the image really feels digital in terms of clarity, detail and crispness while still allowing for the joy real film provides. It's the first film I've found to integrate the best of both worlds.
Whenever I want to shoot gorgeous fine grain images, this is the film I use.

Selling Prints for the Holidays!

I recently discovered a stack of portfolio pages from past books that are truly gorgeous prints and I am selling them for special holiday gifts this season. Each is hand printed by me on Innova Duo or Hahnemühle Watercolor paper and each print has two images: one on each side. 
The pages are 11 by 17 inches and span the last two years of shooting. You will receive a random selection, the images could be of anything from flowers to a celebrity to a portrait to a still life. They will all be signed by me. 
Each page will sell for $45, which includes shipping and there is a limited supply. If you like to purchase one or have any questions, pls email me at chloe@chloeaftel.com.

Nice

Clam Magazine did a little piece on me (hopefully I don't sound like a douche)!

Pretty Little Thieves

I found Nancy Mungcal's work a while back and finally got my first piece from her! How awesome is this?

Anna Godbersen

I've know author Anna Godbersen since high school and watched her incredible rise as an writer of young adult books. When she asked me to shoot her author photo for her new series, I was honored (and excited, as she is a really beautiful lady)! This was an outtake, but one of my favorites, from the day.

Arta

I am having a show! A selection of my nature shots be on display at the G2 Gallery in Los Angeles and I will be at the closing party on December 5th: long live Arta!

Spectra PZ Polaroid Giveaway Winners: Gerald Chors, Toby Hancock & Chinako Miyamoto (#7)

I am excited to announce this week's winner: Gerald Chors, Toby Hancock & Chinako Miyamoto. They all submitted such beautiful and different pieces, it made it impossible to choose.

These giveaways have been such a pleasure, thank you to everyone who submitted and hopefully there will be more chances to see your work, and more free film, in the future.

The Final Polaroid Giveaway! (#7)

Alas, I have reached my final giveaway of Impossible Film, and the final item is 2 packs of the gorgeous Spectra PZ film. Pls send one of your Polaroid images that uses the film to the image's best advantage to studio@chloeaftel.com by 10/8/10. I can't wait to see what image wins our last competition!

PX-70 Color Polaroid Giveaway Winners: Catherine Buca, Pete Carr & Barbara Ruiz (#6)

We have three winners for the giveaway this week! Catherine Buca, Pete Carr & Barbara Ruiz each get a pack of the amazing new Impossible Project PX-70 Color Film. This is such a treat to work with; I cannot wait to see what they shoot!

Thank you for all the submissions and congrats to the winners. 

Polaroid Giveaway! (#6)

I cannot believe it, but I get to give away another pack of the amazing Impossible Project PX-70 Color film. Each winner, there will be 3, gets 1 pack of this gorgeous film.

The rules are the same, email your best Polaroid photo, one that really uses the medium to create the image, to studio@chloeaftel.com by 9/24/10.

Good luck!

Spectra Softtone Giveaway Winner: Steve Maniscalco (#5)

This week, one day before the contest closed, I got this in my inbox, from Steve Maniscalco. I knew this was the it, it met every guideline of the giveaway perfectly.

He will get 2 packs of Impossible Project Spectra Softtone film!

Congrats Steve and thanks to everyone who submitted.

Simple is Better

Lovely Bloodflow from BATHS on Vimeo.

I shot Baths for XLR8R a while back and he mentioned a video Young Replicant was making for him. It sounded good, but the video is really amazing, these two guys are incredibly talented. Not only is the song actually great, but the video fits it perfectly while maintaining it's own visual world.
I'm excited to see what are three guys do next!

Polaroid Giveaway! (#5)

I can't tell you how much I love this film; Impossible Project's Softtone Specra Film is nothing short of incredible, it can make any photo into a hazy, gorgeous world.

The rules are the same: pls email your favorite Polaroid shot to studio@chloeaftel.com. Pls submit only ONE shot and be sure to send it by 9/17/2010.

The winner will get 2 packs of Impossible Project Softtone Spectra Film, I personally buy it all the time.

I can't wait to see all your wonderful images!

PX 70 Color FF Giveaway Winners: Jeffrey Nachtigall, Melanie Rodriguez &Tanja Tiziana (#4)

I am pleased to announce the winners for this week: Jeffrey Nachtigall, Melanie Rodriguez & Tanja Tiziana (in alphabetical order above)!

Each one will receive a single pack of the amazing new Impossible Project PX 70 Film. I love this film, it's a real joy to discover all it can do.

Congrats to our winners and thanks to everyone who submitted. More film to come....

Spectra PZ Giveaway Winners: Dan Meade, Leah Reich & Sheila Wagner (#3)

I never thought we'd have a 3-way tie, but the incredible submissions for this week's Impossible Project Spectra PZ film giveaway have proven otherwise.

The winners are: Dan Meade, Leah Reich & Sheila Wagner, whose images are in order above. Dan's colors from expired time-zero film, Leah's gorgeous double-exposure in camera and Sheila's ethereal use of light made it impossible to choose.

Congrats to them and thanks to everyone who submitted.

Polaroid Giveaway! (#4)

This week I am lucky enough to be giving ONE pack of the incredible new Impossible Project Color Film to THREE lucky photographers! Pls email ONE image taken on any kind of Polaroid film to studio@chloeaftel.com. Contest ends 9/3/10.

Polaroid Giveaway! (#3)

This week I am so lucky, I get to giveaway the new and amazing Spectra Black & White Polaroid. I have used this film and it is unpredictable and gorgeous!

Pls send your entry to studio@chloeaftel.com. The winner will receive 2 packs of this film and a print from my site of his/her choosing. 

Pls send images taken on ANY kind of Polaroid film wherein the Polaroid film itself plays a role in the effect/impact of the image. 

Artistic TZ Giveaway Winner: Jon Duenas (#2)

I received many, many amazing images for this giveaway and it was hard to choose the one that best used Polaroid to enhance it's visuals.

I am happy to announce Jon Duenas as this weeks winner, whose image is above. He is also on Flickr. 

What a beautiful image! Congrats Jon!

The Children

Shooting kids is the best; they don't care about what you want them to do at all. I was specing a bunch of shoots involving kids and food, and this little girl in the photo above, whom I've shot before and totally adore, was dressed as a rabbit. She came up to me as I was telling her what to do and said "Chloe, I know how to pose," hurtled herself up the hill and on to this rock, then gave me this. Totally amazing.

Polaroid Giveaway! (#2)

One of my favorite films, this week I'll be giving away two packs of Impossible Project Artistic TZ Polaroid film! The rules are the same: Pls send ONE image shot on ANY type of Polaroid film that showcases the qualities of the film. Pls send your submission to studio@chloeaftel.com. All entries are due by August 6th, 2010.

I can't wait to see the new images!

Fade-To-Black Giveaway Winner: Melanie Rodriguez (#1)

I am thrilled to announce the first winner of the Impossible Polaroid Giveaway: Melanie Rodriguez. She submitted the above image, which showed a wonderful use of Polaroid, from the hazy pink hue to the vignetting. Two packs of amazing Fade-To-Black film are on the way to her in Paris!

Karen Elson Shoot

I was lucky enough to shoot a portrait of Karen Elson for the latest issue of Flaunt. Suffice to say, it was one of my favorite shoots ever.

The Greatest #4: Non-Photo - Julian Callos

I fell in love with the work of Julian Callos the moment I saw it: emotional, unpredictable and unrelentingly imaginative. I immediately emailed him to ask if I could commission an original piece. He just sent me the final image; I am over the moon:

The Greatest #5: Non-Photo - Hiroshige

I went to the Norton Simon Museum in LA a few weeks ago and saw this increcible show of Hiroshige's work. His slow fades from light to dark colors are wonderfully well done and exciting. The show is still up!

Polaroid Giveaway!

I am excited to announce a giveaway with The Impossible Project.

This contest will happen every other week for 20 weeks (10 giveaways); one week to collect images and the following week for me to decide on a winner. The film will change giveaway to giveaway, but this one is for two boxes of Fade-to-Black film and a 5x7 print of your choosing from my site. 

I really love this film, the greens and yellows are gorgeous and take the image in an unexpected direction. The film will keep processing until it is black, so be sure to have a scanner on hand.

The point of this is to showcase new talent and encourage experimentation with this amazing film.

As well, I'm sure I'll work out a few kinks, but for now the rules are as follows: pls send me (studio@chloeaftel.com) any images that showcase how you work with Polaroid film (it can be 600, peel-apart, time-zero, etc). By this I mean images that employ double exposure in camera with Spectra, use the color palette of Artistic TZ to create a mood, positives stripped off the white plastic, etc. Basically anything in which the film actually plays a role in the image. 

Deadline for entries is July 30th, 2010. A winner will announced on August 6th, 2010. 

The Greatest #16: Horacio Salinas

I was thrilled to discover the work of Horacio Salinas; playful, totally unexpected and always a bit luxurious. I can only hope to see more.

Specing

It has been a busy month. I felt I should spec work I don't clearly have and so I have been cramming those shoots in with regular work. It's quite fun as I shoot it all, but also come up with the concepts to sell each product. The next one is groups, lots of people reacting to one another. Wish me luck.

The Greatest #15: Ellen Rogers

I stumbled upon Ellen Roger's work the other day and was floored. She mixes her own chemicals and does her own printing, but more importantly, her work employs old-time photo processes but it is fresh, exciting, unpredictable and modern. She is nothing short of truly remarkable.

Video #2

Without a doubt, one of the greatest music videos of all time. The Chris Cunningham/Aphex Twin collaborations are so good it pains me:

Wired Story Up!

May was an awesome month, I shot for Wired and Dazed & Confused. The piece for Wired is up now, we were allowed to shoot scientist Healy Hamilton IN the Rainforest Bio Dome in the Cal Academy of Sciences. There were butterflies darting around, an incredible variety of fishes swimming below us and one very friendly turtle; it was wonderful. 

Video #1

I am doing more motion work and have been watching a lot of music videos and films. One of my all time favorites is the following:

New Tab on Blog

I have added a new page to my blog, it's a somewhat regular account of pages from my journal; planning for shoots, random Polaroids and the like. I hope you enjoy!

BonjourPola

I was lucky enough to have an image of mine posted on a lovely site, BonjourPola. They feature a different image every day, taken by pros and amateurs, which are endless sources to draw from.

The Greatest #14: Saul Leiter

Saul Leiter does incredible color work, evolving from more muted to very lucid tones, all the while, keeping the story in mind. His placement of people, use of movement and ability to capture such evocative scenes in what he sees everyday is unlike anyone else.

The Greatest #3: Non-Photo - Jean Giraud

I bought a Jimmy Hendrix album, Voodoo Soup, and liked the cover art, which I found was by Jean Giraud. This guy is amazing, he also is tremendously versatile; it's worth trolling around the web to see a smattering of his work.

Small Magazine

I love shooting kids, but it seems a real rarity to find a magazine wherein a kids wear fashion spread is treated with equal amounts of levity and seriousness, so when I saw Small Magazine, I emailed them right away saying I'd like to shoot for them. And I was lucky enough to hear back! The result was one of the spreads I am most proud of. They allowed me total creative freedom, I shot all kinds of Impossible Project Polaroid, from Artistic TZ to 600 to Fade to Black and more. It was such a joy!

The Greatest #13: Dorothy Hong

I have been on fire finding new photogs I love. I just discovered Dorothy Hong's work, and she is wonderful. While being very hip, her work moves beyond just shooting cool looking people: her use of natural light is inspiring and she seems to create an interesting dynamic with her subjects - they seem totally unintimidated by her camera.

The Greatest #12: Eddie Adams

I have admired Eddie Adams work since high school. Everything else to say about him sounds douche-y, so I'd just check out his work.

Ban.do

When I was shooting for Ban.do, I was lucky enough to get to do two shoots on 4x5 Polaroid, which is such a gorgeous format. And now, some of the images are ready to go live. I don't think this film will be made again, so there's much to enjoy with the packs I have left!

Having Fun

It's really easy to get overtaken with work work, but yesterday this gorgeous 12-year-old girl I'd wanted to shoot with was in town to meet with her agency and had some free time. It was such a joy to work with her, to just have fun and experiment.
I love Chadwick Tyler's work and decided to try my hand.
Having the Fade-to-Black Polaroid helps.

The Greatest #11: Julia Soler

I stumbled upon Julia Solar's work the other day and fell in love. She shoots both clean and impressionistically; her style is tremendously varied yet evocative and effective. It's exciting and actually inspiring to spend time examining all the chances she takes visually.
She has this lovely other project.

10 Days To Go

Waiting is really hard.
This is Djuna, on our flight back from Nashville, our cover story shot there comes out June 1st, as do a few other shoots I am quite fond of.
It's so close....

Forthcoming Holiday Card

Finally, this year I got my holiday card done early. A long-time goal. I was lucky enough to work with one of my favorite models, Helena, who is always an incredible pleasure.
This was shot with Impossible Project's Fade-To-Black film, which is such a gorgeous, unexpected film. The card itself was shot with 4x5 film, which I'll post once the season arrives.