Bret Doss Seattle Commercial Photographer Product Food People Dance Fashion Seattle-based Commercial Photographer specializing in luminous imagery of products, food, people, dance, & fashion. GeneralBret Doss Seattle Commercial Photographer Product Food People Dance Fashion

Timepieces

October 17, 2016 by bretdossphoto

Photographing watches is at once rewarding and challenging, though they do not always coexist: one can be deep in the challenge phase for some time before feeling any accomplishment. Watches require meticulous attention to detail and patience both when shooting in the studio and also in post processing. I spent long solo hours in the studio & in post for each of these watches, and it was well worth it. There are certain traditions for commercial watch photography: you may have […]

Categories: General, graphic, product, Studio, Timepiece, Watch • Tags: Android, Citizen, Oakley, Police, product, Seattle, Seiko, studio, Stuhrling, table top, Timepiece, Watch

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Calla Lily #2: The Black Calla

May 11, 2016 by bretdossphoto

As promised in the Calla Lily #1 post, here is the next a series of calla lily images. For this, I had a concept in mind beyond a ‘straightforward’ image of a lily. I was surprised to find black calla lilies — I didn’t know they even existed. Photographing black items on black backgrounds is a fun (sometimes) challenge, and the concept-imagining got under way. It took a few days for an idea to gel, but it finally did and I couldn’t […]

Categories: calla lily, Fine Art, Floral, General, graphic, Personal, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio, Uncategorized • Tags: black calla lily, calla lily, featured, food, hot pepper, not food, product, red pepper, Seattle, still life, studio, table top, thai pepper

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Perfume & Cosmetics

April 28, 2016 by bretdossphoto

Perfume bottles are often the branding signature of a product line. Branded scents and cosmetics may be the most accessible products to a larger target customer base. One quick pass thru any cosmetic aisle in any retailer, and you will see how critical photography is as part of communicating the brand: as the products themselves are not physically large (e.g. lip gloss), imagery is used to draw the eye, communicate the nature, color, design of the product as well as […]

Categories: Beauty, Editorial, Fashion, General, graphic, graphic design, loreal, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio • Tags: architecture, assignment, cosmetics, Fashion, lipstick, loreal, make up, perfume, product, scent, table top, versace

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One Red Balloon

April 24, 2016 by bretdossphoto

The constraint was at once simple and complex: anything I wanted to do, as long as it contained a single red balloon. Freedom to be creative, with a single requirement. Sometimes that much leeway can make things more difficult, as narrowing down to something specific means eliminating a number of interesting possibilities. I sketched out around two dozen concepts, and settled in on the ones with the single red balloon amongst white and black balloons, got the balloons, and secured a helium […]

Categories: Assignment, Concept, Fine Art, General, graphic, graphic design, Personal, Personal Work, Still Life, Studio • Tags: abstract, angles, assignment, balloon, Black Glass, Concept, Fine Art, green balloon, helium, purple balloon, red balloon, reflections, still life, studio, table top

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Portafilter

April 20, 2016 by bretdossphoto

Making espresso at home is a methodical ritual that I look forward to each morning. I’ve often noticed the lines and shine of the portafilter and planned these images in my mind. When I purchased a new portafilter, I kept it boxed in new condition until I had the chance to photograph it, and then happily put it into daily service! all images/content © Bret Doss, all rights reserved www.BretDossPhotography.com Follow me on Instagram Facebook Tumblr LinkedIn Twitter

Categories: Coffee, Espresso, General, graphic, graphic design, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio • Tags: abstract, black & white, Coffee, Espresso, monochrome, portafilter, still life, table top

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Sharp

April 18, 2016 by bretdossphoto

Since I was a kid (more years ago than I prefer to say out loud), I’ve been a fan of pocket knives. My first was given to me by my father, and I still have it to this day. They are incredibly useful things, of course, but they also vary in aesthetics, designs, and function. I keep an eye out for interesting variations, even though I mostly just use them to open envelopes…. The blade in these images is ceramic, and is […]

Categories: General, graphic, graphic design, macro, Personal Work, Studio • Tags: abstract, abstraction, blade, Fashion, Knife, monochrome, pocket knife, product

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Marshmallow

April 14, 2016 by bretdossphoto

When planning concepts for the Soft project, I considered marshmallows. I made some test images and, while I found they were not as well suited to the concept as were the cotton balls, marshmallows are fun to shoot. I chose a high-key, white-on-white theme for the extra challenge. One fringe benefit of working with marshmallows (especially as compared with cotton balls) is delicious edibility! I set particularly high photogenic standards, and ruthlessly, decisively dealt with those that fell short…. all images/content […]

Categories: Assignment, food, food & drink, General, graphic, High Key, Marshmallow, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio • Tags: assignment, food, food & drink, food styling, High Key, Marshmallow, product, table top, white on white

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Soft

April 11, 2016 by bretdossphoto

The assignment here was a concept image: portray ‘soft’ in a square format image layout with text overlay, for a point-of-sale display for a new cosmetic product with softness as a key feature. Sounds simple. In actual fact: Not. So. Much. Shooting to layout here is not as challenging as in other situations, but nailing the concept of softness was completely open ended. So I began thinking of soft things, items that would immediately recognizable as soft. Feathers, fabrics, makeup […]

Categories: Assignment, General, graphic, graphic design, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio • Tags: assignment, cotton, cotton ball, product, soft, soft texture, still life, studio, texture

Pour

April 4, 2016 by bretdossphoto

The ‘pour shot’ is practically a rite of passage for every commercial photographer. I decided it was time. There are any number of ways to approach a pour shot, and most often they involve a colorful liquid. I wanted to test lighting and composition as well as the shooting technique (more on that in a bit), and used water so as not to waste the colorful beverages. I quickly found that I liked the water shots better. Now, about that […]

Categories: Assignment, food & drink, General, graphic, graphic design, Improvisation, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio • Tags: assignment, bottle, food & drink, H2O, Pour, pour shot, product, red, splash, still life, studio, water

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Bean Cellars

April 1, 2016 by bretdossphoto

A growing trend in the world of coffee, particularly espresso, is “single dosing.” Rather than fill a grinder’s hopper with beans that can begin going stale with exposure to air, the idea is to keep the beans sealed and as fresh as possible, only grinding one portafilter basket’s worth at a time. In this approach, one weighs out a ‘dose’ of beans, typically in the 18-22 gram range, though it varies higher and lower depending on drink, taste, roast level, […]

Categories: Coffee, Espresso, food, food & drink, General, Personal Work, product, Still Life, Studio • Tags: bean cellar, brew, cappuccino, Coffee, coffee beans, Espresso, featured, food, food & drink, food styling, latte, latte art, Lyn Weber Workshops, product, still life, table top

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