What I mean by editorial
An editorial shoot has an idea behind it. A magazine wants a cover portrait of a founder that does not look like every other founder. A designer in Salt Lake needs a lookbook that sells a collection without looking like a catalogue. A stylist has a story about winter in the West Desert and needs someone who can light a model in twenty-mile-an-hour wind. That is the work on this page.
It is a different discipline from personal portraits. There is a brief, a crew, a call sheet and a hard delivery date. I like all of that. Constraints make better pictures.
Utah is a better location than people think
National magazines have been flying crews into Utah for decades: the salt flats for car campaigns, Moab for outdoor brands, Park City every January while Sundance was here. The light is hard and clean at altitude, the landscapes are empty, and within two hours of Salt Lake City you can shoot white salt, red rock, alpine forest, an abandoned smelter and a mid-century downtown. I know where those places are, when the light hits them, and which ones need a permit.
For out-of-state publications and brands, hiring a photographer who already lives here removes airfare, hotel, a rental car and two days of location scouting from the budget. I have shot for teams who never left Los Angeles; we did the creative on a call, I sent scouting frames, and they approved selects from a live link on the day.
Kinds of editorial work I take on
Cover and feature portraits
Founders, artists, athletes, politicians, chefs. Usually one subject, one location, two hours, three or four setups. I light for the layout: I want to know where the masthead sits and whether the art director needs room for pull quotes.
Fashion stories and lookbooks
Studio or location, with a stylist and hair-and-makeup. Black and white fashion is my natural register, but lookbooks usually need colour and I shoot them that way. I work fast; a sixteen-look lookbook is a comfortable day.
Music and press
Salt Lake has a real music scene and its press images are mostly terrible. I have shot artist portraits that ended up on tour posters and streaming profiles. If you are a band, one honest black and white portrait outlasts twelve moody ones in a parking garage.
Beauty editorial
Close, controlled, retouched by hand. Enough of a specialty that it has its own page.
How I work with art directors and editors
Send the brief, the layout if it exists, and reference images if you have them. I come back within a day with a treatment: locations, light, a rough shot order and a cost. On set I shoot tethered when the client is present so selects happen in real time and nobody is surprised a week later. Files are delivered as retouched TIFFs or high-res JPEGs to your spec, with a set of web crops.
Usage is stated on the quote. Editorial usage is priced differently from advertising, and if a magazine feature later becomes a campaign we agree the licence then. This is standard; I mention it because a lot of Utah photographers do not and it causes trouble later. More on licensing on the brand campaign page.
Crew
I keep a small, reliable network in Salt Lake City: two stylists, three hair-and-makeup artists, a digital tech and an assistant who can drive a truck onto the salt without getting it stuck. For larger productions I can staff up. For a cover portrait it is usually just me and the subject, which is how I prefer it.
Rates
Editorial is quoted as a day or half-day rate plus expenses and licensing. Ranges are on the pricing page. Publications with a fixed editorial rate: tell me the number, I will tell you if it works.
Questions I get asked
Yes. I lead with black and white in my personal work, but editorial and lookbook jobs are shot to the brief. I shoot RAW, so every image exists in both.
Usually. A cover portrait shot Tuesday can be retouched and delivered Wednesday. Tell me the print deadline and I will tell you if it is realistic.
Often. Creative on a call, scouting frames beforehand, live selects from a tethered link on the day. It works well and saves the publication travel costs.
Yes. I have a small crew in Salt Lake City and will quote them as line items so you can see exactly what you are paying for.
I retain copyright; you receive a licence for the agreed usage. Editorial licences are inexpensive. If the images later move into advertising, we agree a new licence at that point.
