Portrait Artistry On Location
When I describe myself, I don’t usually say I’m a Denver portrait photographer. In fact, I rarely mention the art of portrait photography. Instead, I use the phrase, “Edward is a Denver-based commercial and advertising photographer who focuses on people.”
That’s true, but it doesn’t really tell the whole story. My roots are not in commercial or advertising photography.
Sportswriter Jonah Keri stands alone in this straightforward portrait, and it was a rare pleasure to have the stadium almost entirely to ourselves.
Not long after this assignment, MLB hired me to photograph the All-Star Home Run Derby. That experience was quite different. Rather than being confined to the press photographer’s area, I was given a field pass and the freedom to roam wherever I chose. It was a photographer’s dream—and a wonderful opportunity to see the event from a perspective most photographers never get.
A Background In Portraiture
The first chapter of my professional story begins at my father’s portrait studio in Denver. And the second chapter comes from my years as a photojournalist for Colorado magazines and mountain newspapers. So… my foundation sits on two cornerstones: photojournalism and portraiture.
Photojournalism taught me to observe, anticipate, and tell a story. Portraiture taught me to connect with people in an authentic way—to see beyond the superficial and allow their light to shine. Commercial and advertising photography grew naturally from those two disciplines.
As a portrait artist, I look for that delicate window when human energy, character, and presence reveal themselves.
I later wrote about that experience and the photo essay on my blog in “Stories in Pictures.”
This portrait came later, on the Anschutz Campus near Denver.
Great portrait light doesn’t always require a studio—or a lot of equipment. Sometimes, it’s a glass-enclosed pedestrian bridge in the right place at the right time.
The glass created an extraordinary quality of natural light—soft, balanced, and beautifully directional. It wraps around Calla’s face revealing naturally balanced light and creates an elegant, sculptural illumination across her face.
Discovering light like this is one of the reasons I love creating portraits on location.
Made in a brick and beam Denver office location, this office portrait of young banking executive is powerful in monotone.
The lighting was deliberately restrained: one elevated softbox provided the primary light, while a subtle umbrella behind me softened the shadows and added just enough fill.
Lit with a single softbox and reflector, this elegant Denver office portrait captures a stunning attorney with simplicity and grace.
Working in an open-pit coal mine with my son Levi DeCroce and NTEC marketing guru Lauren Burgess, we were elated one afternoon to discover a group of workers on break just as the Rembrandt-like dusk light was peaking.
Great light always gets my adrenaline going. So I worked quickly, photographing as many of the men and women as I could before the light waned.
This strong tattooed miner particularly caught my eye. Across his arm, “We the People” is tattooed above “1776,” an unmistakable reference to American patriotism—and perhaps to a somewhat muddled understanding of American history.
The Constitution wasn’t written in 1776. The Declaration of Independence was adopted that year. The Constitution came more than a decade later, in 1787. And “We the People” are the opening words of its Preamble. Here was a powerful, deeply personal declaration of patriotism, captured in the fading light of a Wyoming coal mine. Another reminder that photographs reveal stories.
Cory Isaacson, CEO of ReThought Insurance, is a wonderful man and a loyal client. I’ve had the privilege of photographing Cory and his team on numerous occasions.
For this commission, ReThought brought me to New York City to create a series of portraits and editorial business images. It was a blast working in the iconic Chrysler Building in Manhattan. The setting added its own unmistakable character to the photographs.
A Portrait Collection
I am a Denver portrait photographer. Sometimes, I write “a portrait, commercial and editorial photographer based in Denver“. But my work has taken me far beyond Colorado, with commissions to create portraits in locations around the world. So when I set out to compile a collection of my portrait work, I faced a quandry: there are simply too many portraits for a single article.
How should I organize them? … By location? By decade? By genre?
There was another problem, too. My talent is not in editing out pictures. After decades of photographing people, every portrait carries with it a story, a connection to the person and to my career.
So I abandoned the idea of a perfectly organized collection. Instead, I’ve decided to tell the story through a series of articles, selecting images almost at random.
Perhaps that’s the most honest way to look at a lifetime of portraiture. Not as a perfectly organized archive, but as a gathering of faces, places and stories. Each finding an enduring place in the lives of my clients …and the families and friends of those I’ve photographed.
He was also the sweetest of men I’ve had the pleasure of photographing.
I made portraits of Dan Ritchie several times, and in more formal settings. But this casual black-and-white portrait, captured on a chilly evening as he arrived at the Gates Institute For Regenerative Medicine “Picnic,” remains my favorite. His delightful expression reveals something of the warmth, kindness, and generosity of his magnanimous character.
Actor Tim Daish played the tour director in a commercial for a travel company –– Cosmos & Globus Journeys. I was the unit photographer.
When the locations were close enough, Tim and I would often walk rather than ride in the vans. One afternoon, after a quick espresso break, I caught this moment as we chuckled about the plethora of beautiful women passing by. We were both happily in love with our girlfriends at the time.
Now, Tim has invited me back to Italy as the set photographer for a film he wrote, Once Upon a Time in Tuscany.
This casual office portrait of Lamine in the boardroom felt stronger to me in black and white—a treatment that strips away distraction and puts the emphasis squarely on his personality.
Portraits Are Editorials
The world of the professional photographer comes with countless genres. But the boundaries between them are rarely clear. My editorial work reflects that. It’s a mishmash of portraits, places, people at work and fleeting moments.
What connects them is not the genre, but the intention: each photograph is meant to tell a story.
T O B E C O N T I N U E D
This as the first of several articles about the stories behind portraits on location. Hope you check back to see more.
In the meantime, below are some links to previous posts.
