Luke Adams
PHOTO201 – Final Project
An Interpretation of Allen Daniel
Allen Daniel, a Los Angeles based photographer, storyteller, content creator, social media influencer, etc. has constantly pushed me to make better street styled portraits. I have always had a great sense of inspiration from Allen Daniel, especially his work with model and influencer Darion Famous, but have never been able to pull apart his photos so intricately to create my own interpretations of his stylistic choices.
Within my own stylistic approach to portrait photography, I have always tried to find a sense of balance amongst the relationship between the background and subject, and how they play roles into each other’s presence within the frame. I feel like there are two approaches to creating an aesthetic (at least in my mind); one being scouting the location in which you’re planning to use and modeling an outfit and vibe around that location, the other is quite opposite by finding the location based on the outfit already chosen for the shoot. These two approaches are crucial to my portraits as the colors and tones that are chosen within the subject are completely based off of the background, or vice versa as well.
This creative process seems to relate to Allen Daniel, as each background seems perfectly chosen for the subject matter and clothing choices, creating a striking array of colors (and sometimes the lack of) to make an in particular vibe that can be seen across his work. In some projects he uses a very monochromatic color palette with one striking pattern to differentiate the background from subject, but still tying each individual part into the final product. In other projects he uses a color instead of a pattern to have a similar, if not the same effect on the final product.
Across Daniel’s different social media platforms he obviously has another style that focuses mainly on architecture and city landscape. He has taken many exhibitions to different cities across the world to document these places within his unique style. I think that this being part of his roots within photography translates into his portraiture immensely, as you can see the attention to detail he includes both within the subject and architecture within the background.
In response to Allen Daniel’s distinct style of work, I wanted to create a project with two different models to encapsulate his work within both male and female portraits. Within this interpretation I wanted to stay aware of two main variables of Daniel’s work, and a third variable being to continue practicing safe social distancing while taking the portraits. The two variables that I wanted to stay aware of and incorporate into the portraits I was going to create were the attention to detail both within the background and the subject, and the overall composition used to create the ending feeling of the images.
When creating the images of my friend and model, Jayden, I paid close attention when selecting outfit and location, choosing an architecturally pleasing location with arches, columns, bricks, and railings, with a color palette of beiges, browns, yellows, greys, and blacks. Within the outfit I chose mainly black items to accentuate the detail of the black railings, but chose a patterned bandana to give contrast to the smooth black materials, closely related to Daniel’s creative choices. The other part of the project was a photoshoot with my friend and model, Renae, and within this part of the project I focused on the outfit as a whole having great contrast to the background. The background of these images are very similar to Allen Daniel’s choices as it looks to be the backside of a building, with a kind of run down grungy approach.
I chose a camouflage patterned jacket which some would jokingly say would blend into the background, but the brown and red tones of the background allowed the pattern of the jacket to have contrast to the rest. I focused more so than the other shoot in this, on the full body approach to the images, keeping the lines of the background almost perfectly straight and parallel. I tried to keep the overall tonality of the images across both shoots light in relation to the background, to make the images relate to the tonality of Daniel’s images.
PhotoChronologies 