KAS Collection at National Harbor

I photographed the KAS Collection show at National Harbor including the VIP reception, rehearsal, and  after show.  It was an exciting and festive evening with many local notables attending and lots of media coverage.  KAS’ designs are very appealing and styling for the show was first rate.  Hair and makeup were top notch too and each model was looking his/her best.

You can view all my photos at this link —

KAS Collection Inc. at National Harbor

For a full report on the show and the events of the evening check out the De La Style blog

Some of my favorite shots are below.  They include a rehearsal shot , the show itself, and the after show.

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“Faces” Show at Washington School of Photography

Two of my portraits are included in the “Faces” show at the Washington School of Photography, a collection of images that express the depth and breadth of human emotion.

This is one of two juried show in which my work is appearing.  “Portraits of DC” which opened in April at “Social” restaurant will be installed at the DC Convention Center in September and includes one of my portraits.

In the images below the blond gal is local rock musician and model Chelsea Alexander who shot with me in my home studio.  The gal in pink is Miss Teen DC Hope Wiseman at the “Pink Jams” fashion show in February 2010.

Rachel DeMita

Rachel is interviewing with several model agencies in the US and abroad.  They asked her to provide updated photos in the next couple of weeks.  I agreed to help in getting her some images she could submit.  Kim Reyes joined us as MUA/hair stylist.  For the shot below I used a 22″ beauty dish, 40 degree grid.  The second beauty shot uses a similar setup but adds a diffusion sock to soften the effect.  Kim’s natural beauty look had just the right touch of pale color for Rachel’s rich complexion.  Kim also provided the head scarf in the middle shot.

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VIP Exclusive Fashion Show at Russia House

I photographed a fashion show at the Russia House in DC that was produced by VIP Exclusive. I got the two head shots below using my 580EX II flash mounted on my Canon 5D Mark II. First shot is Yaskarita who was photographing the event and not modeling this night. This candid shot was made during intermission. The second shot of Bekka one of the show models was made at the after party. Don’t recommend using on camera flash for these type of shots because the light is hard and overall not complimentary. But if flash is all that’s available, you sometimes have to go for it. These came out good enough for posting.

Note: I used a Sto-Fen diffuser on the flash head

You can view my shots from the show at the link below.
VIP Exclusive Fashion Show at Russia House

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Catwalk Studioz Grand Opening

I went to the grand opening celebration at Catwalk Studioz on May 15 and did a few hours of shooting. Thanks to the gracious hospitality of Joseph Philbert and his wife this was a fun event for all.

I ran into my shooting partner Vox early in the day. We each had brought along one studio light.  Joseph let us set up in an enclosed loading dock area and gave us a canvas drop cloth for a backdrop. The space was only 7 feet high and that became an issue with one model. Emery Wallace in the pic below is 6’2″ and played small forward at Maryland.  The first thing I did was ask her to remove her heels. We then got her into poses that would deemphasize her height relative to the space.

View Vox’s image of Emery.

“Portraits of DC”

The photo below was among 51 selected out of several hundred submissions in a juried competition sponsored by the DC Commission on Arts and Humanities, DC Fotoweek, and DC Counts.  The competition celebrates the 2010 census and DC’s quest for statehood, hence the 51 winners. The show is on display at Social Restaurant in the Columbia Heights neighborhood. It will be mounted at the DC Convention Center in September.

The shot was made in my home studio in January 2010.  The model is Dilfuza Kasymova.  The Hill newspaper covered the reception and used my image as the pictorial.  The text identifies me as “fashion and portrait photographer Phil Kogan.”

The Studio at Dulles Open House

As I continued my recovery from surgery new opportunities arose for shooting at studio events where I wouldn’t be required to do any heavy lifting.  On March 31 the Studio at Dulles had an open house and I headed out there for an evening of shooting.  Chris Maxwell is one of the principals at the studio.  He had invited me to my first studio shoot with models at the earlier incanation of the Studio at Dulles.  So this was a good opportunity to see Chris and check out the new studio.  One of the gals I shot with was Rania, an aspiring plus size model.  This was a two light setup using  two softboxes with no front diffusion panel.