This past March I first profiled the work of Saint Louis based photographer Steve Mack (Achromatic Colors: Jacob Garrett by Steve Mack, see below). I instantly fell in love with the look and especially the feel of Steve's work. In my previous feature I talked about Steve's use of color and he commented that he dials back color saturation and strives to 'create a mood without relying on color to do the heavy lifting'.
The feel I described certainly continues in Steve's most recent work. It is interesting to me that some of the shots in Steve's work with 20 year old college student Vance Lawson were shot in the early morning. Vance says they woke up very early to catch the morning sunlight between the trees in the forest preserve. I always felt 'early morning' was a perfect description of the mood Steve creates in his work, both on location and in the studio.
The colors and the brightness remind me of that glistening light we see on a sunny early morning. There is a freshness, a newness a feel of something starting or about to begin.
As mentioned in my earlier profile, Steve has incredible skill at beautifully photographing skin. With Vance Lawson this comes in especially handy. Vance's chest provides the perfect canvas for his tattoo. Steve picks up incredible detail, every line and each color with precision.
In Italian, Fiero means Proud, fierce and ferocious. Vance is extremely proud of his Sicilian Heritage. Vance says though, that due to his skin color he feels he does not really look Sicilian. The tattoo is a physical symbol,a way for Vance to show his pride. (Vance is 50% Sicilian, 25% polish & 25% English). Vance, who juggles his modeling with college and a part time job says that although he enjoys modeling his number one goal current goal is to complete his education.
Steve says that the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of his work with Vance was Vance's focus and dedication.
'All of the exterior images were shot just after sunrise at a nearby nature reserve. In spite of the fact that it was only 51 degrees and we were slowed down by camera equipment issues, Vance was a great sport. I'd highly recommend him and look forward to the opportunity to work with him again.'
Thanks again to Steve and to Vance for sharing their early morning with FH! You can check out more of Steve's work at his website HERE: and see more of his work with Vance on ModelMayhem HERE:
