Ah, New York City—a true visual wonderland, especially for photographers. This cornucopia of cultural diversity is constantly bursting with varied architectural styles, iconic landmarks, vibrant street scenes, and breathtaking cityscapes. You might say that being a photographer here is akin to being like a kid in a candy store. And that’s exactly how attendees felt at the sold-out Adorama First Annual Student & Educator Sony Square Rooftop event. The event was held on Tuesday, September 24, as part of a 2-day creator event. Day was open to all creators, you can read more about that here.
Manhattan Skyline
What a rooftop it is, situated at the apex of the 25 Madison Avenue structure (aka the Sony Music building). The Art Deco landmark borders Madison Square Park. From up there, the world becomes a dynamic canvas of gorgeous light, shadow, and composition. This creates endless photo ops for framing the perfect shot. On this special night, the Empire State Building pierced the sky in bold silhouette. Those in attendance had full access to unique photo sets with stunning models. Adorama and Sony brought along incredible mentors and some of the best and newest gear on the market.
Educators Abound at the Student and Educator Rooftop Event
Adorama content producer and photographer Seth Miranda, who is a staple at these events, once again donned his host cap. Seth grabbed his microphone and proceeded to steer the ship for the night with energy and aplomb. Behind Miranda on the main set were incredible singer Bella Kosal and her bandmate, guitarist Gabrile Gonzales. Their stage was the site of continuous soul-searching vocals. In addition, the nightclub vibes doubled as a photo set for attendees for the entire evening. The stage was lit with two GODOX Litemons 300Rs as hair lights. Furthermore, one GODOX 600R served as the main light, all while the Manhattan cityscape shimmered in the background.
Along with hands-on shooting experiences came expert tips and invaluable instruction. The instructors included Sony Artisan of Imagery Monica Sigmon, Sony Alpha Ambassador Erick Hercules, and Profoto NYC rep and “evangelist” Cliff Hausner.
“Students arrived wide-eyed and soaked it all up,”
said Monica Sigmon, an acclaimed portrait photographer based in Williamsburg, Virginia. Monica specializes in high-end portraiture, family sessions, and editorial-style shoots. Sigmon is quite the influential speaker and mentor in the photo industry. Consequently, students and educators alike were excited to be in her presence as she shared her technical know-how and expertise. Best of all, no question was too basic for her. Whether it was about an f-stop setting, an ISO, or a posing prompt. (Her set was outfitted with one Profoto B10xPlus flash head and one 5-foot Profoto Octa Soft Box.)
“In the beginning, some students were a bit nervous, but overall, they were all so wonderfully open and so excited,” she told me. “The enthusiasm I witnessed turned into real lightbulb moments as I saw it just click for them at a certain point. It was inspiring.”
Also present was New York-based photographer, creative director, and entrepreneur Erick Hercules. Hercules is known for his incredible work in commercial photography. Coupled with the “floating” sneaker photography and #WeLevitate movement. Both of which built up a whole community of the best levitation photographers and dancers in the world. His students were drawn to his every move.
“Movement is imperative in my work,”
Hercules explained. “It adds emotion, energy, and direction. Regardless of location, I wanted this to be the focus. Our model was asked to bring clothing and thin scarves that could flow in the air. These additional props added so much movement and image diversity to the class. I feel like no one had the same shot!” (His set was outfitted with two B10xPlus, one 4-foot Octa softbox, and one 3×4 Softbox.)
Hercules also appreciated the mix of minimalistic stone and city skyline the rooftop view provided. “I was hoping we would have blue skies to counter the flatness of the layout; however, we had heavy rainy clouds both nights…. This added a fun challenge to my set. So, to spice it up, I spent time teaching people how to shoot with a slow shutter, adding a drag mode effect to our pictures. This created a dreamy but cool effect that made the moodiness of our scene even more dramatic. When life gives you lemons, you have to use them, right?”
Great Questions From Excited Students at the Student and Educator Rooftop Event
He went on to echo what Sigmon had mentioned earlier that most of the students’ questions focused on the basics, including, “How do we control light while using flash?” “What are the settings I’d recommend for fashion versus portrait photography?” Additionally, he said that some questions were about how to become a professional photographer, including, “How does one build a portfolio” and “How does one get noticed for their work?”
The way Hercules described it, “When it comes to getting noticed, I know it sounds paradoxical, but the less you try to be trendy, and the more honest you are to telling stories you would like to hear and see, the more people will resonate with you. There is something about the genuine human connection that will never go out of style.”
Cliff Hausner Going Above and Beyond
Another highlight of the evening was seeing seasoned photographer and Profoto legend Cliff Hausner splayed out on his back at his station as he demonstrated to students how to do more than just take straight portraits. In the background, one could hear Seth Miranda giving a shout-out to Hausner for killing it!
“I was showing them how to get low,” Hausner told me when I inquired about why he was lying on the bare concrete. “I wanted the students to think not just about what was in front of them—in this case, two very attractive models dressed as though they just stepped out of an Abercrombie Fall catalog—but also how to incorporate the sky and think outside the box, how to adjust their ISO, how to make the sky deeper and richer and so on.” (His set was outfitted with two Profoto B10xPlus, one 6′ Soft Zoom, one CTO gel, one 1×4 strip, and one white magnum reflector.) All of the instructors were using the new Pro Connect triggers.)
Students, Educators, and More at the Student and Educator Rooftop Event
Rubbing shoulders all night long with these incredible instructors were not just students but also top educators and photo organization brass from around the city, including FIT’s Adjunct Assistant Photo Professor Curtis Willocks (who came with several first and second-year FIT students in tow), portrait and fashion photographer Leticia Valdez (also an FIT and PhotoUno Photography School instructor), fine-art photographer and educator Lavonne Hall. Sony Alpha advocate and APA National President Travis Keyes and Regional Director of APA-NY, Deborah Gilbert. One self-taught photo student who goes simply by the name Joel mentioned how the event introduced him not only to many networking opportunities with these luminaries but also to so many incredible vendors.
Joel’s excitement was palpable. “It was all so awesome,” he exclaimed, at the time, while turning backward to take note of the snaking line of students waiting to rent Sony equipment for free. Behind that were attendees checking out Tiffen filters and Godox equipment. “Best of all, I got the chance to use the Sony A7RV with the 24-70mm lens. Hopefully I own that camera one day.”
Summing it all up by the end of the night was event producer Theresa Raffetto who told me that, “Adorama is about community. Our goal is always to educate and equip creators. We host these events yearly, mainly to bring photographers together and to showcase Sony cameras and lenses, putting them directly in the hands of photographers. This event specifically gave our guests the opportunity to shoot with the new Sony 85mm f1.4 GM II in a stunning location.” Goal achieved!
Adorama Events: All Year Round
Didn’t make it to the Sony rooftop for an incredible event that included free memory cards from ProGrade Digital, Sony camera and lens rentals, a Godox station of lighting gear to test out, a $250 Adorama gift card, and a 42-inch GLOW reflector raffled away? Not to worry. Adorama offers events like this throughout the year, including many that take place in their NYC store at 42 West 18th Street (many of them free). Check out the full workshop schedule here.
A special thank you to Adorama’s Partners on the workshop:
Sony, Godox, Profoto, ProGrade Digital, Tiffen, and Capture One
(Grip provided by Adorama Rental Company)
