The Celebrity Experience

Par Jenn Gidman
Images by Joy Reyneke

Joy Reyneke turns every subject into a star for portraits with her Tamron SP 24-70mm F2.8 VC lens.

Since she was a teen, Joy Reyneke has had a camera in hand. When she had to leave the Air Force in her 20s, she realized her camera would be her next calling. Joy spent 15 years taking photojournalistic pictures all over the world, before finally settling down about a decade ago to shoot more studio-style work from her home. “I had a kid and could see my photojournalism days were coming to an end, so it felt like a natural next step,” she says.

In February 2020, Joy opened up her own 3,000-square-foot studio in The Dalles, Oregon, and since then she’s strived to offer the “celebrity experience” for every client who comes in to have their picture taken. “When my customers arrive and say, ‘I wish I could look like a model,’ my instant response is, ‘I can make you look like a model,’” she says. “I would hear clients, women especially, talk so poorly about themselves, and I realized there was a niche, and a need, where I could help people feel good about themselves. And if you can make people feel good about themselves and empowered, you’re going to end up with some fantastic pictures.”

24-70mm (27mm), F7.1, 1/125 sec., ISO 125

24-70mm (35mm), F5.6, 1/125 sec., ISO 125

To transform her subjects, Joy uses the Tamron SP 24-70mm F/2.8 Di VC USD G2 fast standard zoom lens. “First, I appreciate the 24-70’s versatility, as well as the F2.8 maximum aperture to help me add separation when I need it, and the Vibration Compensation (VC) feature to help keep the effects of camera shake at bay,” she says. “But what I especially like is the different look this lens lends my portraits. I love shooting with a 50mm prime, but with the 24-70, I’m able to create something that makes you think about the photo a little more. It offers a subtle telephoto-like, wide-angle look that brings a lot of the foreground to the front.”

JOY’S QUICK TIPS

Harness the world of color.
Understanding color and toning, and how that all fits together, has been a game changer for me. It sets the vibe for your images. When I was creating that mermaid photo, for example, I initially went really bright, and when I was done, it felt like anime to me, or like I’d put it through one of those A.I. programs. I went back and pulled in the shadows and brought out the oranges a bit, but without going over the top. Toning is something you can always be learning about in photography.

24-70mm (51mm), F5.6, 1/100 sec., ISO 100

It’s your responsibility to make your clients look good.
Around 90% of my customers insist to me they’re not photogenic. My response every time is, “Your job is to show up. My job is to make you look photogenic.” I concentrate on using naturally beautiful poses that fit my subjects. I want my customers to feel comfortable in their bodies. I’m a bigger girl, and I’ve been in photo shoots myself where the photographer worked extra-hard to make me appear thinner, distorting my body into positions that weren’t comfortable. Not only did it kind of hurt—it felt like they were trying to change me—but it doesn’t look natural. I let my sessions evolve organically so I can see the way my subjects’ bodies naturally move and rest, then make slight tweaks from there.

24-70mm (24mm), F3.5, 1/200 sec., ISO 160

24-70mm (24mm), F5.6, 1/250 sec., ISO 100

Capture the posing between the poses.
What I mean by that is I’ll have my clients pose, then say, “OK, now take a little break.” As they’re taking that break, I’ll take a photo. My customers look so relaxed in those candid images. I often get my best pictures that way.

Be flexible with lighting.
When I was taking pictures of the woman in the pink outfit, on the bed in the hotel room, I initially turned a big studio light on her, but it was too loud. The lighting made the walls brighter than I expected. It really took away from her, so I switched over to shooting in natural light, which is the end result you see here.

24-70mm (24mm), F2.8, 1/40 sec., ISO 400

Now, even if I originally have my mind set on one style of lighting, I’m willing to reassess once I’m in the session. It’s very important when we’re photographing clients that we’re photographing them the way they need to be—and sometimes you won’t really know that until you’re in the moment. I often tell my clients, “Listen, it might be a bit of a Mad Hatter situation today. Lighting might change, outfits are going to be flying—just go with the flow!”

24-70mm (44mm), F2.8, 1/250 sec., ISO 500

To see more of Joy Reyneke’s work, check out her site web et Instagram.