Studio Santa Monica
Inside three California shoots, where Hernan Rodriguez balances motion, mood, and environment to create unforgettable portraits with a trio of Tamron lenses.
Author: Jenn Gidman
Images: Hernan Rodriguez
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Inside three California shoots, where Hernan Rodriguez balances motion, mood, and environment to create unforgettable portraits with a trio of Tamron lenses.
Even after more than 20 years behind the camera, California portrait photographer Hernan Rodriguez still treats every shoot as an opportunity to hone his craft. For him, every new lens, every new subject, and every unexpected lighting challenge is a chance to experiment, learn, and grow.
“I’ve been doing this for a long time, but I still take the time to refine my skill set when I’m in a slower period,” Hernan says. “That’s because when I get hired for a job, there are always last-minute changes—agents or managers might want a completely different setup, different lighting, even a different location. I have to be able to adjust instantly. That’s why I put myself through these tests. These practice shoots prepare me to perform under pressure.”
Recently, Hernan took three Tamron lenses—the 35-150mm F/2-2.8 Di III VXD all-in-one zoom, 90mm F/2.8 Di III VXD M1:1 mid-telephoto macro, and 28-75mm F/2.8 Di III VXD G2 standard zoom—out to the streets and stairways of Santa Monica for three distinct sessions. Each shoot had its own creative objectives and challenges, with each lens playing a slightly different role in shaping Hernan’s final images.
In Motion
For Hernan, practice isn’t just about capturing a great shot—it’s about anticipating how lenses perform under a variety of scenarios. In the alleys of Santa Monica, he worked with a dancer to create a set of dynamic, gritty portraits with the 35-150mm F2-2.8 lens.
“I’d just received the 35-150mm and wanted to test its AI tracking capabilities,” Hernan says. “My work is usually static: in other words, someone standing or sitting for a portrait. This time, I wanted my subject moving—running, jumping, falling back—to see how the lens handled action.”
The 35-150mm quickly proved itself as an all-around powerhouse. “I love the range on this lens,” Rodriguez says. “At 35mm, I can include environmental elements in the frame—walls, fences, etc.—without worrying about heavy distortion. And when I need more compression, I can zoom in to isolate the subject so the background isn’t distracting.”
Hernan shot in all natural light for this session, leaning into the grittier street vibe by featuring the alleyway’s worn fences and textured walls. “Those little things make the scene feel more alive,” he explains. “If I’d blurred out the background, you’d lose that energy. For these images, I wanted the environment to be part of the story.”
Publicity Portraits, Inside and Out
Hernan’s second Santa Monica shoot couldn’t have been more different. This time, he worked with Natacha Karam, an actress from Fox’s 9-1-1: Lone Star, to create a set of publicity images, via a mix of indoor and outdoor setups.
“Natacha wanted fresh shots for editorial purposes as she is in a new TV series,” Hernan says. “For me, it was an opportunity to test out some lighting setups. The task before me was to blend natural light with artificial light without losing consistency in the images.”
One particular challenge emerged during a shot in which the actress stood just inside a doorway while bright midday sun poured in from outside. “High noon can be tough—the light is harsh and contrasty,” Hernan explains. “I added artificial light to balance the exposure. The key was matching the quality of the light so it felt natural. I used modifiers to soften my strobe and adjusted the shutter speed to balance the indoor and outdoor exposure so I wouldn’t blow anything out in the background.”
For these tighter, more intimate portraits, Rodriguez leaned into two of his Tamron lenses. “The 90mm F2.8 really comes through for three-quarter shots,” he says. “I was shooting from about 10 feet away, and it gave me a clean portrait with beautiful clarity.”
In his other setups with Natacha, the 35-150mm F2-2.8 proved essential. “The interior spaces we shot in had converging lines and other eye-catching details,” Rodriguez says. “If I’d used one of my other lenses, it wouldn’t have worked as well in that space. The 35-150mm kept everything balanced.”
Leaning Into the Lighthearted
The final session, in which Hernan worked with a young singer-actress, had an entirely different mood. “We just played around for our shoot,” he says. “She wanted a fun vibe that was really naturalistic, showing her outdoors having fun, but with an editorial feel to it.”
This time, the 28-75mm F2.8 was Hernan’s workhorse. “We were shooting on a bright, sunny day at F11 near some tennis courts and on a busy street with a busy background—some portrait photographers would panic at that,” he says. “Their instinct might be to blur out the background by shooting at F2.8 or even F1.8. I wanted the environment to be a part of the story.”
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