Before I moved to the west coast in 2020, I had the privilege of collaborating with my sister, Marvin Joi Robinson, and teaching her about the process from start to finish. I assisted her on her first two photo shoots from setup to final edits.
Sonya Phillips, owner of Stretch Couture
Sonya Phillips
August 29, 2020
Photographer: Marvin Joi (MJ) Robinson
Assistants: Aralynn Robinson and Mary Anne Laguerta
Makeup: Sonya Phillips
Wardrobe: Sonya Phillips
Our first shoot was with fashion entrepreneur, Sonya Phillips. Sonya is the owner of Stretch Couture, Sexxxy Unicorn, and a handful of other businesses. Sonya and I collaborated on a few pieces for my wedding and we ended up getting into a few more projects. MJ loves the world of fashion so the two hit it off from the start. Sonya plays an active role in her community and we were able to set up shop in a center she has access to.
Sonya had four outfits she wanted to feature. Alongside being an entrepreneur, she was crowned Ms. Plus Culture Galaxy of 2021. We started with getting shots of with her pageant accessories, moved on to a T-shirt with her Stretch Couture logo, and finished with a shot to debut her Sexxxy Unicorn clothing line and community. We wanted to try a “maker” style shot for the final outfit so we brought a few sewing tools a materials to help fill the background and hung her featured outfits on a clothing rack.
With so many ideas to tackle and so few hands to assist, we made sure we wrote down a thorough check list of what we wanted to accomplish for the shoot along with a few inspiration photos. Aralynn was in charge of keeping track of time and double checking that we got all of the shots we needed. This was extremely helpful so that MJ could focus on her shooting techniques and I could focus on assisting and coaching.
Sonya is an all around beauty and kind-hearted individual. We had so much fun working with her and learning more about what drives her life and business ambitions. It’s refreshing to meet individuals who are dedicated to contributing nothing but positive energy into the world.
Holly Anne Matel
September 5, 2020
Photographer: Marvin Joi (MJ) Robinson
Assistants: Aralynn Robinson and Mary Anne Laguerta
Makeup: Kellie Corbett
Wardrobe: Marvin Joi (MJ) Robinson
The second shoot was far closer to home, literally. Our sister-inlaw, Holly Anne Matel, is a water engineer and wanted an updated professional headshot. As I mentioned, MJ loves fashion. Along with being a photographer, she is a talented stylist. We asked Holly Anne to bring an outfit for her professional headshot and volunteered to scoop up a few more for her to try out for some personal portraits. All together we ended up shooting four outfits.
Prior to the shoot I took Holly Anne to see one of my favorite makeup artists, Kellie Corbett. Kellie is extremely talented and can accomodate styles of any scope. Holly Anne wanted a natural “no makeup” makeup look and Kellie delivered.
We put together a 3-light set up in the guest room of our mom’s house. Holly Anne is a lot taller than both MJ and myself and at the time I only had a long range lens for us to work with. MJ ended up having to back up into the hallway for a couple of the shots.
Being that this was also a teaching experience, we shot tethered to ensure that everyone could get immediate feedback and adjust where needed. Being that it was an intimate, family shoot myself and my niece, Aralynn Robinson, acted as both photo, wardrobe, and hair assistants as needed. Since this was a more casual shoot we didn’t prepare a check list to reference. Disregard the drinks near the equipment! That is usually a big no no, but it was a bit of a chaotic day.
As you scroll through the setup shots, you’ll see that we had two little visitors that kept popping by the shoot. Our nephews were very curious so once we wrapped up the last look we suggested they jump in for the last couple of shots. Overall, the shoot went really well with no major hiccups. Our sister-inlaw got some beautiful shots and as usual we got some great family memories.
After the photo shoots, I put together a comprehensive guide of pre production, production, and post production notes and procedures. Thankfully MJ already had plenty of experience with posing clients and can provide great customer service in general. She combined the new tips with her previous photo knowledge and adjusted to each scenario naturally. Not to mention, her love for fashion means she inevitably shows attention to detail so that was extremely beneficial. Overall, it was a wonderful and stress-free learning and teaching experience for us all.
