A Last minute photoshoot
Jose C. is a Tucson based photographer known for his, as I like to describe, effortless editorial photos that show beauty, power, confidence, and comfort in his subjects.
I don't remember exactly how or when Jose C. and I connected but I have always been thankful for the support and encouragement he takes out of his day to offer me. Whether it be about photography, social media, or life itself, his DM's are a message from the heart that I look forward to reading. Full of wisdom from his own life experiences, his own flaws, his own struggles, his own strengths, I find that I learn more about my own self as a photographer - as well as a young adult trying to figure out life - than I ever thought I could from a message read on a screen from a person I had never met. A person who only knew my social media self.
I find that as a creative, my social media self is a reflection of the artist I want to be seen as rather than the human I actually am. I try to show myself as raw and authentic as I can, talking about my own mental health struggles, life challenges, and life accomplishments but like many, even my flaws shown on an app are a polished version of them. But this side of my social media is where I would get most of my engagement from on Instagram. Followers would give their support, their encouragement, tell their similarities, or simply type their thank yous for showing what being human is. And though I always found value and appreciation in those messages, Jose seemed to stand out above the rest. As a fellow creative, he saw through what noncreatives couldn't - my many real struggles, insecurities, and embarrassments - hidden by humor, brushed over as no big deal, or shown but never brought full attention to. He applauded to the things I showed the world but also brought attention to those that weren't so apparent. Things that I didn't know I wanted attention brought to but valued greatly once talked about. He saw my creative self as authentically as anyone ever has without even meeting me.
It amazed me.
I knew I wanted to meet him. Whether to shadow him and his process, chat over coffee, or have the absolute pleasure of modeling as one of his subjects, I wanted to meet him.
In March, 2020 we had planned a creative shoot with my German Shepard pup Dakota. I was estatic to not only meet Jose, but model for him as well. A major plus that my dog would get to join too. As we messaged back and forth planning the shoot, Covid-19 made it's way into the United States in a blink of an eye. Within days of being warned about this virus, restaurants, movie theaters, shops, and any other nonessenticial businesses were set on curfew or closed indefinitely. We decided to hold off on our shoot.
As the pandemic continued with little end in sight, like many, I struggled with my mental health. I took to Instagram to express these feelings in the early stages of quarantining where Jose continued to share his wisdom though direct messages. But as the year went on, The United States continued to get a reality check on all that was wrong in our country and social media became the hot spot to get word out on what was happening. Internet debates over Covid conspiracies, videos of police brutality, a reawakening of the racial injustice that the US still faced, and an election that had the American people split in two. I couldn't go a minute without being overwhelmed at it all. I decided a break from Instagram was necessary for my own mental health.
I planned to step away from Instagram on November 1st and spend the rest of the year off the app. This was a choice that Jose gave overwhelming support on, explaining that he too could find value from a break. (Let's be honest, I think everyone could.) But since messaging over Instagram was our main source of communication, we exchanged numbers to keep in touch. Later that night, we planned a last minute shoot for the next day.
Ecstatic for the opportunity to finally meet him and even more overjoyed for the chance to model for him, I raided my boyfriend's closet to find anything interesting to wear or with "great textures" as Jose suggested. This shoot was planned overnight with barely 11hrs between the idea and the actual meeting and I was staying at my boyfriends so I had nothing of my own to wear.
The day of the shoot, my boyfriend and I arrived at Dog Day Studio. The building was shared with other businesses so we were slightly confused on where to enter the studio but were quickly greeted by Jose with a soft and confident "Hey". As we greeted each other, I was reminded at all the times I watched him speak on social media and how his voice always took me by surprise because he spoke soft and slow but experiencing it in person made me realize he spoke with thought and intent.
I was nervous as we talked through outfit options, realizing the limited options I had to offer. But once I got seated, my nerves went away. I felt comfortable and confident in what I was doing in front of the camera. A feeling that doesn't always happen right away when shooting with a new photographer. His direction was minimal and kind which made me feel trusted as a model to execute what he was looking for.
Though our chats between poses and backdrop changes were short, I enjoyed hearing his thoughts out loud. He offered the same sort of encouragement and advice I'd look forward to reading over direct message but the impact of it in person weighted heavier than anything typed over social media could. Working with him and talking with him brought out a confidence in myself I hadn't had in a while. And looking back on this experience, specifically looking back on these photos and seeing that confidence show, it is a reminder at what a photo can do for a person and why being a photographer is such an intimate, vulnerable, and important role to have. It is another reminder at how important creative connections are.
Working with Jose brought out a side of me that I wish came to life on a daily basis.
But working with Jose also showed me how to make that happen.
Working with Jose showed me the type of person I want to grow up more to be. He is authentically true to himself and offers what words he has to help and support others. He is mindful and here, in the present, with no rush to experience anything else but what life has given him in this moment. These are traits hard to find, and I value the impact that his outlook has had on me, and my growth to be the best version of my creative self.
I feel honored to be a person he chooses to share his time and energy with and whether it be working with him again or just a chat over coffee, I look more than forward to the next time I meet Jose C.
see more images from the shoot below
see more of jose c. work at
This session was photographed on October 24th, 2020
