Los Angeles Downtown City Lifestyle Photoshoot With Nolan O’Connor
Back in June 2024, I had the opportunity to collaborate with talented model Nolan O’Connor for a lifestyle street photoshoot in Downtown Los Angeles. For this photoshoot, I was looking to get a variety of urban lifestyle shots in the city with high-rise buildings.
Because we only had a few hours to do the photoshoot for sunset, we ended up staying near the Walt Disney Concert Hall. The beautiful steel architecture makes for a great backdrop and the stairs assist in getting a variety of different poses.
All photos were edited in Adobe Lightroom Classic and retouched in Adobe Photoshop.
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/400 sec. | f/5.6 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/320 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 320
CITY PHOTOGRAPHY MOOD BOARD
I knew I wanted to go to Downtown Los Angeles for these photos. When I reached out to Nolan, I sent over a sample mood board of wardrobe ideas and poses so he had a reference on outfits he was able to bring.
Having a customized photography mood board for both yourself and the model is a great way to make sure that you both are going to be on-page for this shoot and so that everyone will know what to expect in the final photos.
I generally just use Canva as a quick way to draw up the mood board, but the most important thing is keeping a consistent theme. Nolan came prepared with a few different outfits including a suit, a buttoned up shirt, and athletic wear - all of which made sense for the lifestyle city photoshoot I had planned.
ON LOCATION IN DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES
We were very fortunate that we did the shoot on the evening of a weekday, so there weren’t many people regularly walking by. However, there was an event happening at the Concert Hall so we had to work around a few table booths set up on the top of the stairs. This challenged me to focus on achieving a certain composition that wouldn’t be too distracting in the photos. The Sigma 85mm lens was the best lens to get close up portraits for this reason.
One of my favorite things about a photoshoot in Downtown Los Angeles is the variety of backdrops within a small walking distance. Although we had to move quickly to catch sunset portraits, we didn’t have to move too far to get a variety of textured backgrounds for the photos.
WATCH BRAND FOR LIFESTYLE PHOTOGRAPHY
Nolan brought a classic Timex watch to the photoshoot, which turned out to be a great accessory and addition to the city photos. I personally enjoy photographing watches because of their design and timeless look. I also think a watch can add a lot to a lifestyle photoshoot when a model wears them.
The watch Nolan brought fit perfectly with his suit and allowed for a lot more versatility when it came to poses.
In my roots of street photography, I think the best photos are ones that aren’t as posed and that capture an authentic moment in time. Small moments like having Nolan fix his cufflink and adjusting his watch help bring attention to the accessory without the photo looking too forced.
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/200 sec. | f/5.6 | ISO 250
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/320 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/250 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 250
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/400 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 250
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/320 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/400 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 250
Sony A7R III | Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/400 sec. | f/5.6 | ISO 125
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/320 sec. | f/4.0 | ISO 250
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 250
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 160
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/250 sec. | f/3.5 | ISO 320
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 160
LIFESTYLE CITY PHOTOGRAPHY INTO BLUE HOUR
One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned in doing lifestyle portrait photography and street photography is to keep shooting into blue hour after sunset. You get a variety of clean images with fairly even lighting even after the sun has set, and you still have enough light to capture sharp images without having to blast your ISO.
For the final images, Nolan brought out a skateboard and backpack which was a great addition in this kind of environment. Unfortunately I didn’t capture as many photos with these props as I would have liked, but I am happy I was able to get some of them before the session ended.
As a travel photographer, I enjoy photographing products like backpacks because it enhances the scene and adds a travel element to the photo.
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/500 sec. | f/4.5 | ISO 160
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/400 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 200
Sony A7R III | Sigma 85mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/400 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 200
Sony A7R III | Sigma 35mm f/1.4 DG DN ART | 1/160 sec. | f/3.2 | ISO 500