It’s been a (very) long time since I’ve done anything with this website. This is not a bad thing: my micro creative agency, CoyDog Collective, grew to the point where it was receiving more work proposals than we had resources to address. (I then joined publisher Z2 Comics for an in-house position, but that’s another story.) Archiving, dissecting, and doing anything remotely new and business-esque required hours I couldn’t find. This isn’t to say that I haven’t been making things that should occupy a website designed to share the things I make.
One endeavor that I’ve really enjoyed is photographing books. Similar to my stop motion endeavors, shooting books was a value add for other media management projects that evolved into its own offering. The bulk of the work has been for Macmillan and its amazing YA (and beyond) imprint, :01 First Second. I’ve also shot for Humanoids, a French/American outfit most recognized for its ‘70s sci-fi lineage, with some offshoot work for the lovely Mark Siegel. I’ll be shooting for Z2 shortly.
I won’t dig too far into the technicalities of book photography, but a few strategies tend to occupy my approach:
• I like to use organic textures (wood, pillows, fake fur, flowers) to complement and accentuate what is essentially a rectangle filled with color and two-dimensional drawings. Contrast the surreal with the organic.
• I like to keep my light sources diffuse, soft and full (well…mostly). This is arguably more difficult than it can seem. But umbrellas and indirect window light can work wonders. The last thing you want is a hot spot manipulating colors and art—ideally I want to present the cover art exactly as intended by the creative team. It’s the visual context around that cover that can add flavor and romance.
• Composition: I ignore the rule of thirds and put the book in center frame for one reason and one reason alone—these images will appear on multiple social media profiles. Rather than shift multiple elements around, I give enough space around the book to crop for both landscape (Twitter) and square (Instagram).
Here are some captures.
The Astronaut Academy Series
5 Worlds: The Red Maze
5 Worlds: The Cobalt Prince
Anya’s Ghost
Cici’s Journal
Dragon Hoops
The Backups
Poesy the Monster Slayer
Bubble
This Was Our Pact/Pumpkinheads
Go To Sleep (I Miss You)
Grace: The Jeff Buckley Story
Margo Maloo
New Year’s Photo Spread for :01 First Second
Oskar and the Eight Blessings
Holiday Photo Spread for :01 First Second
Urban Legendz
Dungeon Critters
Shadow Life
Science Comics: Skyscrapers
InvestiGators