A Violinist in the Studio
When Lydia first stepped into my studio carrying her violin case, I could tell right away she had a quiet intensity. The kind you feel before the first note of a performance — still, focused, and quietly electric.
She’s a classically trained violinist who’s spent the last few years breaking into new territory, blending traditional technique with more modern, ambient arrangements.
She came to me looking for portraits that could speak to both sides of that — the poise of the concert stage and the rawness of her evolution as an artist.
Lighting was everything in this shoot.
We wanted to avoid anything overly slick or glossy. Instead, we leaned into soft shadows and sculptural light. I used a large diffused key light angled off-center, just enough to let some mystery hold in the frame. Her violin — worn in all the right places — picked up the highlights beautifully, catching the story in every curve. But we had to work for it.
The challenge was keeping the delicate balance between moody and muddy. Too much shadow and we lost her expression; too much fill and we lost the drama. We ended up bouncing a subtle rim light off a foam core to preserve that glow around her profile. It finally clicked about 40 minutes in — the moment the light stopped feeling technical and started feeling like music.
A Specific Ambiance
What I love about shooting musicians is the rhythm they bring to the frame. Lydia doesn’t just pose — she plays the air around her. Sometimes she’d close her eyes and breathe like she was on stage. Other times she’d laugh mid-frame, holding the violin like an old friend. Those were the in-between moments I chased. And they’re the ones that made it into the final edit.
 |  |  |
How Her Photos Have Helped Her Career
Since the shoot, she’s used the photos across her press kit, concert flyers, and social media. One of the portraits ended up as the cover image for her new EP — which, by the way, sounds incredible. She told me later that the photos helped her feel more aligned with where she is creatively. That’s the part that sticks with me. That somehow, by dialing in just the right shape of light and space, we were able to reflect back something honest — something that felt like her.
This is why I keep showing up behind the camera: to document not just what people look like, but where they are in their journey — and who they’re becoming.
