Playtone. [Revisited]
In 2021, while searching for a creative outlet, I came up with a personal project called Playtone - a series of images featuring my kids’ toys. The response to the project seemed positive and it was a fun venture, so I’ve come back to revisit this bit of product photography.
When I initially shared this series, I asked for suggestions for color schemes or variations on the look. A fellow creative offered the idea of a two-tone image. That got the gears turning, and I jotted down some ideas for future images to create. But the project was put on hold because client work started picking up again (following the pandemic) mid-2021.
It wasn’t until I recently met a prop stylist that I made the effort to mark a calendar date to restart the project. Amber Halaka reached out to me via LinkedIn trying to make connections in Houston, since she was new to the area from the Midwest. We had lunch and hit it off. I knew her skills could definitely be beneficial to a portrait photog like me who doesn’t often pose/style inanimate objects. So we setup a test shoot and these images and gifs are the result.
Each of the 2Tone images are inspired by my twins. My boy loves all things construction - from dirt to hand tools to massive pieces of equipment. He has a particular fondness for excavators. If he sees his daddy going to fix something, he’ll grab his toolbox (full of mostly real tools) and lug it along to help. My girl loves all things princess - from fancy dresses and tea parties to makeup and painted fingernails. She regularly shows up to the playground in high heels and can often be heard requesting “Daddy, dance with me.” So these images are colors represented in their everyday play.
Hope you enjoy this continuation of Playtone. Feel free to pitch more ideas to add to the series or even better, let’s collaborate on a small-business branding session that features your products.
“Play has been man’s most useful preoccupation.”
- Frank Caplan
Prop Stylist: Amber Halaka
If you’re in Houston and need to add a stylist to your crew, look her up.
***Photographer’s note: Ninety percent of what you see on my site will be portraits. I don’t claim to be a product photographer, but I love to share any creative ventures that could inspire potential collaboration.
