Photography - Anatomy of a Studio Portrait by John Cornicello

7/29/2018

I've often said the fun of this industry has little to do with photography but the friendships that come out of everyone's love for the craft. Well, it's time to meet one of the nicest guys in photography, John Cornicello. Although John and I had known of each other and shared a number of good friends for many years, it wasn't until my two-day marketing program on CreativeLive in 2012 we actually had a chance to meet.

Recently I discovered his book on Amazon, Anatomy of a Studio Portrait. Usually a title like that means the basics - exposure, composition and lighting. Well, John never does anything halfway and this book is one of the most thorough I've ever read.

There are thirteen chapters covering all the ingredients to consider when creating a stunning portrait, even the backdrop, aspect ratio and depth of field.

However, the most fun for me when it comes to friends in this industry is digging back to their roots. From 1985 to 1991, ABC, A&E, and The Travel Channel aired a weekly half-hour TV show for photographers called “World of Photography.” I went and did a little digging and found the video of John below from thirty years ago.

Technology has changed a lot over the last three decades, but not John's demeanor, passion for the craft or his dedication to quality and education. Check out the book with a click on any of the images in this post and you'll also find John as a regular on many past episodes of CreativeLive along with his own channel of 39 videos. Just wander over to YouTube.