Creative Collaborations: How I Work With Models to Build Portfolio Work That Actually Matters
Not every shoot is a commission. Some of the most interesting work I produce happens outside the brief . in collaborations built around a shared vision rather than a client deliverable.
This is the foundation of the Portfolio Sessions I offer each season: a limited number of creative collaborations with professional models who are looking to add something genuinely different to their book. Not another studio headshot. Not a catalogue image. Something cinematic, naturalistic, and immediately distinctive.
Why I Work This Way
The photographers whose work I admire most : Greg Williams, Peter Lindbergh built their visual identity not just through commissioned work, but through the freedom of personal projects. Images made without a brief, without a client, without constraints. That freedom produces work that is impossible to manufacture on demand.
The Portfolio Sessions exist for that reason. They give me the space to develop and push my 2026 aesthetic. cleaner, quieter, more Leica. while producing portfolio content that is genuinely useful for the models I work with.
Who These Sessions Are For
I work with a limited number of models each season. The selection is intentional , not because exclusivity is a goal in itself, but because the quality of the work depends entirely on the quality of the collaboration.
The models I work best with are those who understand the difference between being photographed and being present. Agency-represented talent, models with a solid track record in editorial or commercial work, professionals who come to a shoot with a point of view rather than waiting to be directed.
The result, when the collaboration works, is portfolio content that neither of us could have produced alone.
What the Session Looks Like
Every session is built around a specific visual direction, a location in Milan, a mood, a light condition , discussed and agreed beforehand. I shoot with the Leica Q3 for stills and the iPhone 17 Pro Max for motion, always in natural light, always in real locations. No studio, no artificial lighting, no crew.
The session runs between one and three hours. The model receives ten cinematically edited selects per outfit, high-resolution files, and motion content ready for portfolio and social use.
The Application Process
Portfolio Sessions are not open to everyone. Each application is reviewed individually based on experience, portfolio quality, and fit with the current visual direction of the project.
If you are a professional model with agency representation or a verifiable track record in fashion and editorial work, and you are interested in adding cinematic, natural light content to your book, you can apply directly on the Portfolio Sessions page.
Applications are reviewed within 24 hours.
