Faces + Places: Connie
Friends for five years and roommates for nearly two, Connie was one of the first people I approached about whether she wanted to shoot some portraits. She’s fun, quirky, and likes to sing around our apartment. We’ve established that she’s basically Jess from New Girl.
The idea around my “Faces + Places” project is to photograph friends (and strangers) in their favourite spots/areas. Connie chose the Chinatown area and the basketball court near our place, two spots that she likes to walk around in her spare time. You should also know that she’s a huge Kawhi Leonard fan and routinely wears all-black, which explains the wardrobe for this shoot.
We hit Chinatown first and started outside the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Chinese Garden. The garden itself was closed due to a public holiday, but we made do by shooting around the entrance.
With our warmup complete, we walked a few blocks around Chinatown while keeping our eyes peeled for any good backdrops. We stumbled upon a parkade and I remarked that the rooftop might be a good spot for interesting light.
Hiking up the steep entrance ramp, we eventually found our way to an elevator, which took us to the R-marked rooftop floor. As soon as we exited into the open air, I knew we'd stumbled upon a hidden gem.
This nondescript parkade — which was completely devoid of cars or people — had an incredible, unobstructed view of the downtown Vancouver skyline. It’s always fun to unexpectedly discover amazing spots.
After shooting and admiring the view, it was time to make our way to the basketball court fifteen minutes away. Along the way, we snapped a couple spontaneous shots for good measure. Quick tip: Get creative with your locations — composition is key!
On our way to the court, I asked Connie what would happen if there were people playing. It was a beautiful, sunny afternoon — after weeks of nonstop rain. She insisted that she’d never encountered more than one or two people there.
So, of course, we arrive to find two separate half-court games going down. After sitting on the sidelines for a few minutes, we realized that neither game was getting all that close to half-court. So, although the court might look empty, these photos were captured while avoiding (most) of the basketball players — see if you can spot the one guy getting UP for a layup! Ball out, baby.
All in all, both of us were really stoked with the images that came out of this shoot. Connie claims that she usually looks awkward in front of the camera, but doesn’t she totally come off looking like a model in these? She killed it — and she did it all in chilly 4C weather. What a trooper.
After we put this shoot off for month (easy when you live together), I’m happy we finally got around to it. Stoked to share these images, hope you dig them!
Follow Connie on Instagram: @c.dyn
If you want your photo taken, send me an e-mail or DM me on Instagram at @richshoots!