Cake Boss

I was pleasantly surprised when I got the call to shoot Buddy Valestro "The Cake Boss" for the second time.
The first time we worked together was a few years back when his show was in it's beginning.
Buddy was great, he couldn't have been nicer or more accommodating. So I wondered, did success change the Cake Boss?

Well it didn't. Buddy is the same cake making family man that I meet a few years back. This time we shot at his home for an upcoming issue in the fall. I told my crew that  I felt like I was back home. A million people coming and going, tons of food everywhere you look, and that feeling of being in an Italian home. We all had a great time. Boy, I could do one of these shoots a week! Oh, here's an image of my first shoot with Buddy.

Dr. Clown

I recently had the privilege to work with two outstanding people. Richard Ellis and Julie Pasqual of Big Apple Circus. They are professional clowns who give some of their time entertaining sick children in hospitals. It takes a special talent to enter a room of a child who has been severely burned or with cancer and to know how far you can go and where the boundaries are. It was incredible to see them in action. Not only are they funny and very entertaining, they really have great awareness of every situation. The patients absolutely loved their visit and of course being the stranger in the room taking photos, I was the brunt of many of theirs stunts and gags. Felt like a normal day!

Treasured Memories

I love shooting video. It opens up so many more possibilities that I don't have with still. Although I'm not quite ready to give up my cameras! Check out my test spot for Blackberry.

http://www.polillio.com/Treasured_Memories.html

My biggest Lie

A buddy of mine who makes a living as a model, told me that the trend in casting is clients requesting cell phone photos of models be sent to them instead of comp cards. Evidently too many models are lying about the way they look thanks to photoshop. It's never been easier to lie than it is these days. It got me to thinking, what's the biggest fib I ever told? While I've never manipulated anyones looks to misrepresent who they are, I remember one shoot that I was doing in a very hip Korean coffee bar. The stylist had this great looking pair of designer pants that only fit a rather short and portly crew member. The art director asked me if I could make it work. 

So I did a photoshop weight loss & extension program.

"I Will Survive"

70's disco diva Gloria Gaynor was such a joy to work with and a real pro. We put her to the test too! Having chronic knee problems, Gloria found Euflexxa to provide her with the relief that she needed so she could dance and perform again. Despite photographing her on her knees, exercising, dancing, etc., she did an awesome job and even sang for us! That was a treat!

30 foot High Little Girl

I was pleased but not surprised when I saw an image that I shot for Toys R Us printed with amazing detail and sharpness on the side of the Queens Mall. The little girl is 30' high! Unfortunately the the building was in backlight when I saw this image, but the quality is amazing. Many times clients wonder if they will get good enough enlargements from "35mm size" digital SLR's as opposed to shooting with medium format.

The Canon professional cameras produce amazing results and give me the speed and flexibility that I need when I shoot people in action or for catching that perfect moment. This image was shot with a Canon EOS 1D Mark III.

What was I shooting?

Okay, everyone's asking me about my profile picture. What was I shooting? Was I afraid of getting zapped? Do I have a thing for ducks?  Well here it is. We were shooting in the Florida Keys for Mirapex. I love working with art director Russell Wakelin, besides being very creative and spontaneous, Russell doesn't seem to be content with just having me shoot in a nice comfortable studio. He prefers having me either getting rained on, sitting in water, or getting sprayed with a hose. But I wouldn't have it any other way! The models were all terrific thanks to my great producer, Beth Mosner of One twelfth Productions. She did a great job finding the models some of whom are real Parkinson's patients. They were a lot of fun and had great enthusiasm.

Autism Speaks Video

I had the privilege to work again with the super talented Dina Pace who produced the video for the Autism Speaks Campaign. Dina captured the spirit of these kids and the people who are extremely dedicated to their care and education.
Check it out:
http://www.paceproduction.com/client/TRU_AutismHeroes_Final_640x360.mov

Autism Speaks Campaign

Having a child with Autism, I was really excited when asked by Toys R US to shoot the new campaign for Autism Speaks. The project exceeded my expectations. The kids were AWESOME! We had such a great day, they really made my job easy. I hope the campaign will be a great success. Autism helps one to appreciate the simplest things in life and it's fragility. Despite the many hardships a family goes through, Autistic kids are a tremendous gift!