Portrait photography can run the gamut in type and style—everything from the traditional “head and shoulders” shot to lifestyle and environmental, candid and street, glamour, boudoir, maternity sessions and much more. This week, we focus on some of the eye-catching portraits and photos that caught our attention during the recent Palm Springs Photo Festival Portfolio Reviews, and the backstories on how the images were created.

Krystal Boney has always been drawn to the color red and to different hairstyles and accessories, which is why she made sure to capture this scene quickly while crossing the street in Chicago.

“I seek out people who are alone, engrossed in thought or engaged in a specific task or activity,” she explains. “Strong shadows provide mystique and a fine art aesthetic. The darker the shadow, the better.”

The photographer says that specific colors such as red stir up an emotional feeling inside of her. “I instantly become invested in the stranger wearing the color. I then proceed to frame my composition and take my shot, often snapping multiple frames of the same moment.” 

Karen Hirsch says that to capture the action of this horse roundup (which took place in low afternoon light) she had to wear a kerchief over her nose and mouth because of all the dust being kicked up. She photographed this as she looked down on the scene from a hill overlooking the action.

“This is one of my favorite images ever,” she exclaims. “It is a classic and I love the way the light catches the chestnut colored horse running with its mane straight back. The cowboys are wearing the same colored shirts and hats, which adds to the symmetry. And of course the red shirts capture attention.”

Hirsch adds that the dust rising up across the scene added to the atmosphere and emphasized the movement of the horses across the plain.

The photographer continues: “The image, titled ‘Yee Ha – Ya Ya Ya’ won the Image of the Year Award at Fort Dearborn-Chicago Photo Forum, one of the oldest camera clubs in the United States.”

Marco Giannavola, an NYC-based portrait photographer, took this image of Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater dancer Courtney Spears at home in New York City in 2020 as theaters and arts institutions remained closed due to the pandemic.

“I wondered where the artists that inhabit these places had gone and how they were spending this new found time,” says Giannavola, who photographed 13 performers in total for this personal project.

He reached out to dancers, actors and musicians around NYC and photographed them in their homes or wherever they were spending their time during the lockdown. “I traveled light, working with minimal gear and without an assistant, and each subject was styled in their own wardrobe.”

Giannavola says he really loves the general tone of the image: “There was this feeling of being at home and ‘waiting out the storm’ so to speak. The light was wonderful and Courtney was just a blast to work with. She has an effortless style and it was very easy to work together to create this image that sums up how many of us spent our time at home last year.”  

Eric Lawton photographed this image during “Glow Festival” at Santa Monica beach, of film projections onto the waves. “I saw this young girl gazing out into the beyond, which which struck me as timeless and iconic. The image has stayed with me for years,” he says. The image is from his book Event Horizon (Nazraeli Press, 2019), which explores the nature of perception and reality.

“This series was inspired from a line by American architect, engineer and futurist Buckminster Fuller, says Lawton. “He said, ‘The wave is not the water. The water merely tells us of the passing of the wave.’

“The images that inspire me are those that transcend space and time,” Lawton continues, “leaving their imprint on me long after they are out of view, resonating in emotion and significance. For me, this image evokes a sense of wonder, a connection with ancient memory, unbound by time or space. This is what I am seeking in my photographs.”

Dotan Saguy says this image, from his book Nowhere to Go but Everywhere, (Kehrer Verlag, 2020) is from a body of work about an eccentric Brazilian Mormon family who lives in a converted school bus with three young children (ages 2, 5 and 10 at the time of the project).

Saguy says that when he shoots street photography or documentary, he loves layering and telling multiple stories in one frame. “Layered images like these with juxtaposed moments are what I live for. In this image the family members are isolated in their own space with their own emotion and activity, despite sharing this tiny living space.”

He continues: “What drew me to this project was the stigma suffered by vehicle dwellers on the streets of Los Angeles. My objective was to help people see the beauty that can exist in this lifestyle and get an appreciation for it, hopefully leading to more tolerance.”

Dig into our Photo of the Day archives for even more compelling imagery.