I regularly photograph portrait assignments for the ABA Journal.  With many of these assignments, the challenge is to create an interesting environmental portrait, within an environment that isn’t always so interesting looking (read law office).  This, however, is not to say that the subjects themselves are uninteresting- they can actually be pretty fascinating.

Take University of Miami law professor, Mary Anne Franks for example. When she’s not duking it out over anti-cyberbullying and ‘revenge porn’ laws, she’s kicking butt as an expert practitioner of the Israeli martial art, Krav Maga.

The ABA Journal article featuring Mary Anne can be seen here,

http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/bully_fighting_new_yorks_high_court_says_anti_cyberbullying_law_wont_pass_f

And thankfully the University of Miami campus has some highly photogenic outdoor areas.

For my shoot, with attorney, Eduardo Palmer, we played up his focus on international law by incorporating the beautiful map and globe decoratively displayed in his office, as well as his cool antique compass (pictured at left).  He also agreed to a second set-up (not pictured) at one of my favorites spots in Coral Gables, Books and Books, where we got to chat over his ‘prop’ espresso…not bad for a days work.

Check out the article here,

http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/international_law_bar_takes_aim_at_overbroad_bans_on_shariah_law

In the case of my portrait assignment with Andrew Smulian, CEO of Ackerman, I lucked out a bit when it came to his environment, as not only is he an avid art collector, but he is also married to an interior designer.  Since the article spoke to the technological advances Ackerman is making by way of research and development, I thought the fun fingerprint art print and gear clock (at left) were appropriate.

Link to article,

http://www.abajournal.com/magazine/article/akerman_takes_time_to_find_new_ideas_for_client_service