About Clayton Gates

I am a Brooklyn-based photographer specializing in environmental portraiture for editorial, commercial, or personal use. I'm available for commissioned work and am always ready to discuss potential projects.

The following reveals my approach to photography:

Why is photography important?

Photography is important because it has the power to convey information in an extremely efficient manner. And it has the potential to be engagingly beautiful at the same time.

Whether a photograph is meant to be a standalone image or accompanied by text, it should be more than an illustration of the topic at hand. A good photograph should encourage the viewer look deeply into the subject and discover something extra. A successful photograph is one that directly engages and pulls the viewer in to explore all its intricacies.

Why do I like to photograph people?

Because it is so difficult.

It's very easy to take a simple snapshot. But to take a photograph of someone that is honest, compelling, introspective, and at the same time artistic, that's the challenge.

It's a cliche, but people are infinite in their variety: in body, in dress, in their environment, and in their personal histories. The challenge is to make an image that wraps all this into a single frame that reveals who they are without it appearing forced or posed. I want to make images that tell stories about their subjects, but without the stories seeming too rehearsed.

How do I take a good portrait?

I look for what reveals the subject's character. I look at their eyes, the way they use their hands, their personal gestures, their natural body language. After that it becomes a combination of location, finding the right light source, relaxing the subject, framing the image, waiting for the absolute right moment, and then capturing it correctly with the camera.