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Andre DeLoach Empyrean Photography

Posted Saturday 27th June 2009by Editor

A realisation that men, at their core, are limitless sources of beauty.

Who are you?

Wow. Very big existential question here! I will keep it simple and say that my name is Andre DeLoach. I am a photographer and the business name I operate under is Empyrean Photography. And the ultimate mission of Empyrean Photography is “Seeing Men Beautifully.” Lastly I am based in Long Beach, California, in the USA.

Are you a self-taught photographer or did you have a mentor that showed you the ropes?

I am sort of a hybrid: In the very beginning of my career, I did take two photography courses at my local city college in the evenings but the bulk of what I learned came from reading a bunch of photography guides, attending seminars, and jumping in and doing the work. But essentially I believe all photographers are “self-taught”. Whether you enroll in a class or a full-blown academic program or develop your own study curriculum, YOU have to assess and determine what you doing well and where you want to improve. And once you have done that, YOU have seek out what you need to improve in terms of your visual thinking or your shooting technique or your post-production skills and YOU have to go after it. To answer the part about mentors, yes, I have had a variety of photography mentors. Some I have gone back to repeatedly and others I have only spoken to once. But I consider them all mentors.

What sort of equipment and software do you use?

I use Canon DSLR cameras and lenses. The primary software I use ALL the time is: Adobe Lightroom, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Bridge and an assortment of Photoshop plug-ins.

Who would be the person you would most love to shoot?

This may sound strange but I do not have a long list of models in my head that I am just dying to work with. But I welcome the opportunity of working with Roberto Bolle. He is regarded as one of the best (if not the best) male ballet dancer in the world. What attracts me to Roberto is his rich physical expressiveness. He seems to emote great feeling through his body and face when he dances. In the photographs I have seen of him at work, Roberto seems to go beyond technique and offers himself over to the emotions of a dance. I have always enjoyed working with dancers as models because these men have a physical sensibility that closely matches my visual sensibility.

What is your opinion on post-processing, especially enhancing pictures?

I used to be all rabid about not altering a photograph because I somehow saw it as “a copy of reality” and I would question: “If you changed the photograph what was the point in “recording” the image anyway?” Thank god I am no longer a slave to that way of thinking! In my personal work, I relish the opportunity to continue crafting my images. In my commercial and editorial work, I keep in mind what the client needs or expects and work within those limits. Since I am not a documentary photographer or photojournalist, I do as I please with my images. Sometimes I will do a lot of post-production work and sometimes I will not. My photography is about my self-expression and creating images that express what I see in my imagination and more importantly what I feel in my heart. I think I would be at home with a punch of Expressionist artists. I see post-production work whether it is in the darkroom or on the computer as an essential part of the overall picture-making process.

Black and White or Colour photography?

Whatever tickles my fancy! There is an irreplaceable beauty inherent in each form of photography. In my opinion, one is not better than the other. My pleasure is to explore which approach best suits my needs and desires at the given time. Even though I am completely digital in terms of my photography, I am glad that I studied Black and White film photography in school. Those studies provided me with an experience of traditional photography, connected me to the legacy of photography, and helped to better understand the impetus for certain particular digital effects and techniques.

Where is your favorite location to take pictures? In your studio, or on location? And how do you decide on locations and subjects?

Currently, I shoot most of my work in the studio. I believe I do so because I have more control of the lighting conditions and, right now, I prefer uncluttered background in many of my images. This allows me to manipulate and alter the backgrounds to my liking and/or to add elements that were not in the original recording of the image. I decide on my locations and models based on the visual ideas I have in my imagination for a given shoot.

Where is the most spectacular place you have ever shot?

I would say in the studio. It supports my visual ideas and photographic needs the best these days. I am not against shooting on location. I have done some real ‘guerilla photography” in downtown Los Angeles and Long Beach, and I have done my share of beach shooting while standing waist deep in the Pacific Ocean. New locations I would love to shoot in would be abandoned churches and temples, arid desert spaces near me, and any building by Santiago Calatrava. Calatrava designs many of his structures based on the essence of the human body. Even as I write this, I am thrilling at the prospect of a lean, muscular male body engaged in some way with an architectural element of Calatrava’s beautiful designs! Oh, I could create some delicious images indeed!!

What would you say to other enthusiast photographers out there who aspire to what you’ve achieved?

Follow your inner vision! Shoot what brings you pleasure! Remain an enthusiast! The world needs ‘Your’ vision! The rest of us are enriched when you share images that are authentic and are an out-picturing of your imagination, values, concerns, fears, desires, and aspirations. I am not saying that everyone will gush over your work or even like it. And “everybody” will not like your work. What is most important is that you, ultimately you, love your work and, if it is not a completely solitary enterprise, make your work available so that other can be enriched by having viewed it, regardless if the viewers are art directors, collectors, family and friends, patrons, potential licensees, etc.

Who are you inspired by in the art world?

Some of the image makers whose work ignites pleasure and new ideas for me are: Herb Ritts, Victor Skrebneski, Richard MacDonald (sculptor), Andreas Bitesnich, Richard Avedon, Alexey Brodovitich (art director), Francois Rousseau, Santiago Calatrava (architect), Alex Ross (comic book artist) and Frederick Hart (sculptor).

What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?

I’m going to mess with your question a little… I have just published my first photo book, entitled Ganymede. And I am a little taken aback at how much I have enjoyed the book design process. I am currently studying material on graphic design and book design. I am inspired by the magnificent work of my very great friend, Mark Henderson, who has just published an exquisite book of male nudes, Household Idols, [shameless plug for him!]. So, I am committed to integrating book design and publishing into my career as a photographer.

What is the ONE lasting impression you want to leave in your photos?

I want those who see my work, especially other men (myself included), to come away with a realisation that men, at their core, are limitless sources of Beauty.

Your top 5 websites you think people should visit?

Santiago Calatrava: www.calatrava.com
Richard MacDonald: www.richardmacdonald.com
Frederick Hart: www.frederickhart.com
Andreas H. Bitesnich: www.bitesnich.com
Alex Ross: alexrossart.com
(Email me for a list of inspirational books as well.)

How do people see your work and get in touch?

Those interested may see a more extensive sampling of my work can visit my website: www.empyreanphotography.com

Patrons interested in commissioning new work for their collections, male models that would like to work with Andre, and art directors are invited to contact him at andre@empyreanphotography.com or through his website’s email feature on the site’s Contact page. Anyone who would like to receive updates on his work is welcome to join the Empyrean Photography Mailing List, also available on his website.

Images © and courtesy of Andre DeLoach Empyrean Photography