GIRLS' LIFE Holiday Issue featuring Freya Skye

I received a last-minute opportunity to fly out to London to do a shoot for Girls’ Life Magazine in September. This was our first time (Rebecca and I) in London, and we absolutely loved it. The city is incredible, and so is the food, despite what you may have heard. We started with the cover shot in the kind of space I would like to have at one point - JJ Studios, which is fantastic! There is a ton of space, great natural light if needed, a coffee bar, equipment rental, etc. We then ventured out to some of the iconic parts of London to shoot the editorial. This was my first time shooting in a big city like London among the crowds; it was a wild experience and definitely worth it. Our subject - Freya Skye, was an absolute trooper! It was a long day, and I found myself getting pretty tired and hungry toward the end, but not Freya; she kept her energy and spirits up for the entirety of the shoot! I was really impressed with her attitude and ease in front of the camera. Thank you for the talented Girls’ Life crew: Wardrobe Styling - Whitney Brielle | Hair & Makeup - Sophia Hutch | Special assistance by Rebecca Lima.

A few BTS shots:

The Newman Residence

I recently had the privilege of photographing a breathtaking residence in Highland, Utah. This exquisite dream home, envisioned by its owners, Brandon and Misty Newman, is a masterpiece of functional design. The Newmans generously welcomed me into their stunning property, allowing me to capture its beauty and essence through my lens.

In the words of Brandon Newman:
“Growing up, most Sundays, my parents would drag us kids to faraway places to see homes under construction. I would watch as they commented on the architecture, style, and function. Those countless Sunday house drives turned into a passion for beautiful homes and a desire to combine all those designs into a beautiful and inspiring while, functional and comfortable home for our family. This is the dream Misty and I brought to Millhaven 7 years ago. They helped us bring the impossible to life, from architecture and design to construction and decor. Now, after 6 months of living in our dream home, we could not be happier with the finished product, along with the continued support from the best in the business! Thank you, Millhaven!”

The ANDOLSEK "Romanov" collection

I’m happy to finally share the full gallery of a collection I photographed for ANDOLSEK in 2022. This was yet another magical collaboration between an incredibly talented and unique fashion designer - Michael Andolsek, and a crew filled with some of my favorite models, hair & makeup crew. My partner, Rebecca Lima, helped me produce this project; I couldn’t have done it without her.

Here’s what Mr. Andolsek himself had to say about his inspiration for the collection:
”I made this collection during the pandemic— about a hundred years after the February Revolution in Russia. In 1917, the Romanovs’ lives changed forever at that point, and those of their compatriots and subjects did too. The poignancy of this struck me. Only barely a century later, the COVID-19 pandemic instigated profound cultural shifts of similar magnitude. A phenomenon of reevaluation swept the globe for many. It impacted me, too, and I reassessed things in my life.”

Credits:
Wardrobe/Design: Michael Andolsek
Production: Rebecca Lima
Models: Elsa Harper / Kasemire Dieumerci / Leanne Freedman
Hair: Steven Robertson
Makeup: Liz Oyeneyin - Shades Of Radiance Beauty

Manifest

I am doing highly creative work for clients who value what I do and are just as invested in building long-lasting professional relationships built on trust and respect.

My clients encourage me to bring my ideas and concepts to the table. They recognize that my creativity is one of my most valuable parts. There’s a difference between just taking pictures and telling a story and creating a narrative.

My clients hire me because my work has a unique voice and aesthetic. There’s a level of taste and sophistication that is rare, especially at a time when so much focus is placed on trends.

I work with people who yearn for authentic human interaction and create content that truly stands out. We value the importance of the creative process and the artisans and craftsmen who have influenced the world around us as much as anyone in the tech industry.

I am grateful to follow my passion and do what I truly love for a living. I am happy and content knowing I am fulfilling my life’s purpose.

-Phillip Istomin

SCELTO Restaurant Interiors

I had the pleasure of photographing a gorgeous new restaurant - SCELTO. The interior design element was executed by two incredible, multi-talented people: Gary Vlasic and Jamie Clyde. The space has a dark, moody, swanky, sexy vibe. I love the richness of velvet, the sleekness of stone, and the warmth of wood throughout the interior. Gary’s own original art is also on display in the private dining room as well as the bathroom entryway. Salt Lake City keeps growing and evolving into a place that I feel proud to be a part of. The food scene here is pretty fantastic, and SCELTO is just one of the latest additions. Hope you see and taste it for yourself.

iDKHOW GLOOM DIVISION

I was fortunate enough to be contacted by Concord Records last summer to see if I’d be interested in shooting the album artwork as well as press photos for Dallon Weekes and his band I DON’T KNOW HOW BUT THEY FOUND ME. I jumped onboard with little hesitation since music was my first love and form of creative expression prior to photography. I’m always excited to have the opportunity to combine the two mediums. Dallon’s vision for this project matched my aesthetic perfectly, it was a natural fit. I had a great time collaborating with everyone involved to bring Dallon’s vision to life. I recently got my hands on an actual physical copy of GLOOM DIVISION and was blown away by the the quality and execution of the packaging. Here are some snaps:

iDKHOW GLOOM DIVISION credits:
Photography: MANICPROJECT
Creative Direction: Dallon Weekes
Graphic Design: Sage LaMonica
Styling: Farasha
Hair&Makeup: Paula Dahlberg / Nikki Breedlove

---

Press photos and magazine covers that have come out recently:

Utah Style & Design Angie Harrington Feature

Super excited to get the cover story for Utah Style & Design. This is my second time working with Angie. First shoot was featured in People Magazine and the second made the cover of US&D! Which means we’re 2 for 2 :) Always a pleasure. See the full feature here.

The Ashton project interiors

This is a recent favorite interior design project I photographed for Katie Conner & Lisman Studio. Katie is talented beyond her years and this is the latest of several shoots we’ve done together. Here’s what she had to say about the project:

“This luxe interior in the heart of Salt Lake City combines ultimate comfort with sleek and refined craftsmanship. When our client approached us looking for a luxuriously sophisticated second home, we jumped at the chance to bring their dreams to life. Their only requirement for this entire project was, "Wow". I mean, what more could a designer ask for? 

Bringing a strong skillset and intense creativity was a must. We spent nearly 6 months simply refining the palette and diving deep into unusual materials and processes. After working very closely with our most trusted local craftsmen and builders, we pulled together a uniquely stunning home with incredible architectural features and luxurious furniture.”

-Katie Conner

Suddenly it's now

We’ve all been hearing about AI for a while now, but up until last year or so, it was a somewhat alien concept looming in the not-so-distant future. But now we all find ourselves a part of some great experiment, whether we are ready for it or not. Someone likened it to a 20-mile-wide asteroid that has made an impact with the world as we know it. I think that’s an apt analogy. Will we fare as well as the dinosaurs did? This remains to be seen. 

BBC.com

I wanted to share my thoughts specifically on the way AI is affecting and will surely continue to greatly impact the area of life in which I found my calling—creativity. Photographers, retouchers, and digital artists have been manipulating images for years. I’m sure most of us are grateful for the advancements in computer software that have made this process abundantly easier, more user-friendly, and far less time-consuming. I’ve personally never been a big fan of heavy digital manipulation. Complex, Marvel-like photo composites just never did it for me. In most cases, that type of work just came off as fake to me—more digital skills than art. The same goes for films, my main source of influence. I don’t want to be able to easily tell what’s CG and what was clearly shot on a green screen. That’s why I admire a director like Christopher Nolan so much. He thrives on making his films as real as possible by doing the vast majority of his effects in-camera while shooting on film with giant, burdensome IMAX cameras. His new film, Oppenheimer, is said to not have any CGI effects whatsoever. That’s an INCREDIBLE feat in this day and age. Sadly, Nolan is a dying breed of film director.

My favorite director working today, David Fincher, is someone who embraces the latest technology but only uses it in subtle ways in service of the story. He will meticulously obsess over every detail in order to achieve a level of realism that becomes impossible for the viewer to decipher from the special effects he deploys.

Embed Block

Add an embed URL or code. Learn more

And now we have Hollywood writers and actors on strike, partially due to AI’s "existential threat." We’ve reached a point where someone with no credible skills or experience can simply download an app and make Arnold Schwarzenegger sing and dance like Whitney Houston. Isn’t that "fun?" More mind-numbing entertainment to consume while scrolling on the toilet. AI can write you a script good enough for a Netflix night in.

Los Angeles Times

But getting back to photography... I remember the first time I saw some of the Midjourney-produced images that exploded all over Instagram and the internet at large a few months ago. For those of you unaware, Midjourney is a generative AI program that generates images from natural language descriptions called "prompts." Basically, you type in key words and key phrases in order for the AI to generate whatever creative concept you have in mind. These "creations" were impressive, to say the least. Some of them were incredibly wild, surreal, and unreal, which of course they were. Suddenly, people were given the ability to create Wes Anderson-like film stills from the comfort of their homes. After a while, I learned how to spot them. Everything in the image was either too weird or too perfect. The beautiful human level of slight imperfection was missing, unless you count odd hands and fingers that AI seems to produce… Midjourney and other programs like it completely bypass most stages of the creative process. The prep, the planning, the scouting, the sourcing, the casting, and most importantly, the collaboration with other humans, as well as the actual shooting, are completely unnecessary. You can just sit in your house and feed prompts into the machine. It’s yet another shortcut created to make our lives "easier." Another "technological advancement" to keep us from having to interact with other people in the physical world. I personally value human creation over artificial generation. 

It comes as a shock to realize that the creatives of the world make up a segment of society seriously threatened by the implementation of AI, before the blue-collar workers or individuals with seemingly more "mundane" jobs.

Of course, some people will say that these are just more tools to aid the artist in their creations. What’s the harm in building out your fantasies in a world that is starting to resemble a kind of "virtual reality" with every passing moment? Well, it becomes a problem when you can alter someone’s appearance beyond recognition. You can literally turn someone’s frown into a smile, take off 20 years and 20lbs and call it good. Put out more fake content into the world. Distort reality; create your own version of reality. Life imitates art, and vice versa.

Embed Block

Add an embed URL or code. Learn more

I think a lot of us have a love-hate relationship with technology. In some ways, the tech industry has produced some of the greatest inventions of our time, but it’s a double-edged sword, like most things. Social media was sold to us with the promise of connecting with other people, but the side effect so many of us are experiencing now is an epidemic of loneliness and isolation. We are slowly losing our humanity to the machines that we’ve created. Everything has become instant gratification: instant result, instant dopamine hit. We’ve cut out the journey of discovery, which to me is what makes life and being a human so beautiful. We’re growing more numb, needing more and more stimuli with each software update and the latest gadget unveiling. We’re also overwhelmed by the amount of information and visuals broadcasted into our minds via our precious, shiny hand-held monoliths every single day. The tech industry is creating a world of machines. What will be our purpose as humans? What’s the end game? The next few years will be fascinating and very telling, no doubt. We have no choice but to adapt and fight for our survival so we don’t end up obsolete, like the dinosaurs.

People Magazine Feature

I’ve always had dreams and ambitions when it comes to my career and life in general, but I never thought that my photos would end up in People Magazine. Thank you Chris and Angie for trusting me to capture these images and help you share your story.

Click on the image above to read the full People feature.

Portrait work for Utah Business Magazine

I’ve had the great pleasure of shooting for Utah Business Magazine for the past 2 years or so, and I believe that this experience has led me to become a better portrait photographer. Most of the people who end up in front of my camera for these shoots are not exactly ecstatic to be photographed. This is simply the case with most people who are not professional models, or influencers, whatever that word means… I realized pretty early on that my people skills had to improve if I wanted to get something special out of my subjects. The great Annie Leibovitz once stated: “There’s this idea that it’s the portrait photographer’s job to set the subject at ease. I don’t believe in setting people at ease.” This is only works some of the time in my experience, but I believe that most people do need to be guided towards a place where they can slightly lower their guard. Most people have a rehearsed “photo face,” but that’s the last thing I want. I’m always on a mission to get a look, a moment that seems candid, genuine, and authentic.

Brian G. Lloyd

Nikki Walker

Christopher Sanchez

Steven Larsen

Tina Larson

Joseph Carbone

Amber Leavitt

Amir A.H. Jackson

Sam Hobson

Brooks Kirchheimer

Yasmen Simonian

Chris Crittenden

Canvas Rebel Feature

Read my recent interview with Canvas Rebel here: https://canvasrebel.com/meet-phillip-istomin/

Lisman Studio Work

Last year we gained a wonderful client - Lisman Studio, a commercial and residential interior design firm. We have collaborated with a number of talented designers on the team in photographing some of the residential projects featured in this post. Interior design photography has become a major point of emphasis in our work over the past five years. Our goal is to keep improving, evolving, and working towards creating a feeling of being in the space while viewing the images.

Seul Mais Pas Solitaire

This fashion editorial was a complete labor of love. People ask me all of the time what type of projects I enjoy doing the most, and I would have to say that this is a perfect example of that. It’s truly a magical experience to conceive an idea and see it all the way through. It takes a lot of time and dedication to put something like this together, from wardrobe to location, to juggling everyone’s schedules… but it is all worth it. The images last forever, and the enjoyment of everyone collaborating together to bring an idea to life fuels the soul.

Wardrobe & styling: Rebecca Lima
Hair: Randi Hieb
Makeup: Carissa Deppe
Model: Elsa Harper
Thank you: Taylor Olson & Mariana Harper

Utah Business 20 in their 20s

I was asked to photograph this project recently. I loved the visual concept which consisted of red lighting, black wardrobe, and strong contrast. The honorees were fun to work with, most everyone being game to try anything and just have fun with it. Thank you for having me, Utah Business.

Read on

Acknowledgements

It’s always a good feeling to be recognized for your work. Here are a couple of articles that came out recently.

peerspace.com

---

giggster.com

Voyage Utah Interview

A recent interview I did with VoyageUtah.com. Read it HERE.

2021 So Far...

Hi there. I wanted to share a few things that we’ve been up to in 2021. I don’t have to tell you about the crazy times we live in, but I can tell you how thankful we are whenever we are able to create and do what we love. We seem to forget all the troubles of the world when we find ourselves enthralled in a project. Luckily we’ve had a few that we’d like to highlight here.

---

Shades of Radiance Beauty:

Liz, the makeup artist, reached out to me on instagram and asked me to help her create some outstanding images for her portfolio. This was our first time working together, and it went just about as well as either one of us could have hoped for. The first image (leopard gloves) was actually the last look we spontaneously put together, and it is my favorite. Hair magic provided by Tenesha Luckett and the incredible model pictured is Kasemire Dieumerci. Shades of Radiance Beauty

---

Brickyard Bar:

Had a great time photographing this private lounge room along with the fantastic cocktails and delicious food at Brickyard Bar. Being able to taste everything was a major bonus for a foodie like myself. TheBrickyardBar.com

---

Dexterity Salon:

Yet another collaboration with my Dexterity family highlighting their new product “in:dex.” Makeup by Kristen Packard | Model: Sadie Olson. DexteritySalon.com

---

Anne Carr Design:

It’s always flattering to be approached by out-of-state clients. Anne is an incredibly talented interior designer based in Los Angeles, CA. This is a project she helped design in Victory Ranch, UT. See more photos here: annecarrdesign.com/victory-ranch

---

Khalm Skincare:

Rebecca and I love to combine business with pleasure and we were able to do just that while capturing some of the photos you see here. The environmental shots of the beautiful Khalm bottles above were captured along the stunning 17 mile drive in Monterey, CA. The studio shots were also a blast to create. We love having the freedom to experiment and improvise on our own time, it’s always a fun and educational experience. KhalmSkincare.com

---

Girls’ Life Magazine:

Sofia was such a pleasure to photograph. She’s obviously super comfortable in front of the camera. I love the soft and painterly quality of these images. Styled by Wilford Lenov. Hair by Angelina Panelli. Makeup by Mylah Morales for Six K L.A. Beauty copy by Erin Reimel. On-set prop styling by Whitney Brielle. Painted backdrop by Ultraviolet. GirlsLife.com

---

Julie Assenberg Design:

I love being able to put my graphic design background to use. I was able to photograph and design this ad for Julie Assenberg, which appeared in the September 2021 issue of Architectural Digest. My style is always clean and simple with a pop of color. In this case, the pop of color comes from Julie’s vibrant designs. JulieAssenberg.com

---

Baranof Jewelers:

This shoot was a dream. I obviously LOVE having my love and partner Rebecca in front of the camera. Yes, I’m a little bias. Her beauty perfectly compliments and elevates the jewelry in my opinion. Major credit goes to Sophie Islip for her vision, direction, and styling. Hair by Nikki Breedlove. Baranofjewelers.com

---

Sascha Test Shoot

Rebecca and I spotted Sascha at one of our favorite restaurants while brunching. We both though she had a lovely face and my instinct was telling me that I should photograph her. We gave her our business card and hoped that she would reach out. Luckily she did. Sascha proved to be a natural just as I expected. She took direction extremely well, her natural beauty and softness was easy to capture. I’m not sure if Sascha is going to pursue modeling, but I certainly hope she does.

Victory Ranch

A project we photographed recently for Anne Carr Design. Click on the image below to see full gallery.