For this shoot, everything began on a night in early August where I met Nicole for dinner downtown in Austin. She casually mentioned Jasmine Tookes as a potential next ICON for Bumpsuit and said the team had shared my work specifically, making me a potential option as photographer. The one thing I’ve learned in my short time in this career is to not hang onto anything at all until a contract is signed — so I allowed myself to take the compliment and stay hopeful for the potential opportunity.
Two weeks later, to my surprise, I was booked on a flight to Los Angeles to shoot a very pregnant Jasmine in Malibu. I met Nicole and Jen Darzi (her right hand) on the beach the night before the shoot to scout the spot. Nic and Jen stood in for a few test shots, and we all decided on a loose game plan for looks and locations the next day.
The morning after at the Airbnb, we prepped creative options and, after a few hiccups with the camera rental (why did I think I needed a medium format digital camera…?), we were ready to drive down to the beach with my camera assistant. I am not one to be overly confident on shoot days — I always become an existential nightmare, asking nobody in particular things like, “what makes an image better than another?” or “why me specifically, couldn’t anyone do this, realistically?” until I finally melt into the creative and forget anything else exists.
Beyond my early moments existential breakdown, the day was gorgeous. We started a few hours before sunset and ended while the sky turned pastel. The support team on set were a Godsend; even through moderate stressors like a threatening low battery and running low on disk space, we all kept our wits about us and created really beautiful photos. I was also lucky enough to shoot a lot of film that day, which is my most comfortable space to be in.
These photos were featured on wheat pastes around New York and Los Angeles, as well as features on WWD, Who What Wear, and more.
Model: Jasmine Tookes
Creative Director: Nicole Trunfio
Producer: Jen Darzi
Camera Assistant + Digital Tech: Christopher Squier
Assistant: Carmen Magaña
Hair and Makeup: Brittany Sullivan
