Stockland Martel » Essence

Nino Muñoz photographs Kerry Washington for the cover of Essence

Kristina Feliciano — Tue, 26 Nov 2013 12:39:50 +0000

Kerry Washington. Photo by Nino Muñoz for Essence, November 2013 issue.

Photo by Nino Muñoz.

Kwaku Alston photographs Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry for Essence cover story

Kristina Feliciano — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:52:42 +0000

Kwaku Alston went to Atlanta to photograph Oprah Winfrey and Tyler Perry for the cover of Essence‘s June issue, which just hit newsstands. “We only had a total of 30 minutes to photograph these two media moguls and create an iconic cover,” notes Kwaku. Read more about the shoot at his blog, artofstudio.com.

Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey. Photo by Kwaku Alston for Essence, June 2013 issue.

Photo by Kwaku Alston for Essence.

Stunning new photographs of Janelle Monae by Kwaku Alston

Kristina Feliciano — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 17:55:02 +0000

Kwaku Alston recently produced a stunning set of new portraits of Janelle Monae for Essence‘s April issue, marking the second time he’s shot the uniquely stylish musical artist for the magazine (see their previous collaboration here).

“The first Monae shoot (under creative direction of Deborah Boardley) for Essence focused on her as a musician, using her iconic and retro style to motivate and frame the imagery,” Kwaku explains. “However, for this second shoot, we were inspired to create a fashion glamour story molded from sci-fi dreams and colorful space travel. To set the mood, I chose to shoot in an unfinished futuristic Frank Lloyd Wright structure overlooking the hills of Malibu with the ocean in the distance: Janelle Monae lands on Mars.”

Read more about the shoot at Kwaku’s blog, Art of Studio.

Janelle Monae. Photo by Kwaku Alston.

Photo by Kwaku Alston.

Photo by Kwaku Alston for Essence, May 2013 issue.

Kwaku Alston photographs LL Cool J for Essence cover story. Plus: behind-the-scenes video

Kristina Feliciano — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 15:58:07 +0000

Kwaku Alston recently photographed LL Cool J for Essence‘s March cover story. Here’s a look, along with video from their shoot, which took place at Concrete Loft in Los Angeles…

LL Cool J. Photos by Kwaku Alston for Essence, March 2013 issue.

Photo by Kwaku Alston for Essence.

Nino Muñoz photographs Alicia Keys for Essence cover story

Kristina Feliciano — Wed, 02 Jan 2013 13:19:05 +0000

Nino Muñoz—who shot the album art for Alicia Keys‘ latest release, Girl on Fire—photographed the fabulous singer-songwriter for the January issue of Essence. He worked with creative director Greg Monfries, editor at large Emil Wilbekin, and photo editor Rebecca Karamehmedovic.

“Our mission was to create iconic images,” says Nino. “We shot Alicia in a way that represents who she is—talented yet approachable, but a true icon. She’s a star and a beautiful person both inside and out.”

Credits

Stylist: June Ambrose
Hair: Matthew Monzon
Makeup: Dotti
Manicurist: Dawn Sterling
.

Alicia Keys. Photo by Nino Muñoz for Essence, January 2013 issue.

Photo by Nino Muñoz.

Photos by Nino Muñoz.

Photo by Nino Muñoz.

New work: Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade by Matthew Rolston (updated with commentary by Emil Wilbekin)

Kristina Feliciano — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:16:28 +0000

For Essence‘s February cover story, creative director Greg Monfries and editor-at-large Emil Wilbekin worked with Matthew Rolston on a romantic-getaway photo story featuring actress Gabrielle Union and NBA star Dwyane Wade, who are also a gorgeous couple in real life.

The idea was to show Gabrielle looking fabulous in resort-luxe attire, with Dwyane at his most debonaire, and it all came together thanks to a sizzling tropical setting (Miami Beach), lots of natural chemistry, and a photographer with an eye for beauty.

Khadijat Oseni, the agent here at Stockland Martel who worked on this account, asked Emil for his thoughts on working with Matthew. And he very kindly obliged. (Thank you, Emil!) Here’s what he said:

“Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade are a beautiful couple, and Matthew Rolston was also able to capture the heat, connectivity and emotion of their romance for ESSENCE.

From the stunning cover shot to the intimate moments between takes, Matthew photographed this superstar couple with ease and grace despite the humidity, mosquitos, and the entourages.

Matthew’s lighting really brought their sensuality to life and showed the ESSENCE readers the real power of Black love.”

Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade. Photo by Matthew Rolston for Essence, February 2012 issue.

Photo by Matthew Rolston for Essence.

Photos by Matthew Rolston for Essence.

Photo by Matthew Rolston for Essence.

Show me the Monae

Kristina Feliciano — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:43:29 +0000

Kwaku Alston photographed the stunning singer Janelle Monae—whose refreshingly individual sense of style is part dapper, part classic glamor, part sister from another planet—for the November issue of Essence. Here’s a look. (I’ll update this post next week with a link to a behind-the-scenes post that Kwaku is putting together for his blog, Art of Studio.)

Janelle Monae. Photo by Kwaku Alston for Essence, November 2011 issue.

Janelle Monae. Photos by Kwaku Alston for Essence.

Photos by Kwaku Alston for Essence.

Grids’ Cover of the Day: Kwaku Alston’s Michelle Obama portrait for Essence

Kristina Feliciano — Tue, 27 Sep 2011 13:39:49 +0000

Grids, the blog of the Society of Publication Designers, featured Kwaku Alston‘s Essence cover portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama as yesterday’s Cover of the Day. Congratulations to Kwaku and Essence creative director Greg Monfries and photo editor Rebecca Karamehmedovic!

Kwaku has posted additional portraits of the First Lady at his blog, along with a behind-the-scenes account of the shoot. Click here or on the image below to take a look.

Kwaku Alston photographs Michelle Obama for Essence’s “Power List” cover story

Kristina Feliciano — Fri, 02 Sep 2011 16:41:26 +0000

Who’s got the power? Find out in the October issue of Essence, whose “Power List” celebrates the “28 Most Influential Black Women.” On the cover: a radiant portrait of First Lady Michelle Obama as photographed by Kwaku Alston.

Photo by Kwaku Alston.

“Obama is joined by other notable women, including Oprah Winfrey, Valerie Jarrett, Iyanla Vanzant, Jada Pinkett Smith and Shonda Rhimes,” reports BET.com.

This is not the first time Kwaku has photographed our fabulous First Lady. Here’s a look at some of his previous portraits of her.

Photo by Kwaku Alston for USA Weekend.

To see more, visit Kwaku’s Barack Obama and Family portfolio at stocklandmartel.com or his “Obama Project” portfolio at kwakualston.com.