The Art of Jose Villa

some time ago, i got very attracted to the work of this photographer who is based in the states- Jose Villa. he is mainly a wedding photographer, and he takes amazing pictures of couples. i really admire the way he captures the dynamic emotions between 2 person who are deeply in love. his lens has this uncanny ability to expose the chemistry, the passion, the happiness between the subjects. the most impressive feat is that he captures all the above elements on film. he is probably one of the rare old school photographer who is still thriving in this increasing competitive photography industry. other than the traditional 35mm, he also shoots medium format pictures.

one thing about the greats, they are always willing and more than happy to share their knowledge with you. earlier this month, he came to conduct a workshop in singapore. everyone who attended the workshop said its worth their $1000 down to their very last cent. i managed to find some articles on his work, and they shed some light on how jose approach fine art wedding photography.

“What people are hearing the most right now is “photojournalism.” Whereas I actually tell my brides that I shoot in a “Fine Art” fashion. I definitely compose my shots and I definitely give directions to my bride and groom. Composition is incredibly important to me. ” – Jose Villa

“I wanted to focus on positive emotions—people laughing and smiling and having a good time. That is, after all, how couples want to remember their wedding! With the emotional component determined, I set about forming a specific artistic look. I came up with an avant garde fine art approach that combines progressive shooting with a vintage feel—all captured on film. Film that has amazing grain, and soft pastel color.” – Jose Villa

“I do capture moments, but I compose my shots. So, for instance, if I see something happening in front of me I’ll take the shot, but I compose it with a fine art perspective behind it. I am VERY aware of my backgrounds. I usually choose something with a white wall or use the sky. And I always utilize selective focus to achieve a true fine art image.” – Jose Villa

“As I was making my way through this beautiful valley, I couldn’t help but realize that this scenery was strangely familiar in Jose’s work. The amazing colors that he consistently achieves in his photos are soft and saturated, much like to the colors of this quiet serene country town. ” – Anna Costa

“I use a Contax 645, and then I have two 35 mm Canon 1V’s and use the Canon 16-24 f/2.8, 70-200 f/2.8, and a 100 Macro f/2.8. I also use Fuji Film because I love its natural skin tonality but also the beautiful saturation of color – which is what people know me for, my color.” – Jose Villa

“When I overexpose images on Fuji color films like Pro 400H or 800Z, the colors come out almost pastel. To augment this look, I back light and let the light wrap around the subjects for beautiful color that’s reminiscent of a painting. A lot of my clients book me specifically because of this approach to color.” – Jose Villa

“I do as much as possible in camera. First, I set my camera so that I’m overexposing my images by a stop to a stop-and-a-half. This produces a nice, soft glow. I want light wrapping around my subjects and giving off a sense of warmth. Typically, I expose for the shadow… I also like to shoot with an extremely shallow depth of field. The shallow depth of field works well with the overexposure to create that soft, wrap-around glow.” – Jose Villa

“If you are down to splurge on a photographer, i’d recommend jose villa. he uses film and his photos are timeless and will be amazing to even your grandchildren. i’m not saying film is better, but you at least know that the beauty of his work is based on raw talent.” – Greengelato

ain’t jose villa’s art simply beautiful?