Studio Livingston » clean

Hotel Renew Honolulu

David — Wed, 25 Mar 2009 17:21:17 +0000

The hotel photography of this Waikiki boutique property wanted a clean departure from the traditional Hawaiian mindset. Situated a block off the beach, Hotel Renew is providing a modern oasis in the land of tiki torches. Less than a year after it was re branded as Hotel Renew the property ran at the top of Tripadvisor’s picks for Honolulu hotels.

Hotel Renew has an urban vibe of a W Hotel without the attitude. The smallish room plates from the seventies were kept but the room interiors were fully outfitted with precision mill work. The interior designer Jiun Ho’s elements are sophisticated and simple with a nod to the understated principals that might be found in a Kyoto Ryokan.

My hotel photography used this clean and understated approach with minimal photo styling. The collection of photographs below match the art direction style of Interior Design Magazine where these photos were submitted.

www.jiunho.com

www.hotelrenew.com

Interior Design Magazine

Trip Advisor

Marc Melvin Modern

David — Mon, 23 Mar 2009 21:47:14 +0000

The recession ends many business models and the publishing industry is one of them undergoing great transformation. Most publishing is maintained by a strong cash flow from advertising. With Ad sales down, production costs up (paper, printing, postage) and subscriptions down, publications are squeezed from many sides.

To its greatest degree ever we are finding viewership increasing online and are finding print readership in decline. Yet more eyeballs are looking at more media than ever before. Successful publishers will be the ones adapting these trends by creating revenue streams to maintain their publications.

Interior designer Marc Melvin asked that I photograph this very modern home in Marin so he could submit the project to Western Interiors Magazine. While the home had been published before with mostly exterior photos commissioned by architect Stanley Saitowitz, what I call the complete home story had never been told.

Western Interiors liked what they saw and scheduled an extensive two day shoot, the day before their shoot the magazine was sold and the project is now on hold as the new publisher takes control.

The project is still great and fresh and will find publication someday if not in Western Interiors then somewhere else. Here are some of the photos that got Western Interiors hooked…

www.marcmelvindesign.com

A Modern Cabin in Sun Valley, Idaho

David — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 20:57:12 +0000

Mario Aiello, a principal with the Dahlin Group, created this contemporary mountain home playing with simple vernacular forms that give way to lofty spaces. A restrained palette of materials and hidden details inside give a fresh urban feeling while keeping a good neighbor exterior.

Menlo Park Classic Custom Home

David — Wed, 22 Oct 2008 20:13:48 +0000

David Crouch hit the ground running over the past few years creating inviting custom homes around Menlo Park, California. Here, his most recent project shows David’s Australian Federalist inspired home with tasteful detailing and excellent craftsmanship throughout.

Photo Styling: Real Simple

David — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 20:17:38 +0000

Following the lead of magazines like Real Simple and Dwell, here are examples showing a minimum use of styling elements. Florals are non traditional and not floral at all. Items are tidy and not placed askew. Quiet restraint, with a touch of the natural, rules the day.

Antonio Martins San Francisco Pad

David — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 19:04:24 +0000

Leaving a great career with Hyatt Hotels International Properties, Antonio Martins is now a rising star in the Bay Area design scene. We spent about five hours creating these vignettes to tell the story of a young SF bachelor and his pad.

Antonio has years of experience directing and styling photos for Hyatt. During our shoot he had at the ready a wide range of flowers, art and props to make these photos come to life.