Location: Santa Monica, CA.
Company: Pixellab
Profession: Photographer
Years In The Industry: 15
With over 15 years of industry experience, Aaron Lyles has earned the reputation for crafting evocative and inspiring photographs for food, hospitality, leisure and lifestyle clients from his Santa Monica-based studio.
Notable clients: Kwame Onwuachi, Dinner Lab, Viceroy Hotels & Resorts, The Leading Hotels of The Word, LTD, Tylör Boring, Denihan Hospitality Group, Modus Hotels, Kapow Events, STARR Restaurants.
What inspired you to pursue this career and what do you love most about it?
When I was 12 years old, my parents gave me a Pentax 35mm camera. I started shooting around town and then eventually made the leap—at 15 years old—shooting pro snowboarding events around the east coast. That led me to eventually start a small snowboarding magazine and the rest was history. I was lucky to learn early on how to turn a profit doing something I loved, but what I love most about being a photographer is that there is no amount of stress or workload that would make follow another path. I get to do what I love for a living; I get to be mobile, I get to create and I get to bring other people’s stories to life and to me that is the best part.
Where did you get your photography education?
Believe it or not high school. I had an incredible teacher (“Miss J”) in our photography program. She basically showed me how to structure my creativity while inspiring me to run wild. I also have a degree from Emerson College where I spent time as a darkroom monitor, processing, developing and printing on a daily basis. You learn fast when you play every day.
What kind of camera and equipment do you use?
I primarily shoot with my Canon 5D Mark III and a few Canon L-Series lenses. For food projects, I’m all about the 100mm macro lens and for interiors I can’t leave the house without my 24mm tilt shift. I’m currently obsessed with the Profoto B1 off camera flash system—it’s super fast and I can manipulate light in every situation with these.
What’s on your photography equipment wish list?
I’m actually in the market for a 16’ Airstream Bambi to convert into a mobile photo studio. I’ve learned to lean out my camera case these days—let the photography speak for itself, so right now I’m much more stoked for the ability to shoot all over the country than I am what I can fill it up with!
You see food trends first hand. What do you think is the next big trend in our industry?
I’m pretty happy to see food going back to basics these days. There was definitely a period where truffle oil and foam-everything was the way of the world, but now I’m seeing really smart and thoughtful arrangements that let the ingredients do their job. Kwame Onwuachi is leading the charge in that department and needs to be on everyone’s radar at this point.
What food driven magazines and books do you read and draw your inspiration from?
I really love Gather Journal. The dishes are approachable, the stories are real and the images aren’t overly produced. There’s no fluff, it’s just breathtaking documentation of food in its purest form. Lucky Peach makes me feel like I’m “in-the-know”, even though that’s virtually impossible. And of course, I know it’s sacrilegious for a non-chef to say this, but Au Pied De Cochon Sugar Shack by Martin Picard is a constant inspiration. I have it on loan from Top Chef’s Tylör Boring and I dread the day he comes knocking for it!
What would you say your signature style is? What makes you unique?
I know this sounds cliché, but I don’t have a signature style. I love being on this side of the lens, because I’m not supposed to have a signature style. Being able to adapt to the project and the client is what I get hired for. Of course when I’m shooting a personal project, then sure you can see a particular style sewn into each shot, but as a professional photographer my signature is to translate yours and that alone makes me unique.
What is your office/work environment like?
I recently moved back to LA from New York, so my studio environment went from a light-filled space in Manhattan to an ever changing on-location set up. I shoot restaurants, hotels and chefs, so I’m mostly on their turf otherwise my workspace is a studio in downtown Los Angeles and Santa Monica. It’s another reason I’m in the process of creating a mobile studio.
What is your creative process?
It’s split. For my food and hospitality work, I’m an over-preparer. I like to research each subject I’m hired to shoot and then put a lot into the walkthrough so come shoot day, things roll smoothly. On the contrary when I’m shooting documentary style I tend to pop off shots, tweak, pop more, tweak again and just play with the process until it feels genuine to the subject.
Chefs and restaurateurs are a creative bunch, is it hard to balance their vision with yours?
No, not at all I’m a strong believer that I’m there to document someone else’s vision and that’s an important distinction. Of course I’ll communicate when something can’t be achieved in an image as it’s set up, but that’s technical and not from a conflict in my own vision of the project. I’m hired to capture a moment, an emotion and a story, so others can see that vision clearly.
What is your favorite project to date and who was it for? Why did this experience stand out from the rest?
My partner and I wanted to create a spec shoot for ad agencies, so we went up to a friend’s remarkable off-the-grid property in Bovina, New York and curated a coal-miner shoot that pays homage to people who work with their hands. It wasn’t necessarily for a particular client, but it was one of the most raw and natural shoots we’ve done and I really think it comes through in each final image.
Do you travel for your job? If so what’s your schedule like and what standards have to be met for you to agree to take the trip?
I travel all the time for my job. Each project is different, but generally travel and lodging are included in my rates. As for schedule I like to fly in a day before so I can do a final walk-through, test all my gear and immerse myself in the location before going to work the next day. As for standards, I’m pretty low maintenance when it comes to travel. I’d much rather get the job than create reasons not to.
What gets a photographer excited at a food photo-shoot?
When the kitchen has separate dishes to shoot and to serve. Also, when the chef understands that creating a dish and photographing a dish is not the same thing. You could make the best beet cured Hamachi in the world, but if I don’t get it before the avocado mousse starts to run, there’s little I can do to save it—luckily that hasn’t happened yet.
Name a client you’ve shot for whose food styling and cuisine blew your mind?
Outside of trained food stylists in a highly produced environment… I would say Kwame (again) from The Shaw Bijou in DC and Brooke Mosley from Outerlands in San Fran. Kwame continues to blow it out of the water in both presentation and execution. The ingredients he puts together on a dish are so beyond comprehension and yet they compliment each other seamlessly. Brooke redefines what comfort food is and showcases each dish in a way that appears effortless. Of course it looks stunning, but it’s plated to entice you to devour it and that in itself is a hidden art form.
If you could shoot for anyone in the world, who would it be for and why?
I feel like this is a typical response, but National Geographic or Sunset Magazine. My photography career has revolved around an industry that primarily takes place between 4 walls, but my eye was trained outside in nature and eventually I’d like to get back to more of that. I would love to be traveling the world capturing the inspiring vistas, wildlife and cultures that make everything come together.
How did you find Chef’s Roll and what urged you to join?
My friend Kelly Valentine turned me onto Chef’s Roll. She had worked at Dinner Lab previously, so she has her finger on the pulse of the culinary world and when she described what you guys were doing, I had to be a part of it.
Learn more about Aaron Lyles at his Featured Industry Profile or by visiting his website.
