When a DJ asks for photos for promotional purposes of course an Ocean Drive photo shoot is the first thing that pops in my head. South Beach is home to numerous nightclubs and bars and not to mention mecca of who’s who in the world of djing to come spin. South Beach is also lined with colorful Art Deco inspired buildings which proved to be a great back drop for Dean’s, aka The Silver Foxx, Ocean Drive photo shoot.
The Silver Foxx spins all over South Florida and is known for spinning a wide range of genres aimed primarily at the “grown folk” crowd. Dean is also one half of the Dream Team, a tag team act of DJ and emcee, The Stone Groove. I’ve seen the Dream Team in action before so I was well aware of their collaboration and they really work well off each other. They host night club spots as well as perform for weddings and events.
I was packing light for this shoot, just two lenses; the 24-70 and 70-200, as I had envisioned myself moving quickly from location to location. What I did not anticipate was that NASCAR would have tents all spread out over the beach promoting their upcoming race at the Homestead Speedway. So adapt we did and shot along the hotels on Ocean Drive as well as shooting in the middle of Ocean Drive itself. We life gives you lemons, you make lemonades.
We shot in the late afternoon right in between the end of the work day and start of happy hour. With the most of the pedestrian traffic along the NASCAR tents, we had little interruptions foot traffic wise. It was a little dicey when I’m kneeling in the middle of Ocean Drive and 10th street with cars cruising in both directions besides me. We had a few cars stop to watch me in action directing Dean on posing and even had a few requests to have their photos taken as they drove by.
As the sun began to set, it signaled the end of the photo shoot. So what were we to do on South Beach surrounded by numerous bars and restaurants during happy hour? Go to happy hour of course and sometimes there is no better way to end a shoot than with a mojito on Miami Beach. It just feels right.
At the end of the day when you achieve the shots the client wants and the clients want to buy you a drink, can you really say no?
