Tampa Bay Fashion Photography: Inside a Creative Editorial Shoot
Brian James for The Artisan Magazine – Sept/Oct 2026
It’s not about that. It’s about everything else.
I honestly don’t know how to put into words what it feels like to work with incredibly talented people. Maybe that’s because some things are better experienced than explained.
I’ve been fortunate throughout my career to work with people who are extraordinarily good at what they do. People with ideas. People with taste. People who see something you don’t, bring that into the room, and now it shows in the photographs. That’s what I see when I look at these images.
People sometimes want to talk about the gear. The lens. The lighting. The camera. Creatives can be especially guilty of this. Thinking that somewhere inside the equipment is the secret to making a great photograph.
It isn’t.
Mostly, it’s the people trusting each other enough to make something together. That’s the part that becomes difficult to put into words, because when it’s working, you can feel it. I don’t think this is unique to photography. You find it in sports, in a restaurant kitchen, and in a small business. Put talented people together who care about what they’re doing, give them room to contribute, and something happens that no one person could have created alone.
I’m very proud of these photographs because I’m proud of every single person involved. I don’t see what I did. I see what we did.•
-Brian James
THE TEAM
Model – Rosemary Castillo
Hair Artist – Nhi Nguyen
Makeup – Camilo Herrera
Styling and Wardrobe – Stephanie Ellis
Creative Director – Téa Bremner
Production Assistant – Ashley Crookshanks
Photographer – Brian James
