This ongoing body of work examines the current condition of our rapidly changing landscape, the punishing impacts of non-native and invasive species and the fragile places where man and nature collide. 

For the past two years I’ve traveled extensively from the Amazon River to the Hudson, across the Sonoran Desert, made three trips to the Everglades and up through the mountains of British Columbia documenting the beginnings of the Holocene Extinction and the impacts when species are juggled on a global scale.

You can find more on my website under A Nature Story and I invite you to join it’s Instagram page as well.

Proud to have made the top 200 list again this year friends.

One campaign. Two Silver medals. Three Golds.

I’ll be speaking tomorrow night at a charity fundraiser for San Diego’s refugee students. Please join!

Really wonderful article by Peter Berberian on PDN’s PhotoServe. Read the full article here.

Small, precious moments and motion pinched from an impossibly large set…

Cobblestones, steel and felt.
(Click photo to see more)

Shot in the sand and sun of San Diego.

Some recent work I’ve been doing with the International Neurosurgical Children’s Association. This time in Kiev, Ukraine – eighty miles from the 1986 explosion. While official numbers are still largely obfuscated by politics, most neurosurgeons there believe they are dealing with the aftermath daily.
*The radioactive fallout zone shown here may or may not be directly linked to illnesses of patients photographed in Kiev for this essay. (And verifying causality will forever be disputed.)

“The government in Ukraine speaks very openly about the fact that it thinks the problem of Chernobyl is firmly in the past – that the majority of deaths have already been accounted for, and that with each passing anniversary things will only get better,” said Liudmyla Zakrevska, president of Children of Chernobyl, “We are constantly trying to show the authorities that in reality this problem is not going anywhere.”

More on the story at VICE.com.

Tiny beach towns along the California 101 still exist in places. No street lights. No sidewalks.

Wall projections. Prints for sale. Awesomeness.
Thursday April 21, free to attend.

http://bit.ly/1Wu7Xv7

Fab music by La Luz.

Bil Zelman- Director’s Reel from bil zelman on Vimeo.

My DP Trevor wrote something I’m copying here because it’s so damn perfect-
“Someone once said: The Eagles weren’t a band you listened to, they were a band you did stuff to. They were on every road trip, every break up, every celebration. Like an old friend. Take it easy Glenn, and thanks for the good times.”

I had the honor of working with him once and he said “I’d like to look a little serious in the photo so I’m going to give you my best Mona-Lisa”- cracking himself up. We miss you already.

Stills took a backseat to the motion on this wonderful project for Highfive-
CD Joe Kayser
Jeff Lee and Matt Lopman on the lenses
Stills, film direction and spiritual guidance- Bil Zelman

Congratulations to my friend Rocky on his 2016 Grammy nomination for Best Reggae Album.

In addition to being one of the best reggae performers on the planet he’s been appointed the Tourism and Cultural Ambassador of Ghana and World Ambassador for the Musicians Union of Ghana. He’s also joined forces with Product (RED), UNICEF, the Carter Center, and the UN Foundation and has worked on campaigns focused on Guinea worm eradication, environmental issues, women’s health and education, HIV/AIDs advocacy, peace building, and clean water. 

Rocky- You’re making me look bad man.

Photographed on the ocean cliffs of Malibu California with help from my hot wife. Worlds worst photo of us holds witness.

Joe Ferrazano on creative.
Art buyer Ali Cohen on the drums.
Saatchi Wellness in the house.
Huge props to Heather Smith for finding our venturous talent!

Shot on location in Brooklyn.

In 1868 John Boyle O’Reilly was transported via prison ship from London to a penal colony in Western Australia. Midway through the voyage, O’Reilly and another prisoner established a handwritten newspaper called The Wild Goose which contained poetry, stories and anecdotes from members of the ship’s convict fraternity. Seven editions were produced, and one single copy of the original set survives in Whales. The Hougoumont‘s passage was the last convict ship transport to Western Australia.

*In 2015 genius creative Joe Kayser booted my ass into a time machine and told me to “Shoot the voyage like a fucking whiskey ad.” I can’t recall all the details but remember waking up in a freezing cold, communist era soundstage in Prague with a camera in my hand…

(And yes it’s true- You can open a bottle of wine by banging it on a wall in your shoe.)

Thank you Joe.

http://www.kayserandco.com

Nerd out-

On July 4, 1826, at the age of 90, John Adams lay on his deathbed while the country celebrated Independence Day. His last words were “Thomas Jefferson still survives” (after receiving a letter from his old friend). He was mistaken: Jefferson had died five hours earlier at Monticello at the age of 82. Both died July 4th exactly 50 years to the day of the signing of the declaration of Independence. And that’s why we make blueberry pie every year. Yup.

ON VIEW MAY 31 – JULY 28, 2015
OPENING RECEPTION: SUNDAY, MAY 31, FIVE TO TEN PM

SPARKS GALLERY:   530 Sixth Avenue, San Diego, CA 92101
RSVP Required – email events@sparksgallery.com or call (619) 696-1416 to be on the list. Or RSVP ON FACEBOOK.

// Curated by Bil Zelman
// Isolated Gesture Books available with purchase of print: oversized 9 1/2″ by 12″, 144 pages of Duotone plates, hardbound linen cover with foil stamp on spine, slipcover with cover image and title, stitched “Smyth sewn” seams.

“For twelve years I obsessively carried a heavy, modified Nikon film camera with a powerful flash on it everywhere I went. I traveled to small town fairs, parades, public gatherings- Shot on the street and snuck my way into parties and gala events everywhere I could.

I never looked through the camera, but rather placed it near the scene with my outstretched arm, clicked the shutter and popped the flash. I don’t know any of the people in these pictures. I never asked anyone if I could shoot them, and people’s responses over the years varied from great interest and feelings of total flattery to invasion of privacy, near violence and even an unwarranted arrest.

In the end, and after photographing ten or so thousand people- hangs “Isolated Gesture” which has been collected by or shown in The Museum of Photographic Arts, The Museum of Contemporary Art, The Lucie Foundation, Fort Collins Museum of Art, The Center for Photographic Arts, The Center for Fine Art Photography, The Center for Exploratory and Perceptual Arts, Newspace Center for Photography, The Portland Museum of Art and many others.” –ZELMAN

Art Critic Leah Olman- (Excerpt from “Introduction to Isolated Gesture”): “Since Garry Winogrand, Larry Fink, Diane Arbus, William Klein and so many others, the aesthetic of the “wrong” has become accepted practice in photography. Aggressive framing, dramatic contrast, unconventional subjects, unflattering shots—all have become comfortably ensconced in the standard repertoire. These photographers—and Zelman positions himself among them- are agitators of a related sort, purposely getting it wrong in one way so as to get it right in another, disrupting visual order to ignite a kind of visceral disorder.”

** Please note there will be a Padres game this day at Petco Park – please plan to come early downtown this day for the best parking options.

May we always have a Christmas tree in the spa and champagne in our pool.

Jim Beam print campaign with CD Kevin Mckeon and Strawberry Frog. Art Buying brilliance by Josette Lata.

Bobbing for scary selfies this Halloween for SONY’s New water proof phone the Xperia Z3v.

Huge shout out to Fitzco!

The 49ers asked me to shoot some reportage of their training camp via my old pal Peter Judd at Hub Strategy.  Here’s a taste.

While shooting a commercial in Portland, I was pleasantly surprised to find that I have multiple pieces in a fantastic show at the museum – Also included are works by Garry Winogrand, Robert Doisneau, Ansel Adams, Minor White, Chris McCaw, Peter Henry Emerson, Edward Weston, Edward Steichen and many others. If you are in the area,
please go check it out.

Dusk through Dawn at the Portland Museum of Art.

Photography at the Edges of Daylight

DEC 21, 2013 – MAR 16, 2014

“Throughout the history of photography, practitioners have been drawn to the varying characteristics of natural and artificial light, skillfully using them to express mood and underline emotion. Dusk through Dawn showcases more than 70 pictures made in the hours between twilight and daybreak, when light becomes particularly suggestive. From scenes of nocturnal activities exposed by the harsh flare of the camera’s flash to early morning landscapes awash in subtle, atmospheric tones, these images are among photography’s most striking.”

Organized by the Portland Art Museum and curated by Julia Dolan, Ph.D., The Minor White Curator of Photography.

“Photographer Bil Zelman specializes in shooting lifestyle advertising for top brands such as Coke, Apple and Budweiser that looks real, not staged. Getting natural, emotionally genuine performances out of talent is one of the biggest challenges for advertising photographers, but Zelman has spent his career honing his skill. In this video, he describes how he saved one shoot that was spiraling out of control, and he shares some tips and tricks he uses to coax the performances he’s looking for.

Zelman uses non-professional talent almost exclusively. He explains, ‘They don’t know what’s expected of them. Usually they show up a little bit nervous and it’s easier for me to relax them, rather than pro talent that shows up feeling like they’re going to act it out. I hate acting. that’s the bottom line.’

‘You know, people are laughing in [advertising] scenes all over the place, and so good talent will simply guffaw the entire time, and it looks so fake. So I would much rather have somebody uncomfortable in front of the camera, and then do something stupid to make them laugh, than hire somebody’s who’s basically a somewhat attractive professional laughter.’

‘Whatever city we’re flying to, I’ll fly my casting director (Heather Smith) there ahead of time and she’ll go to bars, and Craigslist, and hit all the social media and we’ll just find people. if I need bikers she goes to motorcycle gangs and if I need twenty five-year-old college kids she goes to the colleges, not to talent agencies.’

‘I try to go to casting calls whenever possible. Depending on the mood of our desired performance I might yell at [the people answering the casting call] or throw something at them. I’ll see if they can cry, [and see] what their eyes do when they genuinely laugh verses faking it with just their mouth. Perhaps I’ll ask them to dance with no music going. It all depends on the job but I’m looking hard to flush out any overacting, self-consciousness or catolog-like contrapposto or gestures and such.’

‘I’m often looking for big, extroverted personalities as well- A person who you can throw into a group of strangers and get them all roiled up regardless of the fact that it might be 6 am.’ ” – PDN Pulse

“Celebrities can be skittish and uncooperative in front of a camera, so photographer Bil Zelman sometimes uses psychology to elicit a particular reaction for a compelling portrait. In this video, he describes how he calmed author Isabel Allende, who was self-conscious in front of the camera, and how he got himself out of trouble on a shoot with film director Werner Herzog. “He was just staring at me,” Zelman says. “It was a blank stare. I was getting nothing.”

In addition to shooting portraits, Zelman specializes in shooting lifestyle advertising for top brands such as Coke, Apple and Budweiser that looks real, not staged. In previous videos, he shared tips and tricks he uses to coax natural performances from the non-professional talent he uses on most of his shoots.” – PDN Pulse

“Photographer Bil Zelman explains how he used psychology (and magic) to get emotionally genuine performances from kids for two recent advertising shoots. Zelman specializes in shooting lifestyle advertising for top brands such as Coke, Apple and Budweiser that looks real, not staged. In a previous video, he shared tips and tricks he uses to coax natural performances from adults. He also explained why he prefers non-professional talent, and how he scouts that talent for his shoots. (Check back tomorrow for another video featuring Zelman explaining how he handled two difficult celebrity portrait shoots.)” – PDN Pulse

Wonderful interview with Art Buying superstar Josette Lata about our recent shoot for Jim Beam with StrawberryFrog. Check it out here.

I’ll be speaking at the 2013 PhotoPlus Expo in NYC. My seminars are titled The Authentic Photograph and How to Create Advertising that Doesn’t Look Like Advertising. For more info and to register, visit http://photoplusexpo.com.

For more information on my seminars, visit http://tinyurl.com/kf8t6uc.

Shot in beautiful Atlanta with Arc Worldwide.

Spot it in Men’s Health, Money, Sports Illustrated, Oprah Magazine, Fortune, Real Simple, Time, People, Reader’s Digest, Real Simple, This Old House, Parents and others…

Big thank you to Periscope and Smith and Union Productions

“We know nothing about where political systems come from.  We don’t even know where they don’t come from. And considering the shiftless, slave-trading, bed-hopping, debt-ducking (and that’s just Thomas Jefferson) nature of America’s founding fathers, who also included rum-soaked bunkum merchants and Indian-massacring land swindlers (and they all oppressed women and weren’t vegans) we should be careful about saying that certain societies or nationalities or religious persuasions aren’t “ready for democracy.”-P. J. O’Rourke.   Excerpt(s) from Don’t Vote It Just Encourages the Bastards, copyright c  2010 by P. J. O’Rourke.

Photographed in San Diego, California.

KCRW Diaries

Support Zach’s Kickstarter project and next film here.

Such a fantastic time on set with the folks from Periscope and 75 of our closest friends.

-Thank you Ann Wycoff-

In typical fashion- Jay called me two hours before his wedding to his bride Tracy at a local skate park to come and shoot.  I guess the other 75 photographers weren’t enough and YES- That’s Christian Hosoi at the “altar”.

Look for my short film on Jay at film festivals late 2013.

Collectors quality, oversized 9 1/2” x 12” – 144 pages of Duotone plates, hardbound linen cover with debossed title, dust jacket and stitched “Smyth sewn” seams.

-Available Here-

KCRW Diaries

Art Direction and Design- Dave Roberts
Agency- Greenhaus

Click “Vimeo” link in lower right of video to view in full resolution.

KCRW Diaries

KCRW Diaries

Click for Video

Take_0012

“In the past year, Zelman says he has been asked to shoot campaigns that emote contentedness, pride, elation, celebration, defeat, consolation, intelligence, a sense of loss and pensiveness. He explains. “Figuring out ways to make those people genuinely feel those emotions is the secret sauce.”
He says, “The Agency really believed strongly in my suggested production approach and fought hard to let me run things in a way the client had never seen before.”

Click image for full article-

A fantastic couple of weeks with superstar producer Starla Stroh and filmmaker Patrick Wright.

Footage shot and edited by Patrick Wright and a special thank you to him for keeping me awake during that mad 22 hour drive across Germany.

Please take a moment to check out my fourteen year street photography project and proudest achievement.

Publishing hard cover, limited edition, collectors quality on Kickstarter.

Thank you.

Renowned Nigerian drummer and percussionist for the Rolling Stones, Paul McCartney and Paul Simon to name a few.

KCRW Diaries

A small and beautiful piece of Pfizer’s global “Get Old” campaign.

Credits: CD- Kash Sree, AD Ty Baker, AP Anna Shinderovsky

Being named Best African Artist at the World Music Awards, CNN’s Top 10 African artists and Ghana’s Ambassador of tourism didn’t stop Rocky from cooking us one of the best dinners we’ve ever eaten.  Bless you Rocky.

Genius composer Jóhann Jóhannsson playing for KCRW, at The Village studio Los Angeles.

“The AFL-CIO has produced a groundbreaking broadcast piece,“Work Connects Us All,” which contemporizes and humanizes an institution that has traditionally been seen as a polarizing brand. The AFL-CIO hired award-winning, New York  City-based indie social engagement agency, SS+K , known for such iconic work as the yellow wristband campaign for Lance Armstrong’s Livestrong organization, as well as its recent Cannes Lion kudos for Coca-Cola’s Honest Tea.  The SS+K team researched a lot of photographer candidates, looking at personal as well as commercial work, as that indicated the kind of honest connection they wanted with real union workers. Exec. Producer Fagan and CCO/ Creative Director Kash Sree went with advertising photographer Bil Zelman.   “Bil’s work is technically beautiful but it was his connection to the subject that made him the perfect choice for us.  During pre-production, Bil took the time to review hundreds of candidates for the photo shoot to help us find the people who would help us tell the story best,” says Fagan.  “We loved Bil’s work. There was something natural yet cinematic about it, at the same time.  Human yet rich.  He reaches in and finds the beauty in people,” says SS+K COO Kash Sree.

Full article here:
http://www.pdnonline.com/pdn/photoserve/AFL-CIO-Takes-Action-4546.shtml

Pretty cool.

You can read or listen to the NPR report here.

Fox News

ABC News

Huffington Post

Daily Kos

Gawker

WORK CONNECTS US ALL

AFL-CIO
AMERICA’S  UNIONS

Director: Bil Zelman
Motion Cinematographer: Aaron Phillips
Creative Director: Kash Sree- SS+K
Executive Producer: Kelly Fagan- SS+K
Editor: Peter Johnson- Consulate
Production: KWC Productions

Shot on location in Patagonia-

Rode the motorcycle out and camped on the flats with a few good friends-

Brilliant.

Casting was for “real people” and someone sent us this photo.  Running wagers around the studio on whether or not he’s wearing pants.

You rock masked man!

I’ve resisted blogging for years but presently have important things to say.

Ready. Set. Go!