Fizzah Raza | Art for Art | San Francisco
Since the beginning of 2014, I have been working on my year-long personal project, Art for Art. Once a month, I find a fellow photographer whose work I admire, and I photograph them; they photograph me. View the full set of previous shoots in the series here: Art for Art.
At the end of July, I got to do a very special Art for Art shoot with my friend Fizzah Raza. This is probably the most unique one yet, because our two styles are so different. Fizzah specializes in modern glamour photography and shoots mostly in controlled studio settings. So we split the session into a glamour shoot for Fizzah’s photographs of me and a lifestyle shoot in the hills for my photographs of her. See the magic below!
Our Styles:
Anna: Fizzah shoots in a very clean glamour style. I got to see her work her magic in her home studio, moving walls, reflectors, and lights to control the light and the environment. My photography is a bit more “lifestyle,” with a variety of settings and more of an improvisational approach. I think what Fizzah does is awesome, even though our styles really are quite different!
Fizzah: My style is modern, glamorous portraits that have a polished magazine quality to them. Anna’s is soft, natural and effortlessly beautiful.
The Shoot
Anna: I first met Fizzah because she saw some of my work in a travel blog and found out that we were both in the San Francisco Bay Area, so we met up for tea at my office. We got along right away, and when I was thinking of photographers I could work with, I knew it would be an interesting combination to shoot with Fizzah– someone who’s not a lifestyle/wedding photographer but does glamour photography instead. It was a really fun day with makeovers for both of us thanks to Becky Lau, and I had fun being in front of the camera and behind it too.
Fizzah: It was fun to be able to experience Anna’s style and process since it is so different from mine. At first I was anxious about being on the other side of another photographer’s camera but I’m glad I stepped out of my comfort zone. It was a learning experience and I had a great time too.
Lessons Learned
Anna: I picked up a lot of tips for posing just from being directed by Fizzah. I also walked away from the shoot inspired to learn more from the glamour portrait world that I could use in my photography, and I ended up watching several hours of workshops on CreativeLive as a result. It’s the best feeling to be reinvigorated by collaborations and the work that you get to do! So thanks, Fizzah. I had a blast and learned a ton too.
Fizzah: Be in photographs yourself – trust another professional to capture you with their artistic vision. Collaborate with other artists because it will open your mind and broaden your horizons.
And now, some of my portraits from Fizzah!
You’ll have to visit Fizzah’s blog for her perspective and more photos!
Art for Art is a monthly personal project in which Anna and a fellow photographer photograph each other. See the full series here.
Anna Wu is a San Francisco wedding photographer often around the world. Follow her Art for Art series and professional work at annawu.com and on Facebook.
Part 1: Melanie Gabrielle | Snowy Winter in New York City
Part 2: Gabriel Gastelum| Art for Art | Los Angeles Portrait Photography
Part 3: Gabby Sutori | Art for Art | Barcelona, Spain
Part 4: Nima Salimi| Art for Art | San Francisco Portrait Photography
Part 5: Sherry Lu | Art for Art | San Francisco & Vancouver
Part 6: Rosa Guerra | Art for Art | San Francisco
Part 7: Fizzah Raza | Art for Art | San Francisco
Part 8: Jasmine Curtis | Art for Art | San Francisco
Part 9: Kevin Chin | Art for Art | San Francisco
Part 10: Matthias | Art for Art | San Francisco
Part 11: Sarah Dawson | Art for Art | Half Moon Bay
Part 12: Annie Vovan | Art for Art | Pacific Palisades