Dimitri Newman: Vision is Just the Start

A sensory vision: The art of Dimitri Newman’s imagery

The power of Dimitri Newman’s images begins with a vision – but quickly you realize that these images have moved beyond your sense of sight to reach your sense of touch, taste, and smell. The texture on a running shoe, the smell of a freshly cut citrus fruit, even its tanginess on the tongue. All of this happens against a backdrop of clean, almost architecturally precise staging of elements. Achieving this level of sensual experience serves his clients well, because he’s able to capture products not just as objects, but as objects of desire.

How Dimitri Newman brings precision to every pixel

We ask him, “How do you manage to do this?”

In his characteristically low-key and modest response, he answers in the language of his well-honed craft. “Part of it is lighting,” he says. “I shoot mostly strobes – I like the crispness that gives me. And I do a lot of focus stacking as well. But bottom line? It’s the fact that I’m shooting medium format, which means the images are super high-res – so I feel they have more depth, because of that. Also, I try and keep the software settings pretty minimal, mostly just minor tweaks.”

Dimitri has long favored medium format photography, but when he first began using the Phase One XF camera, he noticed an immediate difference.

“The focus stacking capability with the XF was a game changer for me. It’s way more precise than the method I was using before and way faster. The Auto Focusing, through the software. was incredibly helpful for larger overhead images. And the larger touchscreens make it easier to navigate around for settings.”

Blending art and commerce behind the lens

Dimitri brings lessons learned from personal photography experience to his wide-ranging advertising assignments for a formidable list of renowned clients. From cosmetics to apparel to food and sports products and beyond, Dimitri explains, “I’m constantly experimenting with new techniques and approaches. Sometimes I’ll try out a new technique that I think could translate to a commercial project, so there definitely can be some overlap. I’m always trying to achieve some sort of balance between the artistic and the commercial work.”

Regarding his apparel shots, he describes a collaborative effort with the stylist (and potentially also the set designer & art director). He explains that the large overhead shots are “challenging but fun! Kind of a combo of knolling/tetris-ing, there’s a lot of trial & error and fine tuning.”

Clearly, every photography job will demand its own tools, but we wondered if there were any specific Phase One lenses that he particularly enjoyed using. He was unambiguous. “I love the Phase One Schneider 120 mm macro lens. It’s my go-to for really closeup texture shots and macro product shots. The closeup view can give you some truly unique perspectives on product textures.”

Turning ideas into impact: A studio shoot that took flight

We asked Dimitri to tell us about one of his shoots that he found particularly fun.

“The shoot for Red Bulletin magazine was one of those,” he said. “Usually, I’d come up with a rough concept/setup for the magazine and in this case, I’d originally considered just shooting the bike sitting on some rocks that we setup in the studio. Then, I thought, why not hang the bikes up with fishing line and throw some dirt up around the wheels to make the shot a bit more dynamic? Luck was with us. The fishing line held. I was able to go out and buy a bunch of dirt, and then, there we were — my assistants and my stylist going at it, throwing bucket after bucket at the wheel! . . . Luckily, we got the shot after only a few frames!”

In both is commercial and personal photography, Dimitri Newman demonstrates what it means to follow an idea from its inception to a new and perhaps unexpected place, and how to use modern technology to get there. As a result, his work exhibits an exciting immediacy that engages the senses on multiple levels and rewards the viewer every time.

Free artist talk at Samy’s camera

If you’d like to hear more from Dimitri Newman himself, we’ve arranged an exclusive artist talk at Samy’s Camera in Los Angeles. Don’t miss this chance to dive deeper into his creative process and technical approach. Registration Information