Case Study: Portrait Photography for the Federal Judiciary
In summer 2026, the Federal Judiciary hired me to take the official portrait of the Chief U.S. District Judge for the District of New Mexico in Santa Fe. This was a huge honor, and I only had a few minutes to get the photo right. Using a stand-in, I brought in an American flag and pre-lit the scene against the backdrop of legal texts, shooting tethered with a 70-200mm lens to better evaluate the result, and then the Judge stepped in for the photo. After a few takes, we got the shot that we wanted, and I’ll be excited to see the work in print at the court and on the website! I lit the scene with a 3-ft silver umbrella combined with room bounce from a second strobe for fill, making sure to avoid unsightly reflections from my lights in the Judge’s glasses.
Are you looking for professional corporate or portrait photography to update your website, support your rebranding, or supercharge your advertising campaign? Reach out to me today, and let’s get to work.
Thanks for reading,
Ben
