Hot Shots | photographers of design
>>> Eric Jamison | Studio J, Inc. | Las Vegas, Nevada
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One night, you’ll find Las Vegas photographer Eric Jamison ringside at a major boxing match, clicking away to get that ultimate right hook. The next day, Jamison may spend hours scouting a contemporary home, hanging out to find the best angles and light to shoot the project for an architect.
He likes the yin and the yang of his two specialties. “Boxing is all about timing,” explains Jamison, who founded his Studio J in 2006. “You can’t just sit there and hold the shutter down. You have to time every punch. There’s an energy that flows from the fight itself. You have to get in sync with the fighter.
“Architecture is just the opposite,” he continues. “It’s so meticulous. You have to take your time and be precise. But I love doing both kinds of photography.” |
Jamison, who also does advertising and portrait photography–including innovative portraits shot underwater in swimming pools–came to the craft in a round-about manner. He grew up in Sacramento, California, then went to Flagstaff, Arizona to study at Northern Arizona University. “I aspired to be a professional rock climber and snowboarder,” he laughs. “Seriously, I was into the outdoors, but I changed my major four times.”
He finally clicked with a photography class sophomore year. “I’d never really picked up a camera before, but I knew instantly that this was what I wanted to do the rest of my life.” Jamison worked on the school paper, interned with the local Flagstaff newspaper, and spent summers interning with commercial photographers, including those who specialized in architectural work.
 
When his wife was offered a job in Las Vegas in 1999, they both opted to move. Jamison’s first job there was at an advertising agency. “I was miserable, so I started assisting other photographers.” He also received a call from Associated Press to cover a fight. “I really had no interest in boxing before this,” he notes, “but I shot sports while I was in Flagstaff. I’ve been doing this for ten years now, and they keep calling me back.”
In the meantime, though, Jamison’s architectural work also skyrocketed. He began shooting custom homes, hospitality projects and commercial spaces for developers, builders and architects. While he does shoot natural daylight, Jamison also specializes in specific and sophisticated lighting techniques. He recently photographed a golf course by night, lighting the entire course shown in the image. “That’s something a lot of photographers won’t take the time to do,” he notes.
Jamison’s architectural work has taken him outside of Las Vegas, to spots such as Costa Rica, the Tuscan countryside of Italy, Hawaii, the Cayman Islands and Utah’s ski resort towns. “Some of our best architectural clients are outside of Las Vegas,” Jamison says.
He works out of a 2,800-square-foot studio in the city’s Southeast Loft District with one full-time and two part-time employees. The current economic sponginess doesn’t have Jamison on the ropes. He’s recently expanded his business by offering such services as photography workshops (“I love teaching”) and video marketing. “A lot of our clients have been asking us to do this lately,” Jamison explains. “They find having a video of a project is a great marketing element.”
That deftly summarizes Jamison’s professional philosophy–to be one step ahead of the game.
Studio J, Inc. 4081 Silvestri Lane, #102 (A-2), Las Vegas, NV 89120; (702) 444-9334 or www.studiojinc.com.
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