Artist of the Week: Lauren Max

Lauren Max is a Seattle-based film and digital photographer.

Seattle Refined: How long have you been creating? What mediums do you work with?
Lauren Max: I’ve been shooting photos regularly since 2001 when my Mom gave me her Canon A-1 to use in my first black and white film class in high school; professionally for about 15 years.

I enjoy shooting film for most of my personal work, the camera that has produced some of my favorite images is an Olympus XA2 point-and-shoot from the 80s that I scored at a flea market for $30. It has a light leak that I never chose to fix, because it adds such an ethereal nature to the photos, but also can be unpredictable at times. Recently, I started using a Mamiya 645 medium format camera again to produce a portrait series of friends. That camera is a beast to lug around but creates beautifully sharp images. For my commercial work, I mostly use my digital camera — a Canon 5D Mark IV with a variety of lenses, some of my most-used being my 24-105mm, 50mm and 85mm.

Can you tell us about your artistic process and how the different stages work into it?
It depends on the project, but in my commercial or editorial work, I usually start off by making a mood board that I will add to for inspiration/feel, along with some location scouting and or/prop sourcing. For my more personal work, I always keep a trusty point-and-shoot 35mm film camera on hand, so I can capture candid moments and whatever catches my eye, whether it be a silly moment with a friend out on the town, or a pastel sunset while driving down the highway. Throughout my work, I play a lot with color as a main theme, you'll hardly ever find me shooting black and white these days.

Tell us about where your inspiration for your art comes from.
There are definitely more than a few photographers that have inspired me and my work over the years; some classic ones include Guy Bourdin, Stephen Shore, Annie Leibovitz and Martin Parr — along with more current ones such as Ren Hang, Deana Lawson and Pierpaolo Ferrari. I've always lived in the Pacific Northwest, so the natural beauty that surrounds us here, along with the West Coast in general, has been featured in much of my personal travel work. I also love all things old & vintage, from buildings to clothing and strive to create images that have a nostalgic feel like they're from another place and time that you can't quite put your finger on. Lastly, the people I collaborate with are a huge factor in my inspiration for shots, whether it be the model, stylist, or producer I'm working with on a specific project, they all play into how the final images are inspired and created.

Do you have a specific "beat" you like best – nature, food, profiles, etc.?
Honestly, there are several subjects that I enjoy capturing — from people to landscapes and more recently, food and still-lifes. It's hard to choose just one "beat", but I will say that one of my favorite gigs I've had was when I was a staff photographer for the late City Arts Magazine here in Seattle and got to take images of local creatives in their studios, or locations that inspire them. I think some of my best works are my environmental portraits, I enjoy the challenge each situation brings being in different locations, and these types of assignments are more of what I want to be doing in the future.

Do you have one piece of art that means more to you or is extremely special to you?
In 2020 during the height of the pandemic, I went on a road trip with a couple of friends to a place I had been wanting to visit for years, the Painted Hills in Mitchell, Oregon. We arrived about an hour before sunset and caught some golden hour lighting — it felt surreal out there. I snapped a few rolls on different 35mm cameras I had on hand, and a couple of those shots are some of my favorite landscape images I've captured to date. That area is so magical, and I can't wait to visit again.

What experiences in your life have affected your art the most?
I attended school at Seattle Central's Creative Academy for Commercial Photography, and one of my teachers there, Alejandro Tomas, inspired the way I still shoot to this day; how I find and create light in my images especially. One of the best things he also said to me is to take the time to really set up, focus on the details & create the best image you can within your camera, that way you don't have to spend extra time editing in post, whether it be perfecting the light or getting that stray hair out of the model's face.

If we want to see more of your work, where should we go to find it?
You can see more of my work on my website, laurenmaxphotography.com, or follow me on Instagram at @laurenmaxphoto.

What is next for you? Anything you're working on right now that you're really excited about?
In June of this year, I completed a solo show that was displayed at the Museum of Museums on Capitol Hill, showcasing my 35mm travel images along with some colorful portraits I took over the last few years. Since then, I've been shooting a lot of film, capturing the Summer in the Northwest in different aspects, and am looking forward to developing those rolls to see what they hold. I also recently moved into a new photo studio in SODO named Kasama Space, that I look forward to shooting in more once the cold, rainy weather rolls back in. I have some different creative portrait projects that I want to work on more in there. I've also been shooting more product and food photography for companies around town that I look forward to doing more of.

Lastly, how do you take your coffee? (We ask everyone!)
I usually always take it iced, even in the winter, with a little cream and sweetener.

About 'Artist of the Week': This city is packed with artists we love to feature weekly on Seattle Refined! If you have a local artist in mind that you would like to see featured, let us know at hello@seattlerefined.com. And if you're wondering just what constitutes art, that's the beauty of it; it's up to you! See all of our past Artists of the Week in our dedicated section.