Tyler Shields

Tyler Shields (Jacksonville, 1982) is a Los Angeles-based photographer, writer and film director. He started his career as a professional in-line skater, which he credits with instilling in him a drive for success and a taste for danger. Shields’ provocative, sometimes controversial photographs are filled with a dark, alluring glamour that he uses to confront notions of power, gaze, and the cult of modern celebrity. Many of his works have violent, surreal undertones, whether it is fire, extreme stunts, or even putting models in a room with live lions. Yet throughout them all, a sense of fun and of cinematic wonder pervades, giving the viewer a sense that maybe, after all, the impossible might just be within reach. In this collection, Shields often uses a large format, 8 x 10 camera to achieve high resolution. For printing, he explores the silver gelatin printing process to achieve maximum smoothness and a wider range of black & white tones. He also uses the almost-obsolete dye-transfer printing, which achieves vibrant color. Inspired by a Master of Photography, he creates a series of still-lifes with the truest reproduction of the flowers, due to the highly saturated colors.