Sydney Claire is an extremely talented photographer from Brooklyn, New York. Sydney works with Casting Coin and has photographed some of the most amazing pictures seen. Michelle McCormack, CEO of Casting Coin, credits Sydney’s work as being cutting edge and glamorous, something that is not an easy combination to achieve.
Ever since the age of nine, Sydney Claire has had a profound love for photography. When her parents gifted her a disposable Barbie camera, she was unable to put it down and developed a passion for photography. She began her career at the age of 14, where she would photograph senior pictures and weddings in order to start getting her name out there. Sydney later went on to get her Bachelors in photography, which sparked the great success she has now.
Sydney Claire finds inspiration from 20th century photographers, such as Irving Penn and Helmut Newton. Most importantly, Sydney feels most inspired by work that brings out her emotions. With all of her built up passion for photography, Sydney developed her own unique style of photography. She likes to classify her work as “editorial portraiture that captures the soul.”
Keeping a personal and connective element throughout her photography is very important for Sydney. She also loves to push creative boundaries while using her platform to “highlight a diverse spectrum of models.” When asked what she likes to stay true to while photographing, Sydney stated that she likes “to make people feel really good, really powerful. I’m really directive, but I try to make my subjects feel as beautiful as they are. I try to bring out the essence of their being, rather than surface-level beauty with flat expression.” Sydney added that it is very important to her to create a safe space for her clients, where she could uplift them.
Out of her entire career, Sydney Claire’s favorite and most memorable shoot was on her latest birthday. Sydney says she had the opportunity to photograph an older woman, Cynthia, that she had scouted out in a restaurant. Cynthia was a retired nurse, and had never modeled in her life. When Sydney was able to photograph her, it started an amazing journey and relationship between them. Later on, Sydney was able to book Cynthia a modeling gig with a sleepwear company she was shooting for! Sydney credits Cynthia for having a big impact on her life, as they have shared many memories together.
Sydney Claire was not going to let quarantine or this pandemic stop her creativity. She took advantage of the times and shot models via FaceTime – something the world of photography has never seen before. FaceTime Live Images have allowed Sydney to be more creative with her compositions, and she plans to continue using this way of photographing with clients all around the world.
“Sydney pioneered the FaceTime movement during the COVID-19 quarantine last spring 2020”
Michelle McCormack, CEO of Casting Coin
Sydney Claire is truly an exceptional person and photographer. Her hard work and love for photography shines through not only her work, but her personality. Michelle McCormack enjoys working with Sydney, as she says that she is a “doll” who keeps it professional, yet cool and kind at the same time.
You can find Sydney’s photography online and through her social media (Instagram @___sydneyclaire). Sydney also has her own shop on www.society6.com, where you can buy her artwork. Not to mention that Sydney Claire’s work has been featured in Vogue Italia!
PHOTOGRAPHY BY SYDNEY CLAIRE:
Check out more of Sydney Claire’s photos here: