Vivian Reiss Ladies' Brunch and Home Tour, Murray Hill (Manhattan)
Artist Vivian Reiss hosted this beautiful and intimate brunch at her storied home in Murray Hill. Reiss is a well-known portrait artist whose work has been exhibited internationally and is held in major collections, and the gathering reflected that intimate, informal, and centered around her work feelingrather than any kind of structured programming.
Guests moved freely through the home while she cooked, served, told stories, and guided small groups through her artwork. It was an all-women group, no shoes, grandchildren running around; very relaxed, but also very private. Nothing was staged or scheduled, which meant staying unobtrusive and letting things unfold naturally while still capturing what mattered.
The coverage focused on the space, the interactions between guests, her work, the food, and details that give a sense of the home and its history. Events like this rely on trust; knowing when to step in and when to disappear is what allows everything to stay comfortable and genuine. And because this was an artist’s shoot, I felt I had more leeway to get creative with my shots, which produced some lovely results.
Here are some of my favorite images from this shoot (click/tap to view full size and un-cropped):
To see more examples of this style of photography, visit my events gallery >>
All images in this blog post were shot on a Nikon D850, using a 24-85mm lens, all individually post-processed in Adobe Lightroom using custom-built presets.
Jinnifer Douglass is a full-time freelance photographer based in NYC, shooting for both individuals and brands such as Google, Sotheby’s, Uber, Make Up For Ever, Squarespace, and more! Specializing in portraits, food, and special events, she works to make every piece of your social and website content ‘Insta-worthy’ with high resolution, full-frame DSLR photography and expert Lightroom editing. Interested in chatting? Leave a comment below, or send an email to info@jinyc-photo.com!