This portrait of my grandfather is very special to me. I photographed the portrait in Detroit a few months ago. My grandfather turned 90 years old and is close to my heart. 

My family emigrated here slowly from Pakistan in the late 1970's. They are hardworking and we thank them each day for all of the sacrifices they made so the future generations of their family could have a better life. 

The photo to the left is from 1952 shot by a forgotten photographer. The portrait on the right is him at 90. May we all be so lucky to have our health and happiness at his age. 

I had a third photography session with loyal customers who I am so honored to capture. I photographed their first little one when she was born, then when she was 2 and now the second came along and we had a session with her and the familia. The session was full of fun and laughter. I love the photograph above because I can't decide what the kids are thinking, but whatever it is, it has got to be good! It is a mix of shock and happiness balled together in one.

Outdoor Portrait PhotographyA family shares laughs in East Los Angeles at Naheedence Studios.

I imagine families looking back at their photos in 30 years and reliving their memories through the photographs I capture. As a child of the 80's I daydream of them sifting through an old photo album with photos you can peel off from the album pages. Although, I know it will more likely be a photo printed directly on the page that may have lost some of its color over time.

I love capturing a family through the years to see how they've grown. During the photo shoot Papa was full of silliness. The littles and Mama were loving it. Toward the end of the photo shoot we shot some more formal portraits in the studio and outdoors. I often sing "Happy Birthday to You" during family sessions. It loosens up the kids and if I shoot continuously I am sure to find a gem in there somewhere. Tickling usually works too.

I am looking forward to photographing more happiness during the 2017 Winter Season. Please contact me to book a session for your loved ones today!

Chef Mick Brown visited my studio for a portrait session last week. We had a great time and he left me with the most delicious roasted vegetables and a whole smoked fish that my family happily devoured. Mick was grillmaster champion at cutthroat kitchen in 2015. He has his own catering company that focuses on healthy BBQ.

My idea for the photograph stemmed from how important tools are in a chef's life. We all have our go-to wooden spoon, pan or barbecue fork that we can always rely on. This barbecue fork was given to Chef Mick by his father. His father passed away recently and this fork is part of a set that he uses often. He has sweet memories of how his dad taught him to cook.

I also wanted to incorporate a sense of power in the image. A Chef has control over what we put into our bodies. Our bodies keep us going and that is a very powerful role for a chef to fulfill. Of course not all chef's cook for health but this photograph was about Chef Mick Brown, not Mario Batali ;)

I have worked with him on portraits before and we always have plenty of laughs. Connecting with my clients is one of the most important parts of my job as a professional photographer. I love it!

I am going to submit some of my photos from the session to The Smithsonian Museum Chef Portraits contest. 

Photo by Los Angeles wedding photographer Naheed Choudhry. Naheed is an award winning wedding photojournalist based in the Echo Park/Silverlake area of Los Angeles.

I am happy to announce I just booked my second wedding for next year!  My clients always tell me they are drawn to my work because the photos look real. No over processing and trendy filters, just beautiful moments captured perfectly in the heat of the moment. I am so passionate as a wedding photojournalist in Los Angeles and continue on my path to be the best storyteller.

Los Angeles wedding photography by Naheed Choudhry. Wedding photographer in Echo Park/Silverlake.

As a wedding photojournalist I only get one chance to capture the fleeting moments during a wedding. As a master of light I can shoot both in the brightest light of the summer to the darkest dance floor at a reception. After shooting over 100 weddings I give my clients an idea of how long it may take to shoot ceremonies, portraits and everything in between.

The photos above display a bride being lifted in a chair on a dance floor during her reception and a groom wiping the tears from his mother's eyes during the emotional day. Each of these moments lasted for a few seconds and I was there with two cameras and a lot of energy to get the shot!

My clients are sometimes surprised by how many moments during their day I capture. They tell me since they weren't able to see their guests at every moment they are happy I could show them so much of the day they missed. I am a great storyteller and prove it through every photo.

Dear brides, I hope you will consider me in your quest to find the right wedding photographer. After the dress, flowers, ceremony and reception you will look back and want to have beautiful photos with me to capture your day perfectly.

This Labor Day I reflect upon America's countless undocumented immigrant workers, women and history. In the wake of Hurricane Harvey the tough facts are that more than a quarter of all Texas construction workers are undocumented immigrants, according to a Pew Research study from November 2016. Of the nearly 1.7 million undocumented immigrants residing in the state, about 400,000 work in the building trades.

Houston will need to add thousands of workers to its construction industry labor force to restore the immense damage that has happened. According to Richard Fisher, the former president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. With Trump's anti-immigrant stance such needed labor will not exist. As job shortages continue he doesn't back down from his policy to harass, arrest and detain immigrant workers. The same people who can help rebuild Houston. 

According to the Economic Policy Institute’s 2016 analysis of federal labor statistics, the median wage for U.S. women is about 16.8 percent less than the median for men — with women making about 83 cents to a man’s dollar. According to economist Elise Gould, that’s a gap that only increases as women become more educated and climb the corporate ladder.

Donald Trump has revoked the 2014 Fair Pay and Safe Workplaces order former President Barack Obama put in place to ensure that companies with federal contracts comply with 14 labor and civil rights laws. The Fair Pay order was put in place after a 2010 Government Accountability Office investigation showed that companies with rampant violations were being awarded millions in federal contracts.

“Engineer Delores Brown tests circuits for the control system of a U.S. communication satellite. Mrs. Brown was the top graduate in 1967 from the school of engineering of Tuskegee Institute in Alabama”

By an unknown photographer, Honeywell, Inc., unknown location, ca. 1973

African American women found it easier to pursue professional careers because of court rulings such as the 1954 Brown v. Board of Education decision, which called for an end to segregated schooling, legislation such as Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which outlawed discrimination based on race and sex, and affirmative action policies.

National Archives, Records of the U.S. Information Agency (306-N-2594)

Child Labor By W. Pack, February 18, 1915

Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, workers at public markets stocked merchandise and haggled over price with customers. These markets were run by municipalities and provided shoppers with a variety of goods at a central location. By the time this photograph was taken, public markets were already facing stiff competition from retail grocery stores and commercial wholesale markets.

National Archives, Records of the Bureau of Agricultural Economics (83-G-21)

“Lace House Dry Goods Co.” By an unknown photographer, St. Louis, Missouri, ca. 1909

This photo of a Chinese Business was part of the Immigration Service's investigatory case file of Lew Wa Ho, a sales clerk with the store. As a merchant, he could legally enter the United States under the Chinese Exclusion Act, which restricted most Chinese immigration. He returned to China, married, and came back to the U.S. in 1909. He may have submitted this photo as proof of his occupation.

National Archives, Pacific Region (Seattle), Records of the Immigration and Naturalization Service

I photographed a couple of family portrait sessions that are candid and beautiful. I know the interwebs are loaded with millions of family photos but every photo I capture of a family will be a moment captured for a lifetime and beyond. I feel so lucky to be able to create a historical document for a family. 

The photos above are from the first session. Below I photographed a surprise baby and his mother and daughter. Unfortunately papa was at work. Below are a couple of photos from the day. We had about 15 minutes to capture some good memories. Sometimes I have more time. But both of these sessions laster under 20 minutes! You need to work with lightning speed, babies are not patient!

Recently I was hired to photograph the Regent Theater in downtown Los Angeles. They are opening the music venue up to events other than music shows. The Regent is located in the heart of the Theater District. The building captures a great period in turn of the century American architecture. 

My client wanted to express the ambience of the place with its dark blue lighting. The darker photos show the expansive mysterious feeling of the environment when you first walk in the space. I shot of mixture of darker photos to capture the ambience and brighter HDR photos to show more details of the space. 

NO HDR

HDR

Regent TheaterCanon 5D Mark iii The HDR photos capture more detail and show the space with brighter lighting, though those photos display more of a magenta hue. The brighter photos give you more of an idea of the concrete flooring, the details of the furniture and the unique medallions featured throughout the theater. The darker photos give people more of the mysterious feeling when you first walk into the Regent.

It is a tough call for me to say which photos I like better because they both tell the story of the space just in a different way. HDR is an interesting way to photograph and give a more detailed and three-dimensional feel to a photo. Oftentimes the technique also reminds me of a painting.

I love the way downtown Los Angeles is changing before my eyes. From night on Broadway to the many art walks throughout the year. The old downtown that many Angelenos think of is no longer. Stay tuned to my blog to view the latest images and stories of Los Angeles and it's rapid changes. Below is an photo of the bottom floor bar at The Regent.

I am headed to Detroit for a couple of weeks with my family. I am visiting my mother, father and brothers. We are also meeting a new family member, my daughter's cousin who is the first to be younger than her. I will be back to my blog after my vacation in the Motor City. Home of Motown, home of too many great musical artists to name. Also home to so many memories of my childhood, teen years and University experience.

Open house, real estate photographyReal Estate photography by Naheed Choudhry Caballero.

Through the years I've photographed homes, businesses and prospective lands for buyers. Nowadays, I shoot video of properties as well and do walkthroughs of a space. Recently I photographed for a home going for upwards of $1.5 million dollars...To some that may not seem like much but to this Detroiter, turned Brooklynite turned East Angeleno, that is a hell of a lot of money.

The space is huge and the backyard and curb appeal is on point. When I photograph a space I like to do a combination of HDR along with traditional ambient lit spaces. I use strobes and on-camera flash as well but if the light is right I might use ambient light and just go for a more natural look.

With my 16-35mm f2.8 wide angle lens shooting interiors and exteriors is as fun as shooting landscapes. Often you run into challenges: a room with ugly yellow lights and no windows, a space that is not that clean, a space with a dark ceiling and not much ambient light etc. Setting the white balance and the right exposure is of utmost importance in camera. You have to be technical and shoot the right angles to make the space shine even if it in not that great. This is when your real photographic talent is put to the test.

Shooting interiors and exteriors is a great addition to my portfolio. At events I have to photograph the space as well as the action. Often times people don't keep that in mind. During on-location photo shoots you have to know what ambient light you can use, if you will need a reflector or where the shade is located. These are all elements you use in every photo shoot. 

Sometimes clients wonder why I don't "specialize" in one type of photography. I used to shoot for newspapers. During that time I needed to shoot every aspect of the story. The location, the people, the time etc. Afterwards, sometimes on the same day, you would move on to a food photo shoot for the features section, then you would shoot a portrait of an artist who is exhibiting at a museum nearby. I got used to that and don't want that to change. I love all types of photography and will incorporate that into my shoots forever. 

Also, photographers need to adapt during this ever-changing time of visual storytelling. I am from the school of thought, the more you know the better!