As the doors open to the office of Philip D Studio, one is greeted by an assortment of images hung on every wall.
An athlete with his game face on. A model eating a chocolate-dipped banana. A composite that could pass as a movie poster. A snake coiling around a woman’s wrists.
For Philip Sydow, it’s all about showcasing something different.
“Our tag here is, ‘Dare to be distinctive,’” Sydow said. “We don’t want to replicate what everybody else is doing.”
Sydow, 53, owns and operates the studio, which is currently located above Langley Federal Credit Union in New Town. He said he averages two photo shoots a week, and the rest of his time is spent editing images and working the back end of the business.
He specializes in commercial photography – “Something different with a commercial feel,” he said – as well as avant garde portraits, professional headshots and composites that are shot in studio and then heavily edited with programs like Adobe Photoshop.
The studio will turn 5 years old in May, and inside his office Sydow has everything he needs to produce the images that meet his clients’ needs. He works with professional and aspiring models, as well as people who want to create their own distinct image to commemorate accomplishments or life events.
One young woman finished her undergraduate studies and went on to medical school. She set up a photo shoot with Sydow and recreated famous Kim Kardashian’s magazine cover.
“That’s part of what we offer for people looking for something creative along those lines,” Sydow said. “It’s something you can’t really do other places.”
There is a dressing and makeup room for subjects and models, a conference room for clients to review their photo shoots, and a post-production room where Sydow can edit digital photos.
To accommodate for his expanding operations, Sydow said he’s planning to move his studio in June to a location on Tewning Road that will have twice as much space.
The shooting floor of the new studio he’ll be moving into will be 45 by 50 feet. His current location is about 20 by 26. Including offices, his new studio will provide him with about 1,500 square feet more space.
“I have to pinch myself because it’s such a fantastic opportunity,” Sydow said.
The new space will allow Sydow to do the sorts of things he envisioned when he first began the business. It’s on the ground floor and has two garage doors, so Sydow will be able to bring in vehicles for commercial shoots in the studio. Sydow said he plans to have a light rig that will hang from the ceiling to illuminate the cars.
The new studio will also offers superior ventilation and higher ceilings, and will make possible a wider variety of photo shoots.
“There’s stuff we just couldn’t shoot [here],” Sydow said. “Certain things are just much better when you have complete control over your environment. Here, it’s probably ill-advised for me to do anything related to smoke, fire or water, being on the second floor of a bank. It’s almost going to be night and day.”
Sydow’s interest in photography began at 9, when he built his first pinhole camera from a cereal box. Soon after, his father bought him his first 35mm camera.
As a young adult he modeled for vitamin ads, but Sydow remained drawn to taking photographs.
“I realized I didn’t like being in front [of the camera] as much as I liked being behind,” Sydow said.
Photography remained a hobby for Sydow until he and his wife had a heart-to-heart discussion about their life goals in 2001. She decided to become a teacher, and he began transitioned from a career in software to one as a commercial photographer.
He worked out of his house for a time before opening the studio in New Town, but his philosophy has remained the same.
“We are always trying to find a way to provide a unique service,” Sydow said. “If you want something you can hang over your mantle because you want you and your five kids and two dogs, there are people that will do a beautiful job with that work.
“If you’re looking for something that you could’ve been on the cover of Sports Illustrated, that’s more what we’re looking to do.”
