Leo Rosas Morin

Hello Photography community, my name is Leo Rosas Morin. I was born in 1985 in Caracas Venezuela and for as long as I can remember I have been passionate about visual communication and arts.

I have always been supported and guided by my parents in developing my passions, and skateboarding finally connected me with photography back in 2001.

My education in photography started in a 100% autodidactic way. I tried twice to sign up for a photography academy, but for different circumstances it did not happen – either there weren’t enough people to start the course or some other obstacle, so I took my money back and spent it on film rolls.

Somehow, I had in my mind the image of the classic silver chromed analogue Nikon cameras from the National Geographic magazines that my parents periodically bought me, so I found online the Nikon FM3A, and that was my school.

Shooting and sending the film to the lab, then getting fascinated by my creations (just because they were mine and not necessarily because they were great) — I was just repeating this process again and again, and while shooting skateboarding images of my friends I started to develop skills and experience.

A couple of years later I saved some money from my first jobs (working at a Subway and a pizza place for a couple of months and then working at an executive office) and bought myself a Nikon D200. I was convinced that I would learn faster by being able to check the result of my clicks right away.

This also awoke my interest in Photoshop and I did a course of the basics which gave me a good structure on how to get started.

In 2007 I was the fortunate winner of the Red Bull Photo Challenge, an international concept competition for finding new talents of photography in different countries of the world. The prize was a month of holidays and intense training in the quality standards and needs of Red Bull photography, so I went back to Venezuela as the main photographer for the brand in their events and productions in the country.

It was the perfect job while I was studying. I graduated in Marketing and right away I got the opportunity to join the Red Bull photography team in Austria where I learnt more and was given the privilege to train over 40 photographers for the brand between 2011 and 2013 (more or less).

After that, working with international agency Zooom, I got to work in different projects taking roles from production, concept, organisation and execution of both studio and outdoor shoots for the diverse clientele.

In 2017 I became once again an independent photographer. I stay motivated with new projects for personal and commercial purposes so that my learning curve continues every day, with every task.

I work with many different brands and use different tools that I own or that I rent depending on the project, but please find below a list of my essentials:

Cameras

Nikon D850

Nikon D810

I have been using Nikon since day one starting with the analogue Nikon FM3A. The D850 is for professional work, it is fast enough and has plenty of resolution for today’s standards and it covers well all areas of my workflows. I see that Sony is getting better and better, I am starting to consider a switch for the first time.

Ricoh GR

GoPro Black 7

Canon G7x (for video blogs)

Lenses

Sigma Art 105mm f/1.4

This is a great lens that I like to use for portraits and lifestyle shots.

Sigma Art 14-24mm f/2.8

This lens is great, and the minimal distortion for such focal is amazing. When there is a need for a wide-angle lens I am very pleased to use this instead of the Nikon version which I personally don’t like because of how much it distorts.

Sigma Art 24-70mm f/2.8

A great all-terrain lens for event work and when you want to go around with just your camera and one lens.

Nikkor 50mm f/1.4

The classic lens that I have used from day one, it’s a tiny lens that you can just throw in your bag and is very sharp, fast and useful.

Nikkor 70-200mm f/2.8

This is the lens for action that I use the most, in combination with the autofocus capabilities of the D850. I have only good things to say about this lens.

Light

Broncolor Siros L 800 (x2)

I have two of these beasts and they are powerful studio lights that you can take with you. They are awesome to use and if possible are always worth the effort of carrying. Whilst I love the Broncolor lights and modifiers, I feel they are a bit behind in portable solutions, so I might be considering Profoto or Elinchrom units in the future.

Nikon SB-800

Nikon SB-900

Bags and cases

Peli Air 1535

Peli 1650

Peli 1400

Peli cases are simply long-lasting and useful. I like to have a peace of mind knowing that my gear is safely stored and secure for transport when needed. I will probably get the new 1645 Air as well.

Gitzo Adventury 45 lt

Gitzo adventure backpack, one of the most useful backpacks for my style of photography and workflows. It looks very minimalistic for such a big capacity bag. I can take with me my Lightstand, tripod, camera, lenses, and a powerful Broncolor Siros L all with me when needed.

Lowepro Protactic 200

Drone

Mavic Pro 2

The first Drone that I think is worth buying for my style of work. It is compact enough, and with great quality for video and good quality for pictures, why not have the great advantage of expanding possibilities to cover angles and create imagery?

Accessories

PolarPro ND + Polarizer filters for Mavic Pro 2

PocketWizard Plus II & Plus III

I use these mostly for triggering cameras remotely and they work perfectly!

Lee Filter 100mm System with IRND Filters Set and Soft graduated Filters.

I got the new filter system from Lee and I find it very useful. I have a few IRND, the Polariser and some Grad ND as well as the B/W kit. If I have the time I will use them but definitely not something for fast workflow situations.

Sony Dynamic headphones MDR-7506

Zoom H5 field recorder

Tascam DR-10L recorder

These are great tools for great audio. I am doing more and more video and I want to take good audio so these two compact tools come in very handy in different scenarios.

Peli 7610 Torch

COOPH clothing

Tripods

Manfrotto 536 + Nitro 8 Video Head

This is just a great combination to mount camera for video or creative panning shots.

Manfrotto Light Stand Master AC

Computer/Tech

Apple iPad Pro 11”

I find this a useful tool to review images right away to show to the client, also to connect and fly the drone or to simply have with you for briefings, mood boards, or even to edit images on the go. It does not replace a laptop but I find it worth the money for its lightweight and fast operation.

Apple Macbook pro 13”

Wacom Intuos Pro M

Skateboards

Cruiser board for smooth transportation and street skateboard for training and inspiration – these are part of my lifestyle, they inspire me, transport me and give me the creative approach that connected me with photography.

Thanks for visiting my profile on ShotKit, make sure to share if you like what you see. :)

www.leorosasphoto.com | @leorosasphoto