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Rangefinder
Magazine Profile: John Bellenis by Lorraine A. DarConte
“When I came [to America] I had a portfolio full of everything from Speedo catalogs to Cartier still lifes to Elizabeth Arden beauty ads. Within the first five months of being here I found and signed with an agent—Jean Reese-Gibson—who is still with me. She represented four photographers at the time; now she only represents me, which is a wonderful arrangement. I’ve always had an agent,” he explains. “Photography can be a very lonely business if it’s just you. If you have an agent, you not only have someone selling you while you’re working—which is key for me because I’m away for weeks at a time on location—but you also have someone to bounce ideas off when making mailing lists, promotional materials and portfolios. You’re not working in a vacuum. Even though agents receive a good percentage, they handle the contracts and paperwork, and they can generally negotiate higher fees. My agent’s commission is one payment I never resent!” Together, Bellenis and Reese-Gibson devised a new direction for Bellenis’ work within the hospitality arena, where he could utilize his photography skills in a variety of situations and disciplines.
Typically, while on the job, Bellenis takes four to five major shots a day—a mix of exteriors and interiors, with and without models. A shoot can last anywhere from two days to a week. Since he’s photographing a wide variety of subject matter, Bellenis travels with a large assortment of equipment. “I generally take three formats everywhere: a Sinar 4x5 for exteriors and large interiors, a Mamiya RZ 67 Pro II (he has three of them) for interiors that don’t require perspective correction and for interiors with models, and a 35mm Nikon for spontaneous shots, like of people playing on the beach. You need to have a lot of redundancy in your equipment,” he states. “It’s not exactly as easy to get replacement rentals for damaged or malfunctioning equipment on a Caribbean island as it is in New York City. You need to have spares and alternatives with you at all times, including plenty of film.” Bellenis shoots mainly transparency film, Fuji Velvia and Provia, and Kodak EPN. “I use Fuji 64T, as well, for all my tungsten shots.” He uses strobe and hot lights, since he often likes to mix flash, tungsten and daylight. “I bring about 7500 watts of Speedotron Black Line, which, unfortunately, are pretty much the heaviest packs you can find. They’re bulletproof though—they have to be to survive the air mileage and abuse they get each year. I want to get rid of the whole lot, simplify and go digital,” he laughs, “if nothing else but to save my back. It would also save me a lot of money in excess flight baggage.”
Getting the Job Done
“Resort photographers really have to be on their game with lighting, since you never know if you’re going to be presented with a huge space to light or a tricky room view. You must be technically competent and be able to shoot different formats using daylight, strobes and hot lights, as needed. You also need the ability to work with and direct models. Basically,” he concludes, “you must be able to handle whatever is thrown at you. It’s also important to understand the schedules and dynamics of a large hotel so as not to interfere too much with their business and the smooth running of the place. There is no room for a prima donna in a busy hotel where the guests must always come first,” he notes. “The other ‘difficulties’ photographers encounter in-clude having to shoot dining rooms, meeting rooms and lobbies in the middle of the night, since they’re in use during the day. But that’s par for the course for a lot of types of photography,” says Bellenis. “It’s not exactly a typical 9-to-5 job.” After nearly a decade of photographing resorts and hotels, Bellenis has noticed some interesting changes within the industry. “In general, consumers now consistently expect higher quality products and services from companies at lower prices, and the hotel industry is no exception. The hotels no longer want standard images,” says Bellenis. “They want something that gives them an advantage in the marketplace, so naturally they’ve become more demanding. They want something unique, which has coincided with my desire to do something a little more special. With my varied skills and equipment, I work with the customer to help them realize their vision of the property. I let them know I can use dramatic lighting to capture a certain mood, a special lens to correct or distort perspective, or I can work with models and stylists to create a romantic, fun or sophisticated atmosphere.”
“I’m always selling. It’s the nature of the business. If I’m working for an individual property, I may work for them once every three or four years when there are refurbishments. The owner may have 15 properties or 100, but they may use different photographers in different parts of the country. Hotels and resorts shoot brochures, ads, group sales brochures for business conferences, etc. But generally they only re-photograph a property after a refurbishment or if the people in the pictures look dated,” states Bellenis. “The use of web sites has also created a demand for virtual tours. Web sites give hotels the ability to target specific types of customers (corporate or social), which leads to a need for more images specific to different markets.”
“I have been fascinated by the property since it was under construction. It is an amazing feat of architecture, engineering and design. I’m also a total travel junkie,” he confesses, “so I’m always looking to shoot in faraway locales. I love Europe—Italy and Greece in particular. I lived in Italy for three years and spend at least three weeks a year there, shooting stock and vacationing. Obviously, I’d love to get more assignments there. I also am pursuing work in the Indian Ocean. I loved Mauritius—the closest thing to paradise I have found so far. And it would be a dream to add the Seychelles and Maldives to my list!” Lorraine A. DarConte is a freelance writer/photographer living in Tucson, Arizona. Her work has appeared in numerous publications including, Rangefinder, Newsday and a variety of other national publications.
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John Bellenis photographed everything from beauty and fashion to still lifes to high-profile hotels in England and Ireland while working from his London studio. His clients included fashion icon Yves St. Laurent, Speedo Swimwear, Anokhi, Elizabeth Arden, Cartier, Neutrogena, Gucci, Pepsi, and Warner Brothers, among others. When he relocated to the United States in 1992, he decided he didn’t want to carry a studio overhead again. Currently based in Hamilton, MA, Bellenis states, “I wondered if I could make a living just photographing hotels and resorts. After working in a studio for nearly 10 years, I wanted to concentrate on location work. Studio work seems very glamorous at first,” he notes, “but the reality is you’re stuck in a studio all day. One day I realized I wasn’t a glamorous photographer taking beautiful package shots, I was a guy in a dark studio twisting a shampoo bottle around. That’s when I knew I couldn’t do it anymore. I needed to be traveling and working on location.
Frequent Formats
Bellenis has used digital in the past (the Nikon DIX) and hopes to make the switch in the near future. “I’m looking at the Kodak 14N, which I’ve had on order since mid-November. The release has been delayed many times though. I would like to go digital because I could replace three formats with one and not have to carry all my film, which is a nightmare at airport security,” he states. “If I get a full-frame Kodak I can use Nikon shift lenses on it. The Nikon D1X multiplies the focal lens by one-and-a-half times, so a 28mm shift lens on a Nikon D1X becomes a 42mm shift lens, which is useless. Whereas the Kodak is a full-frame 35mm, so a 28mm shift lens remains a 28mm shift lens. Even for the architectural work,” he explains, “I can get away with a shift lens on the Kodak camera. And if I can’t get all the movements I want, I can still correct a certain amount of convergence in Adobe Photoshop.” 
“With all professional photography, I think there is a breakdown of skills—creative, technical and business—that one needs to get the job done. The most often overlooked skill is business,” states Bellenis, “and that’s possibly the most important. Photographers need good business skills—from bookkeeping to marketing and sales to simply being professional and following up on leads. I think the business side is where a lot of people fall down. Apart from solid business skills, you also need a good understanding of lighting to photograph in the hospitality industry. Everywhere you go, you frequently will need to make it up as you go—adapting to constantly changing conditions. It’s not like in a studio where you have total control. 
Self-Promotion
Bellenis currently travels throughout the United States, Europe and the Caribbean, working for many well-known hospitality brands. His professionalism and easy-going manner have helped him build long-term relationships with his clients, who can rely on him to provide the finest photography with the minimum of stress and disruption. As for the future, Bellenis looks forward to working in as many different places as possible. He would like the opportunity to photograph specific hotels/resorts such as the Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai. 