I will stand right here and say (or sit right here and type, as the case may be) that Patrick Costanilla is without question one of the most talented, innovative photographers I have come across in a very, very long time.

As the man himself says, when you put him behind the lens of a camera, look out for the explosion, because it is definitely coming!

A girl with flower petals.  Cliche, right?  Sure, if you just consider the profusion of such pictures littering the pages of Deviant Art and even MySpace, but here, it is absolutely avant garde.  The juxtaposition of color, the chiaroscuro — it all comes together to create something so stunning is it practically a visual orgasm!

As you can see on her personal web site, this digital photographer has a lot of talent and it is all completely versatile.  From portraits to landscapes to the random and unexpected, she has a fine touch with all the subjects of her pictures, bringing beauty out of things in which you may not expect to see it, and heightening the beauty which already exists within beautiful things.

Both of those are rare and truly special gifts in anyone, especially a photographer who has the power to bring their visions to other people.  Sharon McAulay possesses both, which is an even more precious rarity, and definitely one worth noting.

He started out with taking pictures of the bomb-damaged industrial land around his home and then he added in some fashion models.  Terence Donovan actually started the trend of positioning the models in stark and gritty urban environments and calling it fashionable.  Flats and gasometers were among some of the most popular destinations for this photographer’s vision.

Before he died in 1996, Terence Donovan had made it big and shot for huge magazines like Harpers Bazaar and Vogue and to be honest, his memory still lives on today.

The other cool thing about Jo Duck is the fact that she works with models that are not super high on the model-chain yet.  She actually works mostly with up-and-comers, so if you are looking for a way to get yourself in the modeling industry, Jo Duck could be the chick that helps you with that.

Jo Duck’s work has appeared pretty much everywhere, from countless billboards all the way to tons of different publications – so keep your eyes peeled!

It has to be said that Polly Chandler is one of those people that is absolutely incredible in her craft.  Polly is an American photographer and she definitely has something that is extremely different, stylish and all around fashion-forward without her knowing about it.  Polly actually started her career in Graphic Design but instead of pursuing that, she went with her passion, photography.

Currently, Polly is living in Austin Texas and she has appeared in everything from B & W Magazine, Shots Magazine and Photolife and that is just the beginning!  She is definitely something special and through her selective backgrounds and life experiences, Polly really does have something that is special and unique in the way of telling a story with her photos.

So if you want someone that makes her photos look incredible and really has an eye for everything in the world – you should look at Polly Chandler’s collections!

One thing that I have noticed about photographers nowadays is that a lot of them have actually lost a lot of their passion.  That is definitely not the case with Raya.  This incredible photographer is actually a local one and while she is not all that popular as of right now, if she can belt out pictures like this one – I have to say that she is going to the top.  Not only is this photographer one that likes to work with people, but she also likes to incorporate animals as much as possible into all of her photography.

In 2005, this particular photographer won a prize at the Cannes and I have to say that I can not blame them for giving her something!  There is something here and I absolutely love everything about this particular picture.  This picture has captured everything inside of it and to be honest, I have fallen completely and totally in love with it.

So take another look at this photo – seriously, take another look at it and tell me that you do not think that this particular photo is going places.

Jerry Avenaim is honestly one huge photographer nowadays.  While he was born in 1961 in Chicago, he is definitely a very versatile photographer.  He can seriously photograph everything from celebrities all the way to fashion pictures like this.  Really … there are so many things that Jerry Avenaim can do, it really just blows my mind.

When I was researching this guy for this blog, the first thing that came up was all of his photos of all of the different celebrities and all of the different ad campaigns that he has done.  This guy has done everything from Diesel Jeans all the way to some really high end underwear shots.

The great thing about Jerry Avenaim?  Is that he is still doing his work!  He is still shooting photos and you can definitely find all sorts of his work all over the internet.  So people – get busy and get yourself some of his photos!  I can promise that you will love them!

One of the greatest things about photographers is the fact that they speak to you.  Garry Winogrand is one of those photographers that speak to me.  Not only is he simply incredible in his photos, but did you know that he actually studied painting?  That was what his major was in the City College of New York and then he shifted on over to Columbia University to study photography.

One thing that I love about Garry is the fact that his photos are so different, so strange and yet there is something strangely familiar about them.  I love the fact that they tell a story.  Like this picture – the thoughts going through my mind is about the child.  What the child is thinking, what he is feeling … it was all brought about from the way that the photo was taken.

So the next time you are looking for some photographs to decorate your walls with or simply to look at, you should look at Garry Winogrand’s collection, it is incredible!

One thing that I love about photographers is the fact that they can tell a story via their pictures.  That is exactly what Eugenio Recuenco is doing.  I have honestly, never, ever been a fan of photographers like I am a fan of his, his artwork is incredible looking and it certainly is some of the best work that I have ever seen.  Not only does Eugenio take photos beautifully, but to be quite frank, his photos match some of the older famous photographers of the world.

This is just one of the many pictures that I could have put up here and basically, this particular photographer is well verse in photos of fairy tale.  Personally, I think that fairy tales are not just for kids and I am so happy that a photographer is really taking an active interest in them.  On his website, I saw all sorts of pictures that he had done beautifully of Little Red Riding Hood, Snow White and even Cinderella.

So the next time that you are looking for a beautiful piece of artwork via a photo, you should check out Eugenio, I can promise that you will not be disappointed in the least and that you will be totally and utterly blown away!

So honestly, I am a huge fan of the late Marilyn Monroe.  I think that she was one of the most beautiful women in the world and while she did a lot of questionable things, I still think that she was absolutely breathtaking and certainly worth being captured by great photographers like Milton Greene.  I believe that this man did wonders for Monroe and he certainly did her looks some good in this beautiful picture.

It is so rare to find a photographer that can not only capture his subject in a great looking pose but can also portray some emotion via the photograph.  For example, in this picture, I think that it is absolutely filled with emotions and it is definitely one of the greatest looking pieces in the world!

More great photographers’ ahead people, stay tuned!  The up and comers are coming up next!