Deangelo flew in from California to see a friend. While he was in town, we set aside some time to make a few frames, the kind of portraits an actor needs in his early days but that don't feel like stiff headshots.

He's at the beginning of his career, the part where every shoot feels like a small step forward, and you can feel that kind of hunger on camera. It's a good thing to work with!

We kept it simple... Chicago gave us its usual cinematic mix of textures to play with. Brick, light, shadow, open sidewalks, quiet corners.

There's a specific kind of joy in shooting someone who actually loves what they do. No ego, no performance, just a guy who believes in the work and wants the photos to mean something. Those are the sessions I'll always remember, regardless of where the career ends up going.