What does a key art photographer actually do?

A key art photographer produces the central campaign imagery used across movie posters, television one-sheets, streaming thumbnails, bus wraps, billboards, and social. The job goes beyond photographing actors — it includes shooting body doubles, hand doubles, props, and supporting elements that get composited into final layouts; matching lighting to existing celebrity headshots; reverse-engineering looks for international markets; and producing material that survives executive review at HBO, Netflix, Universal and similar studios.

How much does professional key art photography cost?

Key art photography for major studio campaigns typically ranges from $10,000 to $75,000+ per shoot day depending on talent, crew, location, and usage rights. Josh Separzadeh offers high-level entertainment-marketing experience at approachable pricing for direct-to-studio, agency, and creator clients.

Where is Josh Separzadeh based and does he travel?

Josh is based in Los Angeles and works throughout LA county (Hollywood, Burbank, Studio City, Culver City, Venice, Beverly Hills, West Hollywood, DTLA). Travel available for studio campaigns nationwide and internationally.

What entertainment campaigns has Josh worked on?

Multi-time Key Art Award winner for HBO Game of Thrones (Gold — hand-and-crown one-sheet), Universal Catfish (Gold — best teaser poster), Sony Pictures Classics Whiplash (Bronze — international one-sheet). Additional studio campaign work for FX, Netflix, AMC, Warner Bros, Focus Features, Disney+, and Interscope.

What kind of celebrity photography does Josh shoot?

Editorial portraits, campaign imagery, album covers, and entertainment-marketing portraiture for studios, streamers, record labels, and talent representation. Past work has included sessions with Demi Lovato, Katy Perry, Bebe Rexha, Ludacris, Charlie Puth, Keith Urban, Lindsey Stirling, and the casts of major TV and film campaigns.

How does Josh approach celebrity portrait sessions?

Sessions are run with the calm and adaptability built from 15+ years inside campaign production — efficient with talent time, technically consistent across rapid concept changes, comfortable directing under executive review timelines, and prepared with lighting setups that can pivot quickly.

What's included in a celebrity portrait engagement?

Pre-production consultation, on-set capture (studio or location), tethered review with the creative team, retouching oversight, multi-platform delivery (print, social, streaming, billboard), and asset organization for downstream campaign use.

What's the difference between key art and entertainment marketing photography?

Key art is the single hero image — a poster, one-sheet, or thumbnail. Entertainment marketing photography is the full pipeline behind it: character breakouts, talent portraits, BTS, additional asset shoots, all coordinated against the campaign's visual system. Josh works across both as a campaign-production partner.

Can you produce material for compositing?

Yes. A large portion of campaign work is shot specifically for compositing — matching lighting setups to existing celebrity headshots, shooting body doubles, building negative space for typography, capturing texture and motion references. Josh has produced compositing-ready assets for major studio campaigns over 15+ years.

Does Josh handle retouching and post?

Yes — full Adobe Creative Suite + Capture One certified. Retouching oversight, asset management, version control, and multi-platform export are part of the engagement. Useful for clients who want a single creative partner across capture and post.

What kind of product photography does Josh shoot?

Premium product photography for wellness, luxury, lifestyle, and entertainment-adjacent brands. Cinematic lighting, careful color and texture work, and the same compositing-ready discipline learned from key art production.

What size brands does Josh typically work with?

Premium and prestige product brands — sweet spot is high-end positioning at approachable pricing relative to top-tier celebrity-photographer rates. Right fit for brands that want agency-level visual thinking without giant-agency overhead.

Can Josh handle full campaign production beyond capture?

Yes. Background spans creative direction, prop sourcing, wardrobe coordination, retouching oversight, multi-platform delivery, and AI-assisted creative workflows. Engagements can be scoped from capture-only to full visual campaign production.

Whiplash International One Sheet — Bronze Key Art Award

International One Sheet · Bronze Key Art Award

Build an international one-sheet for Whiplash — a film whose core image had to translate across markets without losing its drive, intensity, or musical signature.

For projects like Whiplash, productions often rely on body doubles, hand doubles, lighting stand-ins, and likeness references before final talent photography is available.

The purpose of that pre-talent work is to build layouts early, test concepts, establish compositions, refine lighting, and prepare campaign directions so that when the talent finally arrives, the team is executing against an already-validated visual approach.