Blackpink Jennie and Jeon Yeobin for Chanel
A few portraits shot for Chanel in Seoul South Korea for the release of their new Coco Crush collection. I had the chance to portray Kpop superstar and Blackpink member Jennie as well as South Korean actress 전여빈 [ Jeon Yeobin ] in a super environment.
Jennie from Kpop band Blackpink for Chanel
Actress 전여빈 [ Jeon Yeobin ] for Chanel
Tim Franco is a photographer based in Seoul South Korea and operates in great asia on commercial photographic assignment.
Macau - Vegas of the East
I recently traveled to Macau on assignment and enjoyed a night out to explore the vintage district around the famous Lisboa casino in the old part of Macau. Please find a few photos taken during that night!
Tim Franco is an commercial and editorial photographer based in Asia
Nate Mann - Actor Portrait
Portrait session with the American Actor Nate Mann.
Nate Mann is an American actor who played in Licorice Pizza by Paul Thomas Anderson and who is currently in production of a couple of TV series coming up on Apple TV and Peacock. He came to me earlier this year asking me to produce a few portraits for him. He flew to Seoul while on break during a shoot in Australia and we had a fun and creative portrait session. Here a re few of them
Tim Franco is available for professional portrait photography all around the Asia Region
Dior Beauty Korea Travel
In early December 2022, influencer Lily Mac and Tara Milk Tea from Australia came to Seoul to visit the special holiday pop-up store by Dior Beauty. I was hired by Dior and Harper’s Bazaar to follow the pair during their trip in the South Korea Capital. The photos resulted in a story published here. Here are more of the photos
If you are looking for a photographer to shoot fashion, beauty, commercial and editorial portraits in Seoul, South Korea, please get in touch with Tim Franco timfranco@gmail.com
Ami Fashion Show in Seoul
During the 2022 Seoul Fashion Week, the brand Ami produced a stunning fashion show in downtown Seoul. I had the chance to document this unique event. Here are some of the images
If you are looking for a photographer to cover fashion and luxury events in Seoul, Korea or greater Asia, get in touch timfranco@gmail.com
Lee Sung-kyung for Chanel
Lee Sung-kyung is a South Korean model, actress, singer and Chanel Beauty Ambassador. I had the chance to work with her on numerous occasion. Those photos were taken a couple years back. I think it was actually the first time I photographed her.
Tim Franco is a portrait and documentary photographer covering fashion and luxury commercial celebrity photoshoots in South Korea and great Asia. Please get in touch if his services are needed!
Korean Bear Farms
In 1981, South Korea started importing bears to farm them for their bile. The liquid located in their gallbladder is very popular in traditional Asian medicine and has been used for multiple purposes.
In 1985, South Korea banned importation but the farms continued their breeding to provide the growing demand. In 2014, a deal was reached with the government to stop the exploitation of the bears.
There are about 24 bear farms still existing in South Korea with about 360 bears kept in small and old cages. Some of them are still trying to evade the laws. Since 2018, Tae Gyu Choi founded an organization to help the bears and eventually move them to a Sanctuary where they can be treated better.
If you are interested to publish that story get in touch at timfranco@gmail.com
Porsche Korea | Editorial
A small assignment for the official Porsche Magazine in Seoul
Tim Franco is an Asia based photographer available for commercial and editorial photography assignment in the entire region. Please fee to get in touch!
New York Times Publication - Post Olympics
Last weekend, I traveled to the Pyeongchang area in South Korea to shoot a report for a story looking at the impact of the 2018 Olympics. For this story, we looked at facilities but also local businesses. The full article can be found here. More unpublished photos below
I am available for editorial assignment in South Korea.
Sphere magazine cover story
My series Illicit Ink was published as a cover story for Sphere magazine about Tattoos. All those portraits were shot on paper negative using a 8X10 field camera.
Feature in Figaro Madame
Portraits of South Korean Women for Madame Figaro.
Last month, I followed fellow journalist and friend Sebastien Falletti for a story about status of Women in South Korea. I portrayed a KPOP singer ( Kim Yerim aka Lim Kim ), as well as brand owners and activist. The story was published in Figaro madame in December.
Tim Franco is Seoul based photographer available for editorial assignment in South Korea and Asia.
Testing the Hasselblad X1d2
I finally invested in a medium format digital camera. I have been using the Fuji GFX for some campaign shoot but my choice finally went towards the Hasselblad X1d2 as I found the quality of the colors amazing and the size was much smaller. I went on a small testing tour with it as I soon as I received it with neighbour and model Jin. Please see some of the photos here.
Tim Franco is available for commercial portrait & photography work in Seoul & South Korea.
Unperson exhibition in Cortona
This summer and despite the pandemic, I was lucky enough to travel to Italy for the opening of my Unperson exhibition in Cortona. The organizers, including Arianna Rinaldo, made amazing work at displaying my work in an old villa in the center of town. All the other exhibitions were also great and will be on until the end of September. If you are traveling in the region, go and check it out!
The book unperson is available here . Please contact me at timfranco@gmail.com for any information.
Creative Portraits in Seoul
I finally took the time to book a studio session here in Seoul to go over some new lighting techniques that I wanted to try for portraits. I have always wanted to extend my commercial portfolio but I end up trying very creative technique that tends to be too artsy for any kind of commercial photoshoot. Two young South Korean actresses were kind enough to spend the day in front of my camera and here are some of the result!
Tim Franco is a Seoul - South Korea based portrait photographer who takes assignment all over east Asia ( China, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea and others). He specializes in creative portrait commercial photography.
Exhibition in Pyeongchang for the PIPFF
The short film “ Reclaiming the negative” documenting my project Unperson is part of the official selection of the 2021 Pyeonchang Peace film Festival. The photos from my book are also exhibited as part of the festival and the team did a great job et curating the project. Here are some images from the exhibition.
More about this project:
In George Orwell’s 1984, an unperson is someone who has been vaporized, whose record has been erased. Similarly, the North Korean defectors that Tim Franco chose to portray have decided to disappear, fleeing sometimes for ideological reasons and often out of despair. The road to South Korea is dangerous and can take years, across the many different borders with Mongolia, Laos, Thailand and China. The travels of the ones that do are filled with the fear of being arrested and sent back to labor camps. Having arrived in South Korea, they often struggle to find a new identity; Lost between their North Korean past and South Korean future.
To reflect this incredible transition, Tim Franco used an analog material that is not supposed to exist: the negative of a polaroid reveals through a series of chemical purifications, resulting often in something uncertain, dirty and imperfect. Each portrait goes side by side with the story of how and why the subjects came to this radical decision. In order to retrace their trails, Franco travelled to the crossing points, aiming to capture the diversity of landscape that is the background of North Korean defection.
South Korean Drag scene Portraits
Last year, during the pandemic, I stared to work on a new series about the drag scene in South Korea. In a country where conservatism still prevails, I wanted to do a series about a community that goes against this trend. I started to shoot 4x5 portraits of different person from the community but unfortunatly, because of the pandemic, I am left with an un-finished series. As soon as we are allowed back in bars and clubs, I will continue shooting the performances to make it complete. In the meanwhile, please check out a few of those portraits here:
Tim Franco is a portrait photographer based in Seoul, South Korea
Dior Retail | South Korea Photographer
For the past year, Dior has been working in partnership with me to photograph their new store in South Korea. I have been shooting architecture, interior and retail photography professionally for the past 10 years and I was glad to work with one of the best name in the luxury industry. Here are some of the photos.
Tim Franco is a Seoul based architecture photographer who specialises in high end luxury retail photography. He is available in South Korea and greater Asia ( China / Japan / Taiwan & Hong Kong ) for retail and architecture assignments.
Floods in Seoul | Heavy Rain in South Korea
The rain has been insane for the past month in South Korea. While there is serious damage and casualties in the South, the capital has only seen his main river, the Han river, raised by more than 8 meters and the different parks and roads on its banks have been completely flooded. I went down and documented a few of those strange new landscapes formed by this downpour.
Tim Franco is available for editorial and commercial photography assignment in Seoul and South Korea.
Chanel | Korea, Japan & China Photographer
Chanel has been working with me for the last 2 years in the Asia region for their digital content. Most of the shoot are with local and international celebrities who are wearing or using Chanel products. I had the chance to work in 3 different countries , Japan, South Korea and China to cover those assignments. Its always a pleasure to work with such a great name in the industry, a luxury and fashion brands that still bring sparkles in people’s yes. Here are some of those photos:
Pharrell Williams performing in Tokyo
Nana Komatsu
Lee Dong-wook
shin min ah
Kristen Stewart
Soo Joo Park
Chanel Flagship Store in Seoul South Korea
Gangwon | South Korea Photographer
A couple weeks back, I felt stuck in the city. I usually travel all over Asia every month for commercial and personal shoots and since the beginning of the pandemic I am stuck at home in Seoul. I packed my large format camera in my car and drove the South Korean east coast. I traveled there a few times in the past on assignment and personal trips and slowly felt in love with the vintage look of the coastal cities with their motels and beaches. I started to document those without any particular project in my mind. On the first trip I shot only one evening and 3 frames - here they are:
Tim Franco is a photographer currently based in South Korea and available for assignment all over the country. Please get in touch : timfranco@gmail.com