The New Petzval 85 Lens: Skate and Shoot with Alex Muccilli

Alex Muccilli is a New York City photographer whose reputable clientele include Phillip Lim, Vice Magazine and Tory Burch. See what happens when he takes the Petzval 85 for a spin.

Alex Muccilli is a gem on the NYC scene. He shoots beautiful people, places, and things; it’s truly hard to capture the radiance of his photographs in words. His portraits are honest and gritty — you’ll feel up close and in all of the action of his shoot whether he’s out in a skate park or with models one-on-one. With a robust portfolio and a hefty sense of adventure, we knew in our gut that a team of Alex and the Petzval lens would bring a bit of fire. He’s shot stills and video with the New Petzval 85 Art Lens.

New Petzval 85 Skateboarding from Lomography on Vimeo.

How did you first fall into photography?

Back in middle school and high school, prior to taking pictures, I shot a lot of video of my friends skateboarding. While in high school, I took a photo class. I didn’t really have any focus on it though and mainly spent my time with video. I ended up deciding to go to college for photo because I wanted to explore still imagery more. Admittedly, while in school I still focused on filming mostly because at the time I was traveling around and filming a lot of professional skateboarders and making money off of it. At one point, I was offered to go to Barcelona for nearly two months to film so I decided to drop out— because who wouldn’t take a free ride to Spain, right?! While I was away, I decided that I was going to move to NY when I got back and actually focus on photography. Long story short, through friends and a lot of odd jobs, I finally settled into the photo world assisting some pretty big fashion and celebrity photographers here in NY.

What was your first camera, and what do you shoot with now?

My first camera was either a Pentax ME Super or a Canon AE-1. I believe my grandfather gave me the Pentax and my father gave me the Canon. I currently use a Nikon D800 and A6000.

Tell us a little bit about shooting with the Petzval Lens— first off, what camera body did you shoot with? What were the pros and cons, the benefits and challenges, that you found while shooting with the Petzval Lens?

I used the Petzval on my D800 and A6000 depending on what I was shooting. As far as what the pro’s and cons are, things get a little fuzzy. The pros were the cons and vice versa! Manual focus. Man… It’s not an easy lens to shoot with if you’re moving and/or your subject is moving at high speeds, but I like challenges so it was kind of fun actually. Also, with manual focus, you have to slow down and pay more time to think about what you are doing. I love my autofocus, but there’s some value in taking your time. It kind of reminded me of shooting with my RZ. When it comes to the image quality, I love this lens. I personally feel that a lot of the time, digital is too digital. Tack sharpness is typically strived for by most people and with digital, it can sometimes end up looking too sharp and synthetic. Soft focus doesn’t mean it’s an unusable image to me though. With the Pezval, you kind of get a combination of the two. There’s a general feeling of softness going on throughout the image, but there’s still detail in there. It really creates beautiful pictures with a dream-like quality.

Who did you shoot with the Petzval, and what lured you to these people and spaces?

I originally wanted to shoot models for this, but there were some conflicts involved so I had to figure something else out. That led me back to my roots and shooting skateboarders.

What’s your favorite setting to shoot in— do you like working with models or going out and shooting on a whim?

My favorite settings are on location or in studio with models. I typically always carry a camera around with me, but I don’t really do any street photography. It’s more just to take pictures of things I find funny or some pretty landscapes I see while traveling.

Do you have a favorite shot from your collection here with the Petzval Lens?

Any action picture that I actually got in focus, I’m a fan of… Haha. But I would probably have to go with the portrait of Bobby Puleo or the picture of Patrick Guidotti at the bottom of the pool.

If you could photograph anyone with the Petzval Lens, who would that be, where would you shoot, and why?

Oh man… This is a tough question. I think it would have to be someone one important because this lens can produce some pretty full impact images. Perhaps Obama? I’d probably do it in a daylight studio just because you can’t beat natural light!

And, finally, any comments on what you’ve learned in your photographic career that may give some insight to aspiring Lomographers?

If you’re in school for photo, just go for the first year and then drop out! Go get an internship/assist with someone. I promise that you will learn more in the first six months than you did the first couple of years in school. In the end, if you really want to pursue photography, realize that a piece of paper isn’t going to get you work! It’s all about your portfolio and attitude.