Images by Pablo Alfaro
Interview by Erez Reuveni

On a fortuitous afternoon five years ago, Miami-based photographer Pablo Alfaro walked into a pawnshop and purchased an A8 camera out of passing curiosity. In the years that have followed, Alfaro has honed his craft and evolved as an artist talented and savvy enough to work for Gap, Guess, and Ralph Lauren, while also shooting editorial copy for magazines like W, Details, Allure, and Interview.

"I'm a real estate agent in Miami," says Alfaro. "Photography started off just as a hobby. Then I took a black and white course at the University of Miami because I was curious, and I was taking pictures and someone from New York City saw my pictures and liked them. That led to me doing work for Interview Magazine. Later, the owners of Guess saw my pictures and called, asking me to send my book. I didn't know what a book was, so I sent some prints. They called me a week later and asked me to fly to Los Angeles. That's how it started. I worked for Guess for three-and-a-half years straight.

Alfaro's primary interest as a photographer is capturing people in action. "What got me into photography is what we call ...lifestyle photography,'" he says. "Snapshots of people, things you feel at the moment, smiles, and actions. I like photographing people living and doing their own thing." Alfaro's portraits and candids are lush canvasses for the brush of his mind's eye. Alfaro juxtaposes colors that at first glance may seem diametrically opposed to each other. But Alfaro manages to fuse colors masterfully, while also playing with light and perspective. The resulting photographs are a treat to look at, a combination of technical understanding and visual imagination.