Portrait Photographer and Director
Los Angeles - New York
Bookings: michaeldeanwilkins02@gmail.com
Michael Dean Wilkins is a fashion and portrait photographer based in Los Angeles and New York.
With a background in film production, visual storytelling, and sound, their work carries a cinematic sensibility, one rooted in atmosphere, tone, and control. What began as a study in light and story eventually evolved into an exploration of how a single frame can hold the emotional weight of an entire scene.
Before stepping behind the camera, Michael began their career in fashion modeling. That experience shaped their understanding of presence: how confidence is built, how vulnerability reads on film, and how one's image becomes their identity when words can't be spoken.
Returning to photography felt like returning to direction: blending the structure of cinema with the immediacy of portraiture, and transforming traditional studio composition into something more personal.
Michael builds their worlds from the ground up. Through custom set design, wardrobe, and props, they often take on the role of creative director, shaping each image from concept to execution. Their photographs are constructed like scenes — controlled in lighting, deliberate in design — yet rooted in emotion, carried by intention.
