Naked Self-Portrait Promo #3 — Mt. Tamalpais, California
The Naked Promo Series — A Photographer's Marketing Strategy
This is not a conventional promotional image. That is entirely the point.
Marc Olivier Le Blanc has been building a series of self-portraits that function as quarterly promo cards — images that announce his work to the world in the most direct, unforgettable way he could think of. The format is consistent: Marc, naked, somewhere remarkable, with a skilled collaborator making it happen. The approach was deliberate from the start: it generated attention, conversation, and bookings in a way that conventional promotional materials never would. It also makes a clear statement about who Marc is as a photographer — someone willing to be exactly as exposed in front of the camera as he asks his subjects to be.
How Series #3 Was Made at Mt. Tamalpais
For this third installment, the location was Mt. Tamalpais in Marin County. Marc was on a hike with his partner and friend Daniel Castro — Emmy Award-winning director of Sky Pie Studio — when the view from the ridge made the decision for them. The fog moving through the trees, the green of the shadows, the isolation of the mountain: exactly the kind of landscape the series was built for.
What you cannot see in the photograph is the wind. The summit was exposed and extremely cold, and the process of undressing and making a composed, well-lit self-portrait in those conditions required exactly the kind of conviction that makes the series memorable.
Commercial Photography and Photographer Branding in San Francisco
The naked promo series is a thread running through Marc Olivier Le Blanc's practice — a personal project that doubles as a demonstration that the most effective photographer marketing doesn't look like marketing at all. See the full series on the blog, or view the commercial photography portfolio.
Marc Olivier Le Blanc is a commercial photographer in San Francisco working with brands, agencies, and startups including Levi's, Google, Airbnb, and Starbucks. His editorial and lifestyle work spans San Francisco, Marin County, and the broader Bay Area.
