Justin Van Leeuwen is a Ottawa-Canada based commercial photographer specializing in corporate and editorial portraiture. He wasn’t always a photographer though. He spent half his life selling comic books which had a strong impact on his high-contrast and colorful style.

Justin has won no awards, and has applied to no competitions. He is self-taught and leaves these things to people who care about trophies, potential wealth, and fortune. Justin’s “extreme family portraits” earned him some internet fame in 2012 when he was featured on the Huffington Post and the Daily Mail online.

Justin has been published locally in Ottawa Magazine, Kitchissippi Times, Capital Parent, Centre Ice, Ottawa Woman, and nationally in Spacing and iRun magazines. His corporate clients include the Ottawa Marriott, MediaStyle, Telus, and is currently working on some national campaigns that can’t yet be revealed.

He writes lens reviews for Canonrumors.com and pretends to know what he’s talking about. Justin has had a chance to work with Joe McNally (once, as an assistant, at a workshop, and Joe napped a bit), and hung out with David DuChemin (when both of his ankles were broken so he couldn’t leave even if he wanted to), and spends countless hours on twitter interacting with everyone he can, a classic cry for attention.

He drinks beer, eats sushi, and buys too much camera gear, but everything else he does is for his two young boys Alex and Quinn. Sorry ladies, this one’s taken.

Justin Van Leeuwen's Favorite Westcott Gear:

 

Articles by Justin Van Leeuwen

JVL - Rapid Box Duo 2

How to Overpower the Sun with Only 1 Softbox

While shooting on a roof top in Ottawa, Canada, Top Pro lifestyle photographer Justin Van Leeuwen experiments with diffusion and modification options to best overpower the sun to capture the best portraits of his client. First, Justin uses a with a . This method is super simple way to tame harsh sunlight, creating a soft, natural glow.
Rapid Box Duo setup by JVL

Speedlite Portraits with the Rapid Box Duo

It's a documented fact that I'm a big fan of the 26” Rapidbox, so when I realized they had released a larger version that took two speedlights I had to have it. The advantages to having two speedlights in the Rapid Box are pretty simple: you have the potential for twice the power (one full stop of light), or the option of a faster-recycle time at lower settings.
Justin Van Leeuwen Final Portrait 3

On Location with Justin Van Leeuwen

On-location in Ottawa, Canada, commercial photographer Justin Van Leeuwen needs to overpower the setting sun for a portrait session. To do this, Justin modifies his strobe with the . This modifier produces a soft, broad output, allowing Justin to subtly fill in shadows and illuminate his subject. This Zeppelin Series of modifiers by Westcott feature a deep profile and highly-reflective interior.
Justin Van Leeuwen

Justin Van Leeuwen Reviews the Westcott ProGrip

Corporate and editorial portrait photographer Justin Van Leeuwen hails from Ottawa, Canada. Modest and self-taught, Justin's photography often seems larger than life, featuring high contrast and colorful subjects. His work has been published locally in Ottawa Magazine, Kitchissippi Times, Capital Parent, Centre Ice, Ottawa Woman, and nationally in Spacing and iRun magazines.
JVL 7' Parabolic Umbrella Portrait

Creating a Large Light Source On-Location

Westcott Top Pro and professional commercial photographer Justin Van Leeuwen demonstrates his use of the 7' Parabolic Umbrella and the  during an outdoor portrait shoot. To compete with the present sunlight, Justin places the umbrella angled toward his subject and advises his assistant to hold the reflector to add warmth and dimension.