Photographer, Creative Director & Producer based in NYC
“LUCA MERCEDES
Never found without a lense on life, never lost without a doubt. A warrior of some sort.
It can be rocky but it’s always there. Some need to leave to see. Memories of past moments I will never erase - so here’s to the mountains we climbed and the oceans we crossed.
”
“Luca is warm and smart with an astonishing beautiful soul .”
CLIENTS include
SiriusXM, Greenpoint Pictures, Miss Sabado, Marc O'Polo, Juergen Christian Hoerl, ROEE, LOMOGRAPHY, Hyer Goods, Treats., FEMACON, Heuer am Karlsplatz, BACARDI, Spencer Tunick, Addicted to Rock, Elfenkleid, Red Bull, Alpen Hostel, Rudolf Schiller, Angelika Kozak, Politica Reisen, FVW, P&E, Alexander Moser Hairstyling, Datajockey, Gründervilla, The Guesthouse, Enjoy The Soup, Bluhm & Schwarz, Tonstube, Garbò, Austrian Cultural Forum NYC
Luca-Mercedes is a Photographer, Creative Director and the Founder of HONEST. She was born in Vienna, based in Brooklyn, NY and is travelling around the globe for her work .
Inquiries here.
BIOGRAPHY
As the child of two artists, she spent a lot of her early life at her fathers studio, painting ("really bad") next to him and listening to Rock'n'Roll music .
One day she stumbled upon her dad's old Leica R4 camera, got curious about photography and left for the city taking pictures. Since the first roll of film her heart beats for photography all along the way, she knew she had found the one thing she really loved and that inspires her to this this day. Two years later she attended the academy "die Graphische" in Vienna, where she spent most of her time in the darkroom developing and printing her analogue photos ranging from 35mm to Large Format .
The rise of the digital photographic era sent her into a 3 year creative crisis but she eventually picked up her camera again in 2010 followed by going into business for herself as a full time photographer .
2014 Luca's urge to shoot on film again couldn't be suppressed anymore . With going back to her roots, to do what she loves most, a promise was made: to do more. So HONEST. was born . A band of friends committed to building a community of artists, enthusiasts and idealists who are all bound by a deep passion for the pure and authentic art of film photography . At the heart of the concepts stands the print Magazine HONEST., dedicated to those who share the love for the character and soul that only film can deliver .
While promoting analogue photography, shooting mostly on film and constantly traveling the world she calls home, she enjoys great food (mostly vegetarian), drinks too much coffee and tries to see as many sunsets and sunrises as possible . Luca-Mercedes is well known for her motivational speeches, her stubbornness and her honesty . She loves to gaze at the night skies wondering what's out there while enjoying a good glass of Whiskey and wandering off into a world in between .
“Stay Hungry ! Stay Curious ! Shoot Film !”
Luca-Mercedes Stemer - thoughtful storytelling and creative one stop shop, including creative strategy & (pre/post) production .