Carnegie Imagery: Ethereal Photography, Elaborate Set Designs

There is never a shortage of techniques to explore with photography, and Alisha O’Hara has put her own, unique style to concerts, music videos, weddings, streets, products and portraiture with her photography business Carnegie Imagery. She affirms, “It never gets old.” Known for her elaborate set designs and use of practical effects, O’Hara named her business after an inside joke about her maiden name. 

“I like expanding on who the individual in the image is,” she explains. “I like to push the boundaries of gender and expression of artists. I’ve had a lot of fun with that. I love to capture my models more fluidly and am really hands-off with posing.”

O’Hara’s photography is inspired by vintage aesthetics, analog film and pop culture. Many of her shoots have a distinctively dreamlike quality characterized by dimmed lighting and vibrant colors. She is particularly fond of using a black diffusion filter on her 35mm Sigma camera lens, which brings to fruition the soft, ethereal effect that she really wants.

Grainy, Noisy

“At the beginning of my photography career, everything was about how sharp you could make the image, and I remember zooming in and being so upset if it wasn’t sharp. I love that a photo is grainy and has so much noise. The growth in that has made me really proud.”

Originally from West Bend, Alisha O’Hara had been involved in theater set design in high school, which was her first experience learning to convey an image to an audience. “The stage is very much like a camera,” she contends. “That aspect ratio is very similar. You’re setting that image up for people and with scenery.”

While going through a major transitional time in her life around 2018, O’Hara felt burned out from her career as a chef, her creative freedom restricted. She desired a new outlet.

Taking Pictures

“I tried drawing, painting…a lot of different avenues, and I found that they were frustrating to me,” O’Hara remembers. “But something that had always brought me joy was taking pictures.”

O’Hara has worked with Milwaukee artists like Amanda Huff, DarylAnne, Kalumet King, Bisca Rae and Valerie Lighthart. She has collaborated extensively with fellow photographer Ariel Kassulke, and has shot notable Milwaukee events like The Great Midwest Hemp Fest and Summerfest.

When designing a set for a shoot, O’Hara will bounce ideas with each client or create a mood board of images according to the client’s social media aesthetic. “I try to build it off who they are,” she notes. “Amanda Gierach and I have worked on a lot of big Hollywood glamour projects, because she knows that with my moodier lighting and rich fabrics, that’s something she and I execute really well.”

Those interested in working with O’Hara on a photo shoot may contact her via her website or Instagram. Carnegie Imagery has prints for sale of O’Hara’s travels to Ireland and Stockholm, in addition to prints from creative shoots of mushrooms and vintage memorabilia.

“I would love to have a multi-collaborative space,” O’Hara mentions. “If I can share a space with even just one other person to hang out in and build sets in that’s not my house, that would be amazing.”