The Foam House
The assignment was pitched to me as an hour-long hike with the assurance that we would get lost at least twice.
I was amused, and actually excited, to take this on. Both my assistant Sophia and I have done extensive camping and hiking, so these circumstances were not intimidating — getting lost is part of the journey.
We strategize carefully what to bring with us, as it would all be on our backs. We even took one battery-powered strobe, because yeah, right?
The shoot was of Turner Brooks, a Yale professor and alumni of their architecture program, who had built an experimental house made from foam in the Yale Nature Preserves in 1969.
The structure had been largely forgotten, but was rediscovered by a student doing a deep hike recently, and came to the attention of the Alumni Magazine, who always have an eye out for a good story.
A couple of days before the shoot I received a call from Brooks, a friendly check-in to say hello and get acquainted. As I had him on the line anyway, I asked him what he planned on wearing for our session. “A tee shirt and shorts, I suppose.” I replied, “Do you think that we can step it up a bit, just for the photograph? Perhaps slacks, along with a nice shirt?“ There was a pause, and then he said, “I think that we should go caveman, just naked.“ I laughed, and replied, “Be careful, we might just do it.“
A good portion of the Alumni Magazine staff were also keen to get lost on a hike, and we had a group of six heading out to the site. Most of them left a few minutes into the session, allowing us some quiet time, and a chance to pivot to a more intimate set up. I sequestered my female assistant away from the shooting area, and we commenced the second half with Brooks in his full-on on altogethers.
Opportunities like this don’t come along every day, so I appreciate Turner Brooks delivering on every level. Hats, and just about everything else, off to the man.
Top Image: Turner Brooks at the Foam House, Yale Nature Preserve, New Haven, CT. September 9, 2025.
Second Image: The official alt photo.
Bottom Image: No one was lost in the making of these photographs. Clockwise from bottom left: Sophia Pallwein-Prettner, Jeanine Dunn, Chris Buck, Pippa Jack, Mark Branch, Turner Brooks.