There is a distinct, electric energy that hums through the streets of Studio City and the surrounding Hollywood studio lots. This is the historic epicenter of storytelling, where soundstages rise like modern-day colosseums and the line between reality and imagination is constantly blurred. Over the years, working out of my Los Angeles studio space, I’ve had the distinct privilege of photographing the very actors who anchor the biggest science fiction and fantasy franchises in cinematic history.

When you are tasked with photographing the captains of starships, the leaders of mutant rebellions, and the wizards of Middle-earth, the challenge is unique. How do you strip away the uniforms, the capes, and the visual effects to capture the raw, human gravitas of these genre giants?

Here is a masterclass breakdown of what it’s like to photograph Sir Patrick Stewart, Sir Ian McKellen, and William Shatner in the heart of Hollywood.