Rob Cardillo Photography

09/12/2026

I recently had the privilege of photographing conceptual photographer and visionary landscape architect Hiroshi Sugimoto for the Special Design Section. Mr. Sugimoto was commissioned to redesign the Sculpture Garden at the Smithsonian's , which opens in late October.

Talk about rubbing shoulders with greatness! Though we only had a few minutes together, we captured the standard portraits of him alone and with the museum's elegant director, Melissa Chiu. Afterward, we even had a chance to play with his reflection in the new funhouse-mirrored underground passageway.

Hiroshi Sugimoto’s redesign of the Hirshhorn Museum’s sculpture garden was a heavy lift that will finally see the light.

09/03/2026

I was delighted to receive TWO Gold Awards and FOUR Silver Awards from Garden Communicators International Laurel Media Awards in their Photography Competition: gardencomm.org/awards/2026-winners.

Being judged and recognized by your peers is truly an honor and I wish I could have been there for the live announcement in Portland, OR. GardenComm (originally Garden Writers of America) is a wonderful group of professional writers, bloggers, podcasters, photographers, educators, etc. who have a passion for gardens and gardening. As a member, I've met hundreds of generous and knowledgeable people from across the country and count many of them as my friends.

06/19/2026

I am an idiot. I booked a shoot in NYC last Saturday and somehow forgot to check the sports calendar like a responsible adult. Turns out the Knicks were playing a massive game that night, and even though it was away, half of Manhattan turned into one giant watch party.

I caught the winning moment on slow-mo video, which is dramatic and unnecessary and exactly what you want from a championship win. It's a little long, but stick around for the 9:55 mark for an unexpected passionate kiss.

Meanwhile, I was busy discovering that I could not physically reach Penn Station. The police and the crowd had other plans for me, plans that mostly involved being absorbed into a writhing mass of hundreds of young, sweaty, deliriously happy strangers. I have unlocked a brand new fear and I did not ask for it.

So naturally, I did what any reasonable person does after surviving a championship riot: I sat at the for three hours, ate avocado toast, drank tea, and waited for my dignity (and the 5:01am train to Trenton) to arrive.

Would I do it again? Absolutely not. Will I check the sports calendar next time? Also absolutely not.

12/31/2025

Last week, the New York Times commissioned me to photograph Yannick Nézet-Séguin during a rehearsal of Handel’s Messiah with the Philadelphia Orchestra, where he serves as music director. Watching him conduct was pure privilege. He moves like a dancer, channeling the music through his entire body, his passion radiating from every gesture.

After the rehearsal (and a 15-minute portrait session), I watched that night’s performance and returned the following evening as well. The Messiah, which I had once found somewhat tedious and overly repetitive, finally resonated with me, and I’ve been binging it ever since.