I got a call form the New York Times photo desk late in the afternoon a few months back asking if I could run down to Times Square late that same evening and photograph a new tv show called Smash being filmed on location. I was told the show was NBC’s answer to FOX’s Glee, but was more of an adult-themed drama/musical about the making of a hit Broadway play.

So I jumped on my scooter and headed south from my pad on the Upper West Side of Manhattan to Times Square around 11PM for the shoot. When I arrived, I was immediately confused because the crew was apparently on a break and all I could see were tons of tourists hanging out in Times Square…the usual. Moments later as I saw the camera crews start to move around, it dawned on me that I was actually standing in the midst of hundreds of extras who were only acting like tourists for the production! Clearly they were doing a great job as they even fooled a New Yorker like myself!

I met with the show’s publicist, who pointed out all the important folks like the director, producers, and eventually led me over to the actors appearing in the scene, Megan Hilty and Katherine McPhee. I was happy to see Katherine because previously I’d taken her portrait in the dressing room of “Live! with Regis and Kelly” for the Los Angeles Times years back. This was after she had been a top contestant on American Idol. I was pleased to find out she remembered the shoot before I could even mention it. It’s always good to know that my brief encounters with portrait subjects are remembered positively.

Pretty quickly the filming began and I was roaming the “set” taking pictures of a scene where Katherine and Megan’s character are walking through Times Square and suddenly break out singing with the accompaniment or a random trio of street musicians who coincidently are playing nearby.

The mood of the set was unlike most sets I’ve been on due to the uncontrolled atmosphere of Times Square. It was hard to even tell there was a major production filming because of all the extras. I was walking with and taking pictures of Katherine and Megan as they crossed 7th Ave to begin a scene. Behind me a real tourist says to her daughter, “hey, I think something is being filmed, do you see any celebrities?”

Only in NYC can you walk down a street and never realize you’re right in the middle of a huge production!

I had an opportunity to photograph Megyn Kelly,  the anchor of “America Live” on Fox News for a New York Times Style Section profile piece. I’ve always enjoyed shooting on the sets of television shows,  whether they be sitcom,  news,  or dramas. It’s interesting for me to document how television is made.

I met Megyn on set a few moments prior to her live newscast. I wanted to get a good mix of documentary and portraiture,  so I only spent a few moments on set taking her portrait,  rather I wanted to document her while preparing for her show and delivering the news On Air. Normally when I shoot on a set,  I can only roam and take photos freely during commercial breaks or through the glass of a control room because of the camera noise. This time,  I was able to shoot continuously though the broadcast on set because I was using my new Leica M9,  which is super quiet…just love that camera!

Her show is three hours long and afterward we rendezvoused in her office where I took more relaxed portraits. It was a small,  but nicely decorated traditional office incorporating many photos of her family,  her large shoe collection,  and a comfy lounge chair set dozens of floors in the New York City sky.

Poor Megyn was suffering a mega cold the day of our shoot having to suck on lozenges and bear through awful coughing spells during commercial breaks. She has a tough job,  especially when you’re under the weather!

I had a really nice time over at Fox News. I found their PR team,  stage manager,  cameramen, and Megyn herself were more than accommodating and super friendly. I also made my dad and grandfather proud having steeped foot in their favorite news channel’s headquarters!

I recently had the opportunity to visit the set of the The Gayle King Show (Oprah’s BFF) for a profile piece in the New York Times.

Thus far in my career, I’ve found shooting on television or movie sets to be an exciting and rewarding experience. I love seeing all the work that goes into producing television and film. Learning how all the different people on and off set work together to make TV is almost magical. It’s actually pretty intense, especially on this particular set because her show is LIVE and there’s no room for mistakes!

I feel the most in my element when I’m allowed to float around a room and simply document what’s happening around me….and this assignment was just that. I obviously had to be aware of not getting in the way, but Gayle’s crew was very welcoming to me and let me float all around.

As it turned out, Gayle had some cool guests that day on the show. First was host of NBC Nightly News, Brian Williams, and second was the music and fashion sensation Lady Gaga….freshly hatched from her egg at The Grammy’s.

I’ve always enjoyed newsman Brian Williams because behind the stern anchor, he’s actually very funny….I’ve seen him on many talk shows hamming it up as well as his comical cameos on NBC’s 30 Rock.

The only time I was asked not to take photos on set was for 1 minute as Lady Gaga came out to the set. Gayle thought it would be funny to strip to her undergarments and stand on a pedestal to get a reaction out of Gaga as part of a personal joke in honor of Lady Gaga’s unclothed interview on “60 Minutes.”….and it was pretty funny, I must say….unfortunately I don’t have photos of that!

Anyhow, Gaga came out wearing 10″+ platform shoes, a shoulder-less, leather outfit (for lack of a better word) while sporting faux, pointy, alien-like shoulders with spikes on her face and a large, egg-shaped hairdo. She was quite a site….though I wasn’t surprised as the last time I ran into her she was wearing a dress made of meat at the VMAs.

So yes, it was quite an experience. Gayle was super kind and chatted with me about my photos in the Justin Bieber book, who had recently been a guest on her show.

I was impressed with Gayle’s kindness and professionalism on set. Her team all worked well together and made me feel very welcomed. It was fun to run into Gayle a week or so later at the United Nations for a movie premiere I was covering. She remembered me and reminded me to send her the Bieber book….I delivered it the next day!

See more photos of Gayle King, Lady Gaga, and Brian Williams in my archives.

Gayle King Show – Blog – Images by Robert Caplin

I really get a kick out of how television and movies are produced, so every time I’m on a set I really just take it in. I’m a TV show junkie, so I love to see behind the scenes and how the shows are created, not to mention getting to interact with the actors and production staff on the set.

What was fun was walking into hair and makeup and and seeing an actor lying on the ground and realizing he’s playing a corpse undergoing an autopsy. Gnarly! The best was him walking through the line for dinner.

Daniel Renton undergoes extensive makeup to play a corpse undergoing an autopsy.

Renton in his scene

Dinner time on the set.

Josua Jackson portrait….while in makeup from a torture scene.

Jasinka Nicole plays a supporting role

John Noble plays the mad scientist.

Joshua Jackson shows me his bloody gloves. (fake blood made with KY Jelly…)

Anna Torv…she’s going to be a hit.