Founded by William Delzell in 1996, Blue Sky Rental Studios specializes in providing Bay Area film makers and photographers with the finest daylight studios and services available. Blue Sky has been working with the country's top businesses including numerous Fortune 500 companies for the past 12 years. Based in San Francisco, Blue Sky is Northern California's premier destination for commercial photography.

Now with Blue Sky People, an online database for real people talent, Blue Sky continues to expand its efforts of providing world class services for both its in house clients as well as those doing business on location.

William Delzell
President

Bill is responsible for setting the direction and for planning the future of Blue Sky's operations. He leads and manages the execution of Blue Sky's new business plan which is preparing the company to enter the consumer market. Bill draws on twenty years of commercial photography experience. Prior to founding Blue Sky Rental Studios in 1996, Bill's award winning work as a photographer could be seen on book covers, in magazines and publications worldwide. His clients include Apple, Sun, Sony, HP, and IBM among hundreds of others. Communication Arts included Bill's work in its prestigious Photography Annual. His work has been seen in museums across the country from the Corcoran in Washington D.C. to the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco.

Professional affiliations include The Advertising Photographers of America (APA), American Society of Media Photographers (ASMP), Adobe, Apple, Kodak Professional, Fuji and the San Francisco Digital Imaging Group (SFDIG). He has served on the board of directors of SF Digital Imaging Group, a professional digital organization in the Bay Area. Bill has also been an advisor to the San Francisco Chapter of the APA Assistants Group. He has taught in the graduate program at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco.

Bill has helped to lead the photographic community by creating the Annual Emerging Photographers Show, which gives young photographers a venue to show their work to leading members of the local advertising and design community. This participation has given Bill a clear understanding of the challenges young photographers' face when starting their careers.

His leadership has given Blue Sky high market visibility both locally and internationally. Blue Sky is known throughout the industry as the leading photography rental studio in Northern California.

Bill graduated from The Art Center College of Design in Photography with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in 1983.

www.delzellphotography.com

Jon Long
Vice President

Jon Long is a five-year veteran of Blue Sky. He currently serves as Vice President. In this position, Jon leads in the implementation of new systems and technologies, building the necessary infrastructure to maintain Blue Sky's growth. Since joining Blue Sky, Jon has helped to enrich the Blue Sky brand through inspired design on both the web and in print. Jon recently designed and launched Blue Sky's point-of-sale system which helps in handling the thousands of people and images in the Blue Sky People Talent Base. By incorporating state-of-the-art computer systems into Blue Sky's day-to-day operations, Jon has spearheaded the creation of streamlined processes that enable the company to expand rapidly and ultimately grow the bottom line.

Jon joined Blue Sky after nine years in retail, four of which were spent in management positions at Apple. His expertise in both technology and customer service helped him to achieve the company's number one retail sales metrics worldwide for three quarters in a row.

Jon studied Design Communication at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas for three years afterwhich he moved to San Francisco in 2002 to attend the Academy of Art University.

Tamara Rivera
Creative Director

As Creative Director of Blue Sky People, Tamara Rivera has photographed over 10,000 portraits of Blue Sky clients. This experience has contributed to Tamara's life dream as a photographer.

When we asked Tamara to explain why she loves her job so much she expressed, "the excitement of seeing new places and new faces has been awesome.  I enjoy working with children and giving them the confidence that they need to move forward with their careers.  I have had a passion for photography since I was a young girl."  Tamara recalls, "as a child, many of my family members were annoyed with me because I was always taking their pictures, complaining that I left them no privacy.  But their complaints did not deter me from clicking away.  I found it fascinating that a photo captures a moment in time and that moment will not diminish with time." As a person who enjoys working with people, Tamara, the mother of a beautiful, intelligent eight year old girl, has made her living photographing people at the most important times of their lives; quinceañeras, weddings, childbirths, and graduations.  "At present, I am pleased to be one of the steps on the journey of a child's dream, to a life in the entertainment business."

Maile Thiesen
Producer

Maile is the go to person for studio bookings, equipment rental, and special event information at Blue Sky Rental Studios. She also heads digital post and print production for Blue Sky People.

Recently transplanted from Portland, OR, Maile comes to Blue Sky with experience in filmmaking, photography, and performance. Over the last two years, Maile associate produced the independent feature film, The Auteur, where she acted as set photographer, did location scouting, graphic design, casting, and production assistance. The Auteur had its world premiere at Tribeca Film Festival April 2008, an LA premiere at Outfest in July, and a Korean premiere at Pifan in July. The Auteur is scheduled to have a European premiere at Athens International Film Festival in Sept, a UK premiere at Raindance in October, and a Florida premiere at Fort Lauderdale Film Festival in October.

Maile grew up in Portland, OR and graduated from the Pacific Northwest College of Art with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Photography. When she is not at working at Blue Sky, she is the bassist for pop rock glam group Basic Fix and plays upright bass for Sandra B. She currently lives and works in San Francisco.

Karima Cherif
Photographer

Karima Cherif, a San Francisco photographer, of Polish and Tunisian descent has been winning over art buyers and magazine editors around the world with her artful eye.

As a college student at the Sorbonne, her two-year, sojourn in France provided her with a unique perspective into the human spirit. Ten years later, Karima returned to Europe again, this time living and shooting in Spain and Poland. She utilizes this heightened intuition to enhance her portrayal of personalities. Her ability to make models feel comfortable releases their maximum potential for expression. Over the years, the menagerie of her fashion, lifestyle and underwater work, have provided a vast background that can add a fresh and new look to Ad campaigns and editorial fashion spreads.

Karima's commercial work includes Macy's, Fluevog, Chiasso, H2O, Benefit Cosmetics, Yoga Journal, DAS Handbags and Mange La Mode. Her work has been widely exhibited throughout the world in galleries and including two permanent, museum collections. Validation of her development as a photographer and artist came in 1991, when she won the Canadian Studios Award for Photography. Her unique vision also awarded her first prize in the American Photo contest for 2004, and the Best of Taboo 2004.

Rhia Jaucian
Lead Stylist

Rhia Jaucian currently serves as Blue Sky People's Lead Stylist. In this position, Rhia has styled thousands of people for the Blue Sky People TalentBase.

Upon graduating with a Bachelor of Arts degree from San Jose State University, Rhia worked in the medical field for 12 years as a physician's assistant. She has been a brand ambassador for Nike Women's Health Magazine, and has modeled for Nike's shoe calendar, Silk Vodka, and Mercedes-Benz. She has also appeared in The Man Show with Jimmy Kimmel and host RemixInsider.

Rhia began working as a freelance make-up artist 1998 for Este Lauder, later moving on to work independently with some local and international photographers. She has also worked with McDonald's Corporation doing work for their brochures. Other clients include Donald Trump Learning Annex and Twine Webpage.