Prolific photographer who has captured a vast range of celebrity subjects over the years including, Alicia Keys, Rosario Dawson, Ewan McGregor, Ryan Gosling, Ryan Reynolds, Anne Hathaway, Janet Jackson, many more.
Yu Tsai was born in Taiwan to a Chinese father from China and a Taiwanese native, and spent his childhood in Taipei. He moved to a farm in Indiana with his family when he was 12. The family then moved to Chino, California, where he spent his adolescence. He attended Don Antonio Lugo High School, where he was a member of the Future Farmers of America and the track team. After high school, Yu Tsai attended the University of California, Riverside and California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, where he majored in biology and zoology with an intention of becoming a veterinarian. He then attended the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California, studying painting and graphic design. It was during this time in his education that he discovered his passion for the arts, along with directing and photography as a means of telling a visual story.
Career[]
Yu Tsai's photography has been featured in magazines such as Esquire, Cosmopolitan, Vanity Fair, Playboy, GQ, and Vogue. He has photographed celebrities including Janet Jackson, Anne Hathaway, Alicia Keys, Keira Knightley, Demi Lovato, Leonardo DiCaprio, Zhang Ziyi, Ewan McGregor, Chris Hemsworth, Lindsay Lohan, Jessica Chastain, Sienna Miller, James Marsden, Ryan Reynolds, Nick Jonas, Adam Levine, Ryan Gosling and Zooey Deschanel. He has also worked with models including Alessandra Ambrosio, Kate Upton, Rosie Huntington, Liliana Dominguez, Yamila Diaz, Gigi Hadid, and Camille Kostek among others.
Tsai has collaborated with other commercial directors in treatment writing and script development, and has directed commercials for Aetna, Gateway, and Samsung, among others. As a photographer, he has shot advertising campaigns for companies such as Apple, Clairol, Guess, and Lexus.
Tsai replaced Johnny Wujek as photo shoot creative consultant on cycle 21 and cycle 22 of ANTM. He was a judge on cycle 4, cycle 5, and cycle 6 of AsNTM as the new creative director. He also worked on "I Supermodel".
He also participated in national-wildlife conservation research with the National Geographic Research group.
Yu Tsai defines multifaceted. A Taiwanese born director and photographer, his first passions were Biology and Wildlife Zoology before venturing forth to a journey in the arts. Yu Tsai’s inspirations are a product of his studies and extensive travels to Africa, Europe, Asia, and the Middle East. After shifting direction from scientific studies, Yu Tsai earned his Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Art Center College of Design.
Early on, he collaborated with countless directors and creative minds in the film industry on script development and treatments, which led to his present focus in fashion and commercial photography and directing. Drawing from expertise and talents in design, this journey lead Yu Tsai to his present focus of fashion and advertising photography merging into the world of celebrity. Yu Tsai’s effortless and authentic manner generates an atmosphere of trust that is unmatched by his peers.
Yu Tsai’s collaborations with the industry’s most visible, beautiful, and provocative talent includes actors Leonardo Dicaprio, Nicole Kidman, Angelina Jolie, Tarji P. Henson, Jessica Chastain, Bruce Willis, Jon Hamm, Anne Hathaway, Forest Whitaker, James Franco, Keira Nightly, Ewan McGregror, and musicians as diverse as Ringo Starr, Janet Jackson, Alicia Keys, Nick Jonas, Katy Perry, and P Diddy.
Creating iconic imagery for international brands such as Apple, Guess, Coca-Cola, Pantene, Movado, Victoria’s Secret, Uniqlo, Topman, HP, CBS, Sony Music, Clairol, Lexus, Armani, Neiman Marcus, Sports Illustrated, Toyota, Coach, Bebe, Subaru, and Interscope Records, Yu Tsai has worked on groundbreaking and enduring projects. Developing relationships and trust, Yu Tsai has helped to launch the careers of many supermodels including Kate Upton, Candice Swanepoel, Elsa Hosk, Jessica Hart, and Irina Shayk, and Hailey Clauson.
His accomplishments in the fashion industry make him a highly sought expert, appearing as judge and mentor on America’s Next Top Model, Asia’s Next Top Model, ISupermodel in China, host of the Oscar Red Carpet on ABC, as well as appearances on Germany’s Next Top Model.
A passionate foodie and cook, Yu Tsai is producer and host of a television show, near to his heart, called Street to Kitchen Asia. STKA highlights everyday heroes at work in night markets and in family restaurants in Taiwan, focusing on the heritage of the recipes and the generations preserving them. Street to Kitchen Asia airs on Fox Asia as well as National Geographic and is in production on its second season.