A Photo Geeks ups and downs through words and images.
Found this old picture of a close friend. One who often lent her beautiful smile and spirit to me to help improve my skills and shape my passion for levels of studio and street photography. Looking back, I wish I can individually thank the many people, both subjects and photographers, who inspired and guided me along the way.
As a photographer who has a hard time letting go. Often thinking, once the image is deleted, so goes the memory. I can assure you, that train of thought might score you an appearance on the show “Hoarders”, if not in a chair with a licensed psychotherapist. Therefore, I highly recommend that you regularly revisit and delete photos that no longer feed your art. Trust me. Your closet and computers hard-drive will thank you.
As someone who’s been a slave to that before mentioned belief, I’m incredibly grateful for both the space I’ve created and the emotional freedom of not holding too tightly to the past. When I think of my earlier days of getting peple to show up at my tiny home studio in Hoboken.
Looking back, I can’t help but recall Roksolana. Her energy and personality were and are unmatched. She was always two steps ahead of me while often sharing her own ideas. And rather hard to keep up with. In the end, she helped to teach me about patience and expression through her beauty and personality.
Last night I had a dream I had gone back to work as a portrait photographer. As of late, I’ve often thought about the idea, and what I might do differently and how I’d approach each subject personally and in attaining the shot. Perhaps with more knowledge or proper lighting and more confidence. All these years later, I find myself drawn to the image by the same traits. The eyes, expression and possibly what lies beneath. All these years later. Portraiture remains my passion. I hope that if I ever return to it. I’ll skip the nervous knots that often accompanied my sessions and just enjoy the moment.
For all the people I met and those who allowed me to take just a few moments to capture their beauty and individuality. I am forever thankful for their time and patience in indulging in my weirdness and helping me grow as a photographer. Thinking back to those days and looking upon the days when my apartments linen closet was filled with books of negatives, slides and random photo products important to film photographers. It’s hard to believe that, while I was quite occupied with the art. I wasn’t all that serious and wouldn’t bust a gasket when I made a mistake.
Though it’s not always easy to get the right subject to sit in with you. Photographing people has, for me, always been the most rewarding aspect of photography. The eyes, expression, and peeling away the layers that allow the true soul of the person to appear. There’s honestly, nothing like it. While many of the people who I wanted to photograph weren’t confident or comfortable in their own skin. Others, flat out turned down my offer. “No. I hate being in front of a camera.” are words I’ve heard countless times. The hardest part for me was not taking their refusal personally. The times when the reaction was positive and the answer was “Yes”. Put me into this instant happy place.
When meeting the woman above. I was captivated by both her beauty and talent as a musician. It wasn’t long before I realized she was one of the sweetest people I’d ever met. The image above is from our third and final session. The final results were rewarding, as I convinced her to peel away some of her makeup and change into a fun and laid back tee shirt. One of the hardest things for me has always been telling people exactly what I want. My life as a photographer became a lot easier when I learned to better communicate with the people I photographed and express exactly how I envision them.
While popping into my local camera store to pick up a print, I asked one of the salesmen what he thought made a great portrait. For whatever reason, he shared it with the rest of the staff. In what seemed to be a choreographed answer, they replied, “The eyes,” in unison. Here’s an image I feel represents their unanimous answer.
While photographing people has been my passion since day one. It wasn’t always easy. From my earliest days photographing friends and working for retail studios. To working with models and complete strangers That personal connection peels away the layers and depth of people’s personalities was one of the best feelings I could describe.. Forging a trust in a matter of minutes. One that allows you to peal away layers to show them in a way they may not have expected. I want to get back to that, while exploring the stories and experiences behind the session and image. As much as I’ve enjoyed and benefited from travel and landscape photography, I’ve dearly missed the challenge and rewards of portraiture and studio photography. What once looked like a closed chapter seems to be opening up again.
Our recent, first ever trip to West Virginia turned out to be a good one. Despite my wife being the only Asian the state had ever hosted. We enjoyed hiking and exploring the Appalachian Trail, Bridge, Shenandoah River and other historic activities. We stopped for baked goods at Bolivar Bread and completely knocked our self out. To be truthful, we enjoyed the day a lot more than we could ever hope. Granted, crossing bridges is my greatest phobia. But, the rapid heartbeat and anxiety were worth it. Though I didn’t spend a lot of time stopping for pictures. I was able to capture a few moments. If you have any thoughts to add. Please do so below.
After gaining some lost sense of balance. I’ve decided that I want to start photographing people again. Not that I’m nessecarily interested in models, actors or musicians. Just the exercise of a good portrait. One that tells a story of delves deep into a persons personal story and personality. I miss that. I miss that sense of capturing a moment or a mood. In recent years I’ve gone from an extrovert to a wallflower, and I’m not sure I like it. So here goes. Maybe this week I’ll strike up a conversation with a stranger and propose a session. I used to be quite good at talking to strangers. Maybe I can still pull it off. If I do. You’ll be the first to know. Here’s to following your heart.
As I review and often delete old files from my desktop and external hard drives. I can’t help but lament over mistakes I made when I started out. Whether it be bad lighting, busy backgrounds or blemishes. I often wish I had known more. Whereas in the past. I didn’t spend much time in post production and my studio lighting was often flat. Through listening to better photographers and putting their teachings to practise. My skills improved and I gained confidence. These days, my enjoyment of post production has grown to where I’m beginning to notice that shooting and editing play on an evener keel. Still, I often find myself wishing I could get another chance to capture the beauty and soul of many of the people I met along the way.
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