I was dropping off a print at thegallery today when I saw this beautiful woman in the hall. I was scheduled to meet todays session there around the same time and though she barely resembled the picture that had been sent to me. I felt I had to ask. Cautiously I asked “Are you looking for someone in particular?” When she said “James” I smiled and introduced myself. In all honesty the picture she had emailed me did not even come close to the beautiful woman I was talking to. After a short introduction we jumped in my car and headed back to Jersey. Everything seemed to be going smoothly in the beginning. We shot some pictures under the overpass and headed over to the Monroe Center. She had big, beautiful eyes and a soft voice. She told me about her home in East Africa and how she missed the small things. How her first year of school had it’s challenges both academically and socially. I was eager to get back to the studio and work on some creative lighting. As much as I love working outdoors in natural light I have become more and more comfortable in the studio. I was also eager to work again with the strip box I picked up last week. She had told me earlier that she would get frustrated when she felt she wasn’t taking direction well and I felt that maybe our communication was off a bit. As we were taking the first shots I felt like I wasn’t achieving the lighting I had hoped for. Posing had also been somewhat of a challenge. All of the sudden it seemed as if we hit a wall. She looked somewhat drained so I asked if she wanted to call it a day. She said she was fine. Just a little tired. I told her to chill out for a bit (yeah, I say that sometimes) and offered her a drink. She opted for a Coke and “Pow” before you knew it we were back on track. In a short time we got some of the best pictures of the session. The dress she had brought was worn for the last few shots. I recall she had picked Duran Duran out of my CD collection to listen to and during the last few minutes was actually dancing. She really seemed as if she was in a good place. And for that I’m happy.
Tag: NYC
Faces in the crowd.
I never put much stock in what the weather man says. Though I do love all the TV wizardry they create waving their hands and making the panels behind them appear and disappear. The forecast for the weekend was rain, rain and more rain. Our original plans to head to the Bronx were scaled down to the Union Square are where there were two street fairs within a couple of blocks of one another. The idea of street food and particularly meat on a stick had my appetite at a peak. Before we headed out I decided to change lenses from my 28-135 to my 70-200 in order to get some candids from a safe distance. There is no beating NYC in terms of unique characters and individuals. Having a little distance to focus and not get attacked by aiming your lens at the wrong person is a big advantage. People react in a lot of different ways when they see you taking their picture. Most of those changes do not to help to produce a great image. I’ve made a point of always bringing business cards with me to give out to people I run into and photograph. Often offering to email them the image I shot. Through the day I met some interesting people, ate a lot of random food and got a whole lot of sun. I may have noticed a cloud or two towards the end of the day. But I never once felt a drop of rain.
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