Obsessive

A person would think that by the time they reached fifty-something that they’d have enough self-knowledge to know that on a working trip they wouldn’t have time to actually keep up a blog…… sigh….

Well, I’m back home again.  Nursing a little sinus infection and gradually getting back into the swing.

I had a chance to shoot ponymadchen just before leaving on this last trip.

This is a pose I revisit with a lot of different models, and different lighting, and different sizes.  I love the way different sized bodies make the pose very, very different.  And in the end, its all about the curves…

Eyes, eyes, eyes

I love eyes!

If you’ve seen much of my work you’ll know that.

Some photographers shoot eyes so that they can manipulate the images and put out of context images into the irises or who knows what — but I just happen to love the expressiveness and personality that shines out from the inner person.

Korrie here has great eyes.

She’s a tease and a flirt and she’s serious and mature and sophisticated. With a look she speaks volumes and with a look she breaks hearts.

If you’re planning a photoshoot with me, please arrive without having done much with your eyes in anticipation of what you think I’m going to want to see, or shoot. It’s easy to add makeup, but sometimes less is more. When I’m creating images I try hard to capture something about the subject/model that speaks to who they are and not how good of a photographer I am.

I’ve seen all kinds of celebrity portraits that dont seem to show the unique person — they seem more a commentary on the personality of the photographer — which is all right if what you want is proof that you have been shot by a certain photographer.

Most of my clients on the other hand want to look like themselves –

A Look of Satisfaction

Lori’s been in studio a few times and she’s a lot of fun to work with.

The first time we shot together she was worried that she would not have a very wide variety of expressions to offer.

We managed to “find” some expressions and this one was one of my favorites.

Finding a client a way of tapping into the range of emotions within is more art than science.  Sometimes it’s straight forward, other times I find myself being devious or posing preposterous situations.

But — whatever works.

Contemplating

I rarely wander over to the other side of the lens.

And while I’m doing MY thing on the working side of the camera I often wonder what’s going on in the head of my client or model.

Sarah’s contemplative expression here is only one variety of the common expressions.  Once in a while I’ll catch a special little smirk, or a glimmer of amusement.  I almost always get models and clients to laugh and have a good time in studio — photos don’t have to be difficult and making the process of creation easy for my clients is part of my job.

Having said that, I often tease regular models about being on their side of the lens.  Afterall — THEY are the ones wanting to have THEIR images made…. as for me, I’ll stay on my side and not worry about holding a pose or whether my shirt is wrinkled or whether I should have chosen a different color outfit for my pictures.

I love my job, but I love even more being on the little side of the camera.  The eye I look through is less intrusive than the eye that stares down my subjects.