PORTRAITS ON THE MIND

Well, today (like many days recently) I have been thinking about portraiture. Spending most of my early photography efforts on street photography and abstract object studies has been great and I will always be drawn to that...but, this year, I have really been itching to do much more in terms of people-based images. There are so many great possibilities, particularly in terms of lighting and post-processing to give really cool effects. It's been interesting figuring out what equipment is needed for this type of work and how to get people to volunteer time in front of the lens. Here are a couple shots from this area of interest. Above you see my good friend John who lives in Montana--great guy, fly-fisherman, skateboarder, grad student, climber, guitar player, etc. This shot was taken at a wedding last August right at dusk, using a small "pop" of flash to bring out his face under the hat.

Below you will see an image from last fall that I took at the Saturday Market in Portland...I don't know what this guy's story is but he wanders around with this exotic cat on his shoulder, talking to people and hanging out. This is an example of street portrait, but it is not necessarily a candid shot. I stopped and talked with him for a while and asked him to pose for me in a particular spot where I knew the sun could be used more easily on the right side of his face while there would be shadow and diffusion on the left side due to being partially under the roof of a craft booth tent. It was one of those bright but cloudy/overcast days in Portland that Saturday which meant some really nice opportunity for people shots. Looking forward to more efforts/experimentation on this type of project!