Lynda in the City

This is Lynda, an aspiring model whom I had the pleasure of photographing, recently.

I go into shoots with goals. Posing was at the top of my goals list on this day. It can be the single biggest difference between a flattering and unflattering photograph, in my view. A bend of the front knee, a chin forward and down (with thanks to Sue Bryce), and a hand placed around the hip instead of smack against one's side, can elongate, slim, and make anyone look significantly better. Who doesn't want to look good in front of the camera?

The everyday person usually does not know how to pose or look flattering in front of the camera; nor should they. It's not their job. It's my job, and I love it. It's my mission to make everyone who steps in front of my camera look and feel like a model.

Here is a sampling from Lynda.







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Who Are You?

What do you do and who do you do it for? 

That's a question we all likely struggle with, myself, included. Photography has become a lovely way to not only express myself, but also to help me answer the question, "Who are you?". And, by "you," I mean you, the person reading this.

You see, as artists, we gravitate toward our inner core. We all have insatiable urges to touch our inner core, because most of us have lost contact with it, somewhere along the way.

Artists have to start the process, somewhere, so we begin with the question, "What looks pretty to us?". I like the subject of people, so depicting the human form in beautiful ways is my response.

From there, we often get the urge to look beyond the immediate, two-dimensional visual gratification and search for a third dimension -- message; particularly, what is meaningful to us. We can only do this by mining our vast life history to reverse-engineer that path to our inner core -- and your inner core.

For example, if one struggles with insecurity issues, he might find ways to honor and reflect those feelings or, conversely, find ways to snub their nose at insecurity and show personal empowerment within the image, and see the person they want to be. We put out there what we want to attract. If you struggle with insecurities, you will identify with the stories within those images.

Who is more qualified to reflect your personal story than someone who is empathetic to you?

Who am I? I'm a visual artist, telling intense personal stories through compassionate eyes. My work is thoughtfully bold.

Who do I do this for? I connect with anyone who needs an empathetic and beautiful voice to tell their unique story.

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Make a Connection

Here is one of the secrets to life (I'm going to get deep on you):

People just want to make a connection with other people.

When you look at a photograph, like this one of Cindy, you may be asking: who is this girl, why is her hair pink, where is she, what is she looking at, what time of day is it, what is she thinking?

What life experiences have led her to this moment?

Here's how people make that connection: they recognize themselves in that other person.

You want to see aspects of yourself, because it validates our own experiences and our own existences. You may be thinking about a time when you had this daydream expression. What were you thinking about?

As human beings, we need this validation, whether it comes from friends, family, or peers. Otherwise, we open ourselves up to feelings of uncertainty about ourselves and our decisions in life (if no one else is doing it, are we doing it, correctly?). I think photography not only freezes time, but has the power to allow this validation. That's pretty powerful, in my opinion.

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