When
I lived in the San Francisco Bay area,
I noticed that the local models all
talked to each other, but the
photographers tended to keep to
themselves. When I moved up here
to Portland, Oregon, I noticed the
opposite -- the photographers all knew
each other, but the models tended to
keep to themselves.
I've
been striving to build a little
artistic community here in
Portland. To that end, I hosted
a party for local models &
photographers last March (50 folks
showed up), I've created e-mail
distribution lists, a local resources
web page, and have encouraged
communication all around.
Recently,
I proposed a collaboration with one of
the local photographers, Lucian
Schmit. Lucian is an
established fine-art photographer in
the area, and he knows lots of
interesting locations. He was
interested in working with Kira, so I
proposed that the two of us work with
her together; he provided the location
& I chose the model. Kira
agreed to pose for us.
See
Lucian's images of Kira from this
sitting here!
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A
different kind of sitting
deserves a different
presentation. What do
you guys think of the new page
format? |
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Originally,
we had planned to take an hour's ride out into a secluded landscape,
but the weather wasn't cooperating. The model's comfort has
always been important to me, and it was just too cold for me to think
that any model would be happy.
Lucian came up with
an alternate location -- a run down house in NW Portland. It is
a turn of the (20th) century building that has seen better days, but
its rough state was part of its charm. It has large windows,
letting in a good amount of wonderful light from multiple angles. |
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This
house was fantastic! All
three of us were excited to
work there immediately.
The light was great, the decor
was funky & interesting,
and the chemistry between us
all was right. |
A couple
of initial thoughts:
- Sittings with
multiple photographers per model can be overwhelming to the model,
but we were able to avoid problems. Lucian & I are both
experienced (as is Kira), and we were patient & generous with
each other. In other words, we were able to share, and we
didn't overwhelm our model.
- The entire
experience was exciting for all of us, making the sitting fun for
all.
- We weren't
ambitious (at least, I wasn't). We didn't know what to
expect, and we planned a short sitting (e.g. fewer exposures, less
time). That was a good thing, too.
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Kira
has a world class back.
I especially love the area
where he shoulders join her
neck, but I figured I'd show
you the whole package.
She has a great waist,
wonderful proportions, nice
shoulder blades, cute dimples,
and a nice butt.
Enjoy.
I know that I do. |
Here's
a definite favorite from this sitting. Using natural light
indoors is always a challenge -- although the light might be
interesting, it is often dim. A sturdy tripod is essential.
I decided to go
with the flow. I configured my camera to use a shutter speed of
¼ or ½ a second & told Kira to move. She was wearing a
lovely skirt, which flared out during her spinning. You see the
result.
My only regret -- I
didn't make more exposures like this. In fact, I only made two
(and this one is the best) -- I'll include the other on the Out
Takes page for this sitting.
(Also,
if you ever get the opportunity to photograph Kira, be sure to get her
to move -- she'll be happy & you'll like the results).
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The
house is actually over a small
store front, selling vintage
women's clothing &
accessories. There were
several rooms, each with its
own unique charm.
For
some reason, we asked Kira to
pose on her hands & knees
at this particular spot on the
floor. Moving around,
and the light looks radically
different.
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I
have to admit that I hand-held
my digital camera, while my
film camera was on its tripod,
as always. In
retrospect, the digital camera
should have been on a tripod,
too, in order to avoid blurs
like this one.
On
the other hand, sometimes the
blurring contributes to the
"feel" on the
image. I find that I
don't mind the occasional
blur, at least in this
case.
(Lucian
calls me the Movement King!) |
We are
bouncing back & forth through all the rooms upstairs.
Here's Lucian
taking a light reading.
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It
is great that I'm breaking old
habits. I packed up all the
photography equipment & took it on
the road.
I
think it's great that we worked
together, and I don't know why more
photographers don't do this (share a
model for a sitting). We get to
share expenses, share knowledge about
models & locations, and expose
ourselves to other styles.
More
pictures from this sitting -- click
here!
See
Lucian's images of Kira from this
sitting here!
I
should mention that Kira likes the
images on the Out
Takes page the best. I like these public images
better. Go figure.
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