When the rain subsided, the clouds gave way to this amazing scene. Since time was limited, I ran to the roof to take these shots. Beautiful ending to a beautiful day. If you want to see how it looked during the rain, check out these dreamy photos HERE.
BTW, same flock of birds. I followed them from my left to my right, where it concludes with the sun setting.
Astoria, NY
I thought today’s theme was appropriate given the weather here in NYC. Good news is that it feels like Spring.
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As the title suggests, I’ve been wondering how many pictures are enough from a single shoot. This is likely to be obvious to some but it hasn’t always been like that for me. Usually when I shoot, I aim to have at least 20 good shots of various poses, angles, etc. then the edits. But to get these 20 good shots, I create several lighting schemes, employ different backgrounds and sometimes locations. I don’t think I’ve been doing this all wrong but this process isn’t efficient.
Scouring the net for iconic and lasting images, I found that photographers almost always use the best shot from a single shoot for their portfolios. Fine art photographers do this as well. Most of the time, these shots consist of simple backgrounds, simple attractive and defining poses. The real kicker is lighting. If the lighting looks great the aforementioned requirements fall into place. If we look at iconic images of Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Peter Murphy, Morrissey, Ian Curtis, and on and on, it has come down to lighting and the ability of the photographer to engage his subject to flesh out their personalities, tell their subjects’ stories and reveal their “image” — all within a single shot.
I guess what I’m saying is that I’m learning that effective photos are usually the simplest ones. Bono of U2 once said that he success of his band was due to simple melodies. I think when things are simple, the real meat of the subject is revealed more easily.
I had a shoot in December in which my client asked me to photograph their singers for an hour each. Based on their requests, I found that I was able to achieve the shots they needed within a half hour. For good reason, and because they were paying, they wanted me to continue shooting until the hour was up, which I happily obliged. I wasn’t thinking then about simple images. I just thought, “Hey, I got the shot already.”
Anyway, so the picture below is of my gorgeous girlfriend. It’s one of the shots I liked the most from this shoot (and the only one for that sequence I’ve posted). I edited this photo to give her more of an ethereal look. I was introduced to the paintings of Eugene Carriere (example below my photo) during my recent visit to the Met. In case you haven’t heard of him, he was a French painter who created these eerie ethereal looking portraits — very unique stuff. Since, I’ve been working a long time on this style, I was instantly attracted to his work. The image below is my attempt to create a simple, ethereal, eerie portrait while still maintaining the intensity and beauty of her eyes.
For great iconic images, check out this BLOG.
As always, thanks a ton for reading.
Once in a while, I’ll send out a last minute public invite for people to come to Astoria and have some fun in my studio. This is usually my time to experiment new photo techniques on them. Good news is that the sessions are free and you get free pictures. Anyway, these are rare but when I’ve done them, I’ve always come out with a few pictures that I really like (I posted a couple others HERE). These are fun little sessions with drinking, music, cameras and lights.
Here are a couple others from the last one that took place this last Friday. My pal has some of the most intense eyes ever.
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Storyville Prostitute by EJ Bellocq
Last I was in New Orleans, I spoke with friend, author/photographer Louis Maistros of how interesting it was that one of New Orleans’ most iconic images is EJ Bellocq’s photo of a prostitute in Storyville from the early 1900s. I’ve been obsessed with this image and photographer. ( I found it serendipitous when I once bumped (quite literally) into his crypt during an early morning hour, close to St. John’s Bayou). Bellocq highlighted his subjects’ dignity and strength, which made me think about prostitution as historically one of the only means in which a woman could earn money and declare herself independent of society’s practices. Of course, I don’t mean to romanticize the trade but there’s something to be said about doing what you have to do to liberate yourself from moribund constraints. Anyway, I believe Bellocq may have seen it this way too.
My contribution to today’s blog doesn’t possess the same meaning of Bellocq’s photos. Storyville has been dead since 1919. There isn’t a way that I could do what he did. Much has changed since then. Not to say that there are photographers out there who continue to photograph prostitutes in this manner. It’s just not what I’m doing these days. I haven’t investigated its current social meanings.
The photos below were inspired by Bellocq and his iconic photo. To me they have their own meaning independently from his (not my place to explain the definition). I’m always the first to admit the images I quote, especially when its creators have given me so much in terms of inspiration, direction and visual pleasure.
If you got this far in your reading, thanks for the time. It’s always, always appreciated.
heart,
Carlos
(P.S. Realizing that this photo diary is quickly becoming a Louisiana-based blog.)
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At the Met, there is a gallery of Greco-Roman statues. A room with a disproportionate number of disembodied heads and torsos without limbs like the character from Johnny Got His Gun (1971). It’s like walking through a gallery of frozen casualties from Savage European battles. A particular statue’s face leans forward. Head wrapped in a hood and her face looks beaten by fire. I think of screaming shells setting ablaze Dresden. In this room, guests calmly stroll between these works, pointing, mumbling. It’s certain no one else had pieced together these ghostly horrors.
Here I was looking for inspiration. Found it.
There are aspects of the South that I identify with more than the region here in the Northeast. I grew up, after all in various Central Florida towns with Civil War dead buried in cemeteries on the outskirts of town. Go more north and more west of where I lived to find towns such as St. Francisville in Louisiana in which these plantations still dot the landscape. I feel that no one does a better job of capturing the mystique, lore and past of the South than Sally Mann, who was born and raised in Virginia. I am inspired by her work and this piece is in response to hers.
Photo taken at the property of Myrtles Plantation, which is imprinted with violence and mystery.
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Hey, all! So, yeah, 200 posts is celebration time and as I’m writing you, I’m jamming to some jaw dropping New Orleans music and readying for the Saints battle tonight in San Francisco. I’m having Abita beer. The apartment smells of Community Coffee. Mood is good so here’s 20% off any of my prints to celebrate since 200% would have been ridiculous. USE THE CODE “ITS200BABY”. Very limited time so get ‘em while you can for this price.
Here are some samples of what’s in my store. If you have requests for larger sizes, I’ll be more than happy to accomodate.
EDIT 1/15/2012 — I made the rookie mistake of not listing the link for my shop. Oops. Anyway CLICK HERE for store.
Here’s a fun debate. Is a picture finished after the shutter closes or is the final imagining an unrestricted rendering? I sometimes choose to go beyond touchups in a picture when I visualize it as something else. For the photograph below, I was inspired by wet plate negatives. Instead of going black and white, I did it in a few color tones. This is the way I saw the picture a year after it had been taken.
What are your thoughts on this topic? Could this picture have elicited the same feeling had I left the original alone?
(Photo taken at the historical site of the battle of Beaver Dam Creek near Richmond, VA…well, Mechanicsville, more accurately).
I’ve been dropping news here and there about a new business venture targeted to clients who want conventional yet creative and edgy portraits. It’s called 40 Shades Studios. I’m close to finishing up much of the back end stuff for the website, including portfolio building, bio, business plan, blah blah, and now, the logo. I’m grateful for the growing fan base of my work so I figured I’d share the results of the logo with you first.
The concept for the logo is a timelessness; a modern yet classic, elegant look to invite people into my philosophy of creating…ahem….timeless, classic, elegant portraits. The rose in the lower right corner represents a quote attributed to Buddha, which says, “If we could see the miracle of a single flower clearly, our whole life would change.” I feel this is appropriate within the context of photography. With fingers crossed, I hope to have the site up and running within the next week.
The days of walking a tightrope between fine art and studio photography are over.
What do you think?!
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