Portrait of RM with Heat

The brilliance of the sun on her and the chair and the piercing nature of her look were so intense that not only was it hard for her to open her eyes, it was hard for me to not be blinded while taking the photo.

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Portrait of CS With a Window Behind Me

The Model CS. I scouted out this area before she was done working so I knew I wanted to capture someone's face with the beautiful light in the tall windows behind me. She obliged.

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Portrait in Reflected Light

She was at the front desk, then in the gallery as I looked at the exhibition. We got into a long discussion about the images in the show and that led to a discussion about my work which led to me asking her if she wanted to create some art with me which led to her saying yes which led us outside to take some photos I will use in a collage and also some straight portraits, of which this is one.

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She was the saleswoman at the Vintage Clothing Store who was also a photographer and an artist and knew about the cool show at the Center for Creative Photography and she was right, it was great.



I loved her great retro style with the bobbed hairdo and the 'little house on the prairie' dress. Her face was serious but not morose, filled with intelligence and just a bit of world weariness. She was a student and had a lot of study on her plate.

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The Application

I love taking photos of models getting ready for a shoot, it is almost more interesting and fun than the shoot itself sometimes.



She had been running around off-set wondering where her lip gloss was, so when she found it I followed her into the kitchen at the auto repair shop/photography studio and took some shots as she put it on.

We were having a photo shoot in an auto repair garage that adjoins the photography studio. We had someone in who was giving a tutorial on studio lighting. At one point he asked this model to do some poses on a divan/couch with her shirt pulled up, exposing her abs and belly button. I could tell she was a bit uncomfortable with that and was worried about what her parents would think, especially her father. The poses weren't exploitive as such, but they were on the cheesy side and I could tell she was a bit awkward about it.

Turns out she has the same name as one of my daughters and graduated from the same high school, a few years later. We talked a bit about her going to college and what she wanted to do. She seemed to like the photos I took off-set. I will have to ask her what she thought about the ones I mentioned above.

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Portrait with Wedding Ring

From a commissioned couples photo shoot. I jokingly suggested we go outside and do some shots among the leaves and bare trees, thinking she would say no due to the cold. But she was more than game and we came away with some fantastic shots of her.

November, 2008

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The Hostess

Often I will just play with an image just to keep in practice regarding my Photoshop skills. I spent about 2 hours on this one, just trying different things not having a particular agenda for it since it wasn't commissioned. I like having some time to do that and it is essential for any artist to spend time just 'goofing' off so to speak. Without it your work can become so stale and uninspiring that you cease to do it any more.

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The Young Equestrian

This week will be a number of photos from an Equestrian competition I photographed in Inola, OK.



This is a pretty straight portrait. I waited for her in the shade of the arena knowing that the very bright sunlight behind me would make for a great glow on her face and in her eyes.

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All is Right With the World

photo-collage, Waco, TX, October, 2008

I was feeling antsy on Sunday morning of our parent's weekend at Baylor University. I hadn't run that weekend, the walking I had done was the slow type that is bad on my back, there had been a bit too much shopping and I had grown bored. Sunday morning I finally just took a photo walkabout on my own from the motel towards Baylor not sure of what I would find.

What I found was the Armstrong Browning Library, a repository of material from the archives of Robert Browning and Elizabeth Barrett Browning, the poets.



The sculpture out front and the surrounding flora and fauna gave me an opportunity to get lost in the visual world, looking at details that I new would combine to give some meaning. What meaning I did not know, but I knew it was there, nonetheless.

I actually don't know if this is a sculpture of Elizabeth, but I think it is. I do know I climbed up on it so I could get images looking down on her face instead of up. Iiked knowing that cars driving by and people walking by were looking at me holding her hands and hair and shoulders while I leaned far enough away to get a shot or two.

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Eating in Yellow and Green

We were all amazed at how well this man was eating during the Baylor tailgate party! He was not smearing his face paint at all, he was barely even touching his lips! I loved the afternoon sun hitting his yellow pate like that and just had to get a capture of it!

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Disney Collage - Portrait of Chinese Masks

This week I am showing a series of collages from a trip to Disney World in 2007. Epcot Center was a great place to find inspiration.



The door to the Chinese pavilion was right in line with the setting sun. It streamed throughout the room, landing directly on this sales clerk. She giggled and smiled as I took her picture then showe it to her and her friend. The light was reflecting gorgeous color everywhere and I got lost finding the beautiful images surrounding her.

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People of Color #2 - Plaid Person Peering

Day two of my week long series of 'People of Color'. I like plaid people. I wish more
people were plaid.

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People of Color #1 - A Spotted Woman with Flyer

This week you get to see sketchbook drawings again, woo hoo! These are colored marker
drawings I have done over the years. I drew, then colored, the people.



Most will have symbols and images familiar to those who have seen my work over the
years. I would love to know your thoughts on those symbols and the drawings in general.

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Portrait in the Mist

Last of the week long series on portraits. Coming up next week....Heck if I know! But
it will be something worth looking at so if you haven't already subscribed, do so.

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Stare

Another in my series of portraits. She was modeling for our local photo group. I
walked away from the group, looking around the back of this barn they were using. I
found this gorgeous rust and metal wall and immediately went back and stole the model
away for a brief amount of time to get this shot.

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She Dreamt it Into Being

I love doing portraits with one eye closed. There is something so disconcerting about
it at first. But it then also allows you to think about two different aspects of the
person at the same time, and how they coexist. Plus it just looks really cool.

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Portrait with Brick and Wind

Another in my week of portraits. This is a dancer/model from the Tulsa Ballet who posed
for our photo group in the spring of 2008. I don't know her background, but I see a
real Russian look to her with her eyes and bone structure in particular.

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The Storm Inside

Another in my week long series of detailed portraits from the last few years.
This one is of a dental hygienist where I get my teeth worked on. She is much prettier
than this photo shows since I manipulated it extensively to bring out all the details of
her skin texture.

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Portrait in a Kitchen

This is a series of black and white images that I worked on to create a very painterly,
beautiful and moody feel to them. I wanted them to look hyper real yet very other
worldly at the same time.

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Doctor My Eye

I went to new eye doctor that was closer to wear I live.
This is her. I wanted to do a collage, but I liked the straight photo so
much I didn't go past it. I had to get new glasses by the end of 2007 for insurance purposes so I waited until New Years Eve day to go to the local eye doctor in my small town in Oklahoma. The whole staff was very nice and the doctor agreed to pose for me after we were all done. The light coming in through the office windows was fantastic and brought a beautiful glow to her skin and eyes.

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