01.05.24: On candid photography . . . with an iPhone

 

It might surprise many to discover that a great deal of my work is done on my phone. I take photos and record video with my iPhone because it is a wonderful and powerful tool whose convenience makes it an indispensable tool for any and all content creators; well, as far as I am concerned, anyway.

The above image was taken with my iPhone, and it captured a moment prior to the second night’s performance of Sarah DeLappe’s drama, “The Wolves,” that was staged under the auspices of the J. W. Nixon High School Drama Club, and it captures one the production’s actresses looking out, from the curtains, and gazing upon the audience who had ventured into the cool of the evening to witness that night’s production.

I consider this photograph to be one of the best that I have even taken — I ABSOLUTELY LOVE PORTRAITURE — and this image fully manages to articulate my prowess, at the time, with respect to my skill as a photographer — in particular with regard to my use of an iPhone to capture the image.

The image was purposely underexposed by a stop or so and processed on my iPhone via Snapseed. If you’re looking for a quick way to edit jpegs, on your phone, I highly recommend Snapseed. It is easy to use, and I use it frequently to punch up my images with the “magic pixie dust” that gives my photos “the look” that they are known for.

This image was further enhanced with Instagram’s “Tokyo” black and white preset.

Friday, November 19th, 2021
J. W. Nixon High School
Black Box Theater

01.05.24: Random Access Memory . . .

 

I am a portrait photographer. Even though, I am primarily known for my sports work, if you look closely at those photos, the sports photos, you will notice, with few exceptions, that the images focus on a single person — the action is important, but seeing the athlete’s face is even more so. It is rare for me to let an image “out into the wild” that does not focus on a person’s face.

Why?

Easy. It makes it easier for the general public to invest in your work if they can see a face. Now, this is not to say that I do not create work rooted in other photographic genres — I do. I am currently working on producing a series of images rendered with my iPhone through the use of the Hipstamatic application that will be printed on my Fujifilm Instax printer (I am basically creating high end Polaroids).

Anyway, I am taking a long time to get to my point. Sorry. The image associated with this post is a far cry from my sports work, but it does manage to bolster my contention about “seeing faces.” The image was taken during one of the rehearsals for Laredo Theater Guild International’s production of “Into the Woods,” and what makes the photo is our ability to connect with the actor. Despite the prosthetics — which were world class by the way — the fact that we can see the actor’s face bathed in the “moonlight” and silhouetted against the “darkness of the forest” allows us to make a connection with the character and the actor portraying the “Big Bad Wolf.”

Now, I know I said that I am a portrait photographer, and that I’m am mainly know in the community for my sports photography, but I also work a great deal with Laredo’s theater community — mostly with Laredo Theater Guild International and the J. W. Nixon Drama Club, and I am truly blessed to have this band of creative individuals in my life. I can’t imagine my life without them — they’ve afforded me the opportunity to exercise a different set of muscles with respect to my photographic efforts, and I can honestly say that my work with them has spurred my growth in the discipline and bequeathed to me an aspect of the art of photography that I would’ve missed out on — you want to grow as a photographer? Go and volunteer to document a theatrical production or two; seriously — if it had not been for them and their generosity, I doubt if I would be where I am now as a photographer.

So, pro tip, focus on faces. (except when it’s best not to, or it is not as important as other aspects of the image — confusing? I know. But we’ll address these “exceptions” in another post.)

Laredo Theater Guild International’s production of “Into The Woods”
Summer 2022
Center for the Fine and Performing Arts
Texas A&M International University

01.04.27: Liz Potter

 

01.03.24: Dan Winters

 

01.02.24: Beth Garrabrant

 

01.01.24: Bryan Schutmatt

interview

 

12:30:23: Lana Del Rey Photographed by Nadia Lee Cohen for Interview Magazine