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February 26, 2016
Rockland, ME, USA
I gave Ryan the print of his portrait at the cafe this morning and he really loved it. That made me so happy. I think making people happy with a picture of themselves that they like is one of the things I like most about shooting portraits. I never enjoyed taking portraits much until the more recent years, I often avoided people in my photography. Right now I'm getting more and more into that. The simpler, the better. Ideally just the person with simple, comfortable clothes in front of a dark wall with window light.
I don't have years of experience with shooting portraiture, but I think a good portrait should show the core of a person. The essence of their personality. But the relationship with the photographer, the chemistry and sympathy always reflects in a portrait too. In so many ways a portrait of a person is always a reflection of yourself, how you see the person and how they feel about you. This aspect fascinates me so much. I wonder how my friend Chris Mann would feel about that.