Sunday, March 2, 2014

Another Artist's Process.

We spent most of the day yesterday in Maryland at our friends Jim and Dan's house.  (I have told you about them before ... Jim is a musician and garden guru, and Dan is a very talented photographer, artist, and architect.)  The object of our visit was for Dan to point his camera in my direction ... he and The Husband worked out a scheme where Dan would photograph me and see if we got anything that would be worthy of a portrait.  I had no choice in the matter, but I promised to be cooperative and try to have fun with it.




I was instructed to bring along a variety of clothes with me so Dan could choose what he wanted.  I live in turtlenecks and jeans, hoodies and flannel ... not exactly appropriate for a real portrait.  Dan's idea was that he wanted to capture ME, whatever that is.  I'm not formal or stuffy, what you see is pretty much what you get ... big personality, according to Dan.  Most of the clothes I brought didn't work, but two turtlenecks, one black and one grey, a black sweater, a black dress with a good neckline, and some scarves for color made the cut.  He was mostly concentrating on my face and shoulders, so it didn't matter what I had on below that.




I learned some things about myself during this process.  Mostly, I discovered for the first time that I am not particularly aware of myself.  In fact, I tend to concentrate on everyone BUT myself, which proved to be challenging for both the photographer AND model while we were working.




Dan and I had more than one exchange that went something like this:

Dan:  "Oh, that was perfect, do it again."

Me:  "Do what?"

Dan:  "That funny smirk just now ... it was perfect."  (you can also insert any number of other descriptions of expressions.)

Me:  "It must be involuntary, because I have no idea what you're talking about."

Dan:  heavy sigh




We did two photo sessions, with a delicious lunch in between.  Dan told me today that he ended up with over 400 photos, most of which are throwaways.  Some of them are fun, he said, and he sent over 55 that he thought may be suitable.  He also said that two of the ones in this group are his favorites, but he won't tell us which ones they are until we make our choices.  

After Dan finished photographing me, he turned his attention to setting up his lights and camera to capture a quality image of The Husband's portrait of Jim playing his harp.  (I told you about this painting in THIS post in January.)




The photos in this post were taken by The Husband with his iPhone.  He did mostly behind-the-scenes pics of Dan working and there are a few of me.  One of the photos that he took of me is superb.  It's a shame that the light was so low, and the photo is really grainy as a result, not suitable to be used for a portrait, but the composition and expression are wonderful.




After all the experimentation that we did with expressions and posing and lighting for most of the day, what seems to have captured me best was this tiny moment in time where I looked over and smiled at my husband.  

13 comments:

  1. The first and last are my favorites; smiling at your husband...love always tells.

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  2. And so your husband captured "the one" - and isn't that just so appropriate?

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  3. Love that photo. I am horrible at having my photo taken, but I would love a good portrait of myself for my kids.

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  4. Love that photo. I am horrible at having my photo taken, but I would love a good portrait of myself for my kids.

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  5. I love the picture of you...you look amazing...

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  6. I love the photo too, Connie and I'll will look forward to seeing the final pick!! I will admit that I don't like my picture taken and there aren't many of me around, and when one is taken it has to be my idea and on my terms--I'm just too self conscious and would rather be in Dan's shoes! :-D

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  7. Very few photos of me in existence, unless I'm not aware of them. I avoid the camera at all costs. You are a beautiful woman and every photos I've ever seen of you was fantastic, including these!

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  8. What an experience you had! I love that last photo of you taken by your dear husband. It captured your love for him. It gets to me, right in my heart.

    Have a great week ~ FlowerLady

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  9. Hubby did a great job of capturing you in that last shot, and I'm sure there are plenty of "portrait" worthy shots taken by your friend Dan. Their home is beautiful too, and the portrait your husband painted is wonderful! Now you will have the perfect headshot for your book jacket!...hint, hint!

    xo Kat

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  10. Oh- You look beautiful, Connie- Absolutely beautiful. What a fun thing to have happen to you! lol I worked my way through early lean years by modeling on the side- oh to be that thin again....lol...it is NOT an easy job, is it? lol xo Diana

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  11. Oh Connie....that last photo of you is just so YOU! Your kind heart, gentle soul, and love for your hubby is so evident through your eyes. You are just beautiful ~~ inside and out. :) Mark Lohman (Fifi's photographer) took some pics of me while shooting my house last June. I know how intimidating and how "aware" of yourself you become while they're pointing that camera at you. lol Beautiful pics, though, sweetie!!

    xoxo laurie

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  12. We always look our best and most true to ourselves when our focus is on someone we love. From your eyes, I can tell you love your hubby dearly. You look content and peaceful. I love that photo of you.

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  13. A look and a smile at a husband says it all. Love looks beautiful on you.

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