Loving Both Sides of the Camera

More often than not, I am at a loss for something to write about in this space. There are some times though that I simply have work to show. Work to show off and to share, that I hope people will find compelling. I am constantly striving to do more significant work because I usually feel that it is competent but not that important. In any event, I do sometimes feel that it is good enough. Digressing... The week before last a colleague of mine, who has moved to Richmond, VA, came back to the Boston area to shoot a couple of weddings and we both wanted to reconnect and, I was hoping, get in a photo shoot. While she is a very talented and up-and-coming wedding and portrait photographer, she also loves to be in front of the camera. That quality in people usually comes through.

This then, is one of those times in which I simply want to share some work with you. Nothing earth-shattering or terribly important from a photographic or story-telling sense, but just some fun photos of a friend on an enjoyable afternoon in the studio. I hope you agree!

The excellent work of Melissa Desjardins, of Desjar Photography, can be found here: http://desjarphoto.com

Audiobooks, knitting and Shutesbury

Many of us who live near Boston think of places like Amherst as western Massachusetts. I don't know…I thought Worcester was. Actually, Shutesbury, which is very close to Amherst, is in central Massachusetts. It is surprisingly rural, but also surprisingly close to the city. On a beautiful, very warm (no, I won't start up that discussion again) June day, I visited knitting designer Gudrun Johnston and her family to do a photo shoot for AudioFile Magazine, which I love. The magazine sounds like it would be about audio gear, and something in my long, lost memory tells me that it once was, but its charter today really concerns audio books. The slowness of life reading, listening and the mellowness of people with whom the articles are concerned appeals to me.

Gudrun, who has a really interesting profession, and is a celebrity in her niche, is married to David Anthony Durham, who is a novelist and a celebrity in his own right. I would encourage you to check out the magazine, which is fairly easy to find in B&N and similar venues. The piece on Gudrun is short, but the photo is awesome[;-)], and there are lots of other great articles. 

I'm Not Really a Magician

At one point, Princess said "You're a magician!". I was flattered at first, but then I realized that the soft box grid that I was pulling out of my kit was velcroed to everything else in the bag and I was pulling the entire contents out. So not so magical after all.

My subject for today, Princess, performs magic with words though. She is really quite a talented poet. I sometimes will ask performers who I am photographing to do what they do in front of the camera. It often creates some very special moments. I was blown away by Princess. A college student, her verse is mature, intense and compact. Her recitation was really quite moving. Her photos speak for themselves. Thank you Princess!

James Knows Community Building

I met James Ostis a couple of years ago, in Lowell, at a Tweetup. At first soft-spoken, James' demeanor belies his drive to change things for the better. Formerly a legislative aid in the Office of Massachusetts State Representative Colleen M. Garry, he is currently project manager for the Lowell Heritage Partnership.

​In speaking with him last night before we started making photographs, I was struck by his passion and enthusiasm. I hope he enjoys his photos. I know I enjoyed making them!

​James Ostis

Preserving Cultural Riches

I was really thrilled to have been asked to photograph Nate Leonardo, a young collector and historian of sorts, for a Merrimack Valley Magazine story written by my friend Beth Daigle. Nate is passionate about collecting, preserving and possibly reigniting interest in what was almost lost, the Cambodian film and music industry that was flourishing prior to the Cambodian Genocide. Nate collaborated with film maker David Chou on "Golden Slumbers", a documentary about the "rise and fall of the Cambodian film industry" that was screened in Lowell last year.

Nate brought much of his collection for the photo shoot and set the mood for the evening shoot with some of his Cambodian music favorites. I hope the vibe from that night comes through!

​Merrimack Valley Magazine

​Nate Leonardo

​Nate Leonardo

Classic

Patty calls her work-self an Excel jockey. But those who know her also know that she is an excellent musician. Patty plays clarinet and is the secretary for the Lowell Philharmonic Orchestra, in Lowell, Massachusetts. She helped create the orchestra's annual summertime concert series at the Shedd Park Pavilion in Lowell. Patty came in to the studio to work with me on my "Big Door" and "Basic" series. Last year though, she was part of a collaborative project that Lowell Film Collaborator co-founder Suzzanne Cromwell and I had embarked on. Although it is on somewhat of a hiatis, I still have hopes of continuing that work with Suzzanne. Here are some of the shots from both photo shoots with Patty. Check out the Philharmonic! Click here.

Mauricio is in the House

A few days ago, I invited Mauricio Cordero to my studio to take part in my two portrait projects, the Big Door Portraits, and Bsic. Mauricio is indeed a local celebrity! He is an artist, and educator and an entrepreneur in the truest sense of the word, most recently playing a key role at the soon to open Mill No. 5 in Lowell, Massachusetts.

This Lovely Evening

He seems to be everywhere that's anywhere in Lowell. Last evening, he was in front of the now famous doors in suite A405. Sovanna told his Facebook friends that he was visiting me "this lovely evening", at Western Avenue Studios to be photographed. A pleasure to work with, Sovanna was impeccably dressed, as always, and ready to be photographed. Here are some of the shots for my Big Door series and my pick for my ongoing Basic series, which are all in B&W, and all done as simply and as similarly as possible in an attempt to really "portray" the person, in the true sense of the word. Enjoy!

Four at the Door

This post makes my fourth submission in my Big Door series, so I think it can officially be called a series now.

In the process of casting for a short video project, which was the same occasion on which I met Obehi, I also met Jacquie, another talented actress. Interestingly, both Obehi and Jacquie are musical, and both are brass players. Her family owns Golden Girl Granola, which is awesome!

I also thought I would reshow the black and white portrait that I did of Jacquie, since I have received so many kind words about it.

Keep watching this space for who will be next in the series!

Yary Livan, a Master Ceramist

The blog that Middlesex Community College and the Lowell National Historical Park maintain to document what is called "Yary's Kiln", calls Yary Livan a master ceramist, an "expert in Cambodian traditional pottery" who "embodies the tradition with artistry and excellence". He also just happens to have a studio across the hall from mine at Western Avenue Studios in Lowell, Massachusetts. He has been written about many times, most recently I think in the Boston Globe. That doesn't stop me. I asked him if I could photograph him in his studio. He continued to work quietly while I fussed with lighting gear. When I asked him if he would come into my studio, which I had, of course, set up for him, to have some shots, he was more concerned about tracking clay into my studio. I thought, "that's what I bought the broom for!" Let's do it!

Check out his work: 

http://community.middlesex.mass.edu/blogs/cambodiankiln/default.aspx

http://www.massfolkarts.org/object_detail.asp?ObjectID=8140023

http://www.nps.gov/lowe/parknews/cambodian-wood-fire-kiln-with-master-ceramicist-yary-livan.htm

http://www.bostonglobe.com/metro/regionals/north/2012/10/17/traditional-cambodian-kiln-lights-tradition-lowell/jhva3i13RH0BHNs5bnQZYL/story.html