Interpreting an Image

 This week, I'm focusing on studio portraiture because that is the subject I get questioned about most by other emerging photographers.  

Working with your model, lighting the scene, and composing is only half the battle. I find the task of editing and post-processing just as important to the creative process.  Generally, the photo I select says a lot about me in terms of my style and preferences.  My image pick is never the same as what the model would have chosen.  Most people like smiley, happy, or even sexy photos of themselves.  I like the ones that show depth and vulnerability.  In this instance Janina (pictured below) and I actually agreed on the same photo.  She is a sharp cookie.

After the selection phase, comes the fun part...post-processing.  The post-processing phase allows me to stretch my creativity and reinterpret a scene to suit my own artistic tastes.  I invested a lot of time setting up my Adobe Lightroom presets to give me a wide range of color/contrast options.  If I fail to find a preset I like, I take the image to Photoshop for further color options.  Again, I spent a lot of time setting up "actions"  in Photoshop that allow me to create almost consistent color/contrast palettes of my choosing.  However, to be clear,  most of my color work is done in Lightroom, and I mainly use Photoshop when there is retouching and fine-tuning to be done.  These actions and presets allow me to save a lot of time creating a look and feel for my images.  There are a millions ways to interpret a photo, and I often have a hard time deciding which I like best.  The deciding factor often rests with how well it fits with the rest of my portrait portolio.

I  tend to interpret an image 5-10 different ways before I make a decision on the final look.  Here are some examples.

Original File

Some desaturation, contrast and clarity work

 Black and White

Black and White with some Sepia toning

 Some cross processing and desaturation work, and grain added to give it a  fine art look.  I can't explain why, but this is my favorite today.  I'll probably change my mind tomorrow when I realize it doesn't fit the rest of my portolio.

 Blue toning

 More cross processing, toning and contrast work

 Bronzing action

So there you go, examples of the vast ways one can interpret an image.  For any savvy photographer, image processing is a well-guarded secret because it's one of the ways that allows a photographer's work to stand apart from the rest of the pack.  Think Jill Greenberg, who is famous for her "shiny look" ...or even David LaChappelle, who creates heavily processed, visually striking fashion/celebrity images. Most high-paid commercial photographers never do their own post-processing and retouching.  Lucky bastards.  But then again I'm too much of a control freak to allow someone to do a job I actually enjoy.   I am however willing to change my mind if I ever get the opportunity to be paid $100,000 for a commercial print ad.

By the way, there are many short cuts to be had in the post-processing phase.  Just plug into your search engine "free lightroom presets" or "free photoshop actions."  There's tons of good free stuff to be found on the internet to help expand your creativity. 

Now go experiment!

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An Afternoon with the Mad Hattress and Foxy Prince Charles

Being a dog lover has its advantages.  It makes it easier to strike up conversation with random people when you find sincere interest in their pet.  I met Patricia and her Pomeranian, the Foxy Prince Charles after dropping off my unwanted items at the Goodwill.  Patricia was commenting on the cart full of children being towed in a large red wagon by a daycare worker, claiming that the kids look like a litter of energized puppies in a cardboard box.  What an appropriate analogy, I thought, and walked over to greet her and her dog.  After saying goodbye and walking away, I realized Patricia might make for an interesting subject, so I ran back to give her my business card.  Patricia called me that afternoon and invited me to her home the next day.


With camera in hand, which I usually have with me in case anything interesting happens, I walked  to Patricia's  house and was treated to a rare surprise.  Little did I know that Patricia is known as the "Mad Hattress," an artist who embellishes hats she buys from the Goodwill store and turns them into wearable art.  She is only known through word of mouth.  As soon as I walked through her front door, I was shocked by the kaleidoscope of textures and color.  Her home was filled wall to wall with hats, clothes, dolls, scarves, photographs, and kitsch items. One can't navigate her home without stepping on something interesting.


Patricia has an incredible fashion sense....both glamorous and eccentric.  I don't know of any other 68-year old who can pull off fish net stockings like she can.  While most of us find comfort in jeans and a t-shirt, Patricia's daily outfits are works of art, drawing the eyes of tourists and passersby alike.  Her wardrobe is to die for.  Literally.  Those are indeed real mink stoles around her neck.

In addition to hat-making, Patricia dabbles in photo collage.  Her work is interesting, using hundreds of individual hand-cut photos to create new unique landscapes.  My favorite is the one above, in which she superimposes various versions of her mom behind the flower bushes in front of the Golden Gate arboretum.  What a playful and  witty way to memorialize your deceased mother!

Patricia's home is a living gallery - evidence of devotion to one's craft (and hoarding tendencies).  Unlike most galleries, her house is not open to the public.  If one is lucky enough to be invited, you can be sure that you'll have an interesting time. One can spend hours examining her collections and hearing stories of her fascinating past..... performing in theater, playing in a rock and roll band, traveling the world, and campaigning for various politicians.  Her home speaks to a colorful, adventurous life.  Although her hats are supposedly for sale, she finds it incredibly hard to part with her artwork.  There were plenty of hats in her collection that I wanted to buy, but she was reluctant to sell any of them.  Now I understand why she has such a huge inventory of hats.

Pictures of her youth (above) reveal a stunning woman.  She was often compared to Sandra Dee, known for her innocent, playful beauty.  However, Patricia reminds me instead of the late Elizabeth Taylor, a woman fully aware of her power, beauty and elegance.

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Bringing Home Strangers

 As much as I complain about living in the Haight-Ashbury, I have to admit,  I like the fact that the neighborhood is filled with unique characters.  I'm at my usual coffee joint, chitchatting with the neighborhood locals about their theory that the tsunami is an indicator of a huge upcoming event which the book "The Maya: 2012 The End of the World or the Dawn of Enlightenment" foresees.  Anyway, a women comes into the store banging her bicycle loudly, talking to herself and complaining that she can't get her bike fixed because the "fucking hippies" in this neighborhood don't bother to open their store until 10:30 am.  She rants to herself in the background about how the Social Security administration stole $45,000 of her money, and she can't finish her art education at the Art Academy because the landlord in her apartment is pushing a broom under her door and using it to fish out and steal all her art supplies and money.  My neighbor rolls his eyes and says, "oh dear," but I am utterly intrigued with this woman and walk over to talk to her.

Ethel is fascinating, as is her life view of things.  You should hear the gossip she has about the wealthy Getty socialites!  According to Ethel, her art professor gets paid tons of money to get flown to Hawaii and Lake Tahoe where the Gettys have numerous homes, so that he can paint little gold leafings on their bathroom tiles.  Interesting.  Good thing I'm not a journalist, otherwise I'd have to find supporting evidence before I publish this story.

After continuing to complain about her late bills, she tries to sell me her bike for $40 (which she assures me she got from the Salvation Army), and I agree because she needs the money.  After assessing that she isn't a totally crazy person (just a little, but not too much), I take her home with me to photograph her.  Afterward, I hand her $40 for the bike, and she declares sincerely, "I'm not so sure I should take your money.  By the look of this place, you look like you could starve if I take your money."  Oh goodness, I can't believe she just trash talked my house!

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The Dark Side

 

I’ve been thinking about expanding my portfolio lately to focus on studio portraits.  I figure it’s time to work on developing a more “commercial look” so I dragged my husband Aaron into my little experiment of creating a style that would have broader appeal.  Needless to say, I failed miserably at my task of creating “happy” “wholesome” portraits that scream American apple pie. 

I constantly find myself selecting and processing images that have a dark, brooding quality to them.  I can’t seem to break away from this particular style.  Everyone says a photograph says a lot about the photographer, and I wonder if my personal nature is much more cynical and darker than I care to admit. 

Or maybe, just maybe, people are really miserable creatures and I'm just capturing what's in their soul.  In Aaron's case, being married to me for ten years would probably dampen your spirits too!

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Close encounter with Governor Jerry Brown

I was honored last week to have the opportunity to photograph Governor Jerry Brown during his visit to San Francisco to discuss his proposed budget with the Bay Area Council, a public policy organization aimed at promoting the welfare of the Bay Area.  The Council,  composed of the Bay Area's top business leaders, including Janet Lamkin, California President of Bank of America (bottom, left), expressed their support for Governor Brown's proposed budget package designed to close the state's $26.6 billion deficit.

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Focus on Education

 I photograph a wide variety of things, but what’s most rewarding to me is my work with the nonprofit community.  Photography isn’t necessarily about making beautiful images, but rather documenting the people and the things that we find important, and helping to communicate that value to the rest of the world.  I work with many education based programs, particularly those that target low-income students of color to increase their access to higher education. I believe that an informed mind is one of the most powerful tools to creating a more just and equitable world.  My most recent work, pictured here, was with the Making Waves Education program which provides long-term academic support to high-risk students and their families.  Every year, I photograph the graduating students who have dedicated over six years of their life to the program.  It's flattering to walk into their office in the Mission and see dozens of my portraiture work on their walls.

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