here’s a few working portraits, not shot for The DT. i think i get what i need done with the couple of Canon strobes i have, but i do miss out on all the light-modifiers available with studio monolights. a few companies sell modifiers for strobes, but i found a DIY solution for a strobe-fitting beauty dish online awhile back (here), and made one since i really loved the results they give, which i found out about while assisting a photog in Austin (i shot him, here, which is kind of funny, too; his name is not on the post because it made the photo pop up first whenever someone Googled his name!).
these women are former-meth users who are in recovery, and although the tone of the portraits for the article was serious, they really were patient and fun to work with (which was great, since this was kind of a last minute assignment). best of luck to them.
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Xavier Mascareñas © 2010
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Xavier Mascareñas © 2010
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Xavier Mascareñas © 2010
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here’s some favorites for the week. five photos from five days. it’s really good to be working right now, and am excited about our new apartment. also kind of sad to be moving…the apartment we lived in across from UNM was the longest i’ve lived anywhere — since i was born! i’ll miss being able to look out my back window and seeing people and activity. you guessed it…farmington is not the most urban of cities.
this is Gerardo Dulzides-Ojeda — a man who was sought personally by Fidel Castro for his involvement in anti-communist actions in Cuba in the 60′s. to summarize a quote, he told me he’d be fighting Castro right now if he was physically able, and that if given another life after this one, he’d still fight for democracy in Cuba. powerful stuff.
Gerardo was the third-to-last photo i’ll be doing for the project, which will total around 21 images when all is said and (mostly) done. i will be working in Farmington when April 3rd comes around, but i really want to try and make it down for the clinic’s grand opening. it ought to be a nice community event, and i’d love to see how the photos end up looking on the walls at the new Southeast Hts. clinic on Central Ave. and Texas St.
Wivine and her two-year-old son, Junior, have fun while trying to get ready for the photo. not sure if this is ‘the one,’ but if i don’t post it here, no one will ever see it. i also loved the “Cat in the Hat” creation on the wall behind Wivine.
Anne Marie and her two-year-old son, Alexsony, in their living room. The blanket behind their couch seemed like a fairly nice, nondescript backdrop.
referring to the post title: when i first heard about this project, i was thinking it would look best in black and white, with a solid dark backdrop behind the family’s portraits. nice and simple, and let the subjects/people speak for themselves. i also like how b&w seems to encourage people to examine the parts of a photo that matter the most (logically, at least). however, the Hospital was really thinking they wanted color — which would show off nicely the traditional clothing that many of the families will most likely wear. sooooo, here’s my final answer: i think i will just post the photos here in black and white, with the intention of composing that way, while being mindful of the color mostly in my lighting.
wow…i guess i should have just started this part of the post “…dear diary.”
here’s the first of a series of portraits i’m making for the University of New Mexico’s new clinic opening in the Southeast Heights in a month or so. that’s gives me a deadline of, “like, yesterday!” i’ll be pretty busy for the next few weeks, which will be great. i’ll get to work with many different families from all over the world, and some great translators to help me write a little about each family’s experience to accompany the finished portrait.
by the way, i’ll print it in color for the clinic. i rarely get to work in b&w, though, so i thought i’d post that version here.
right off the bat- here’s my first attempt at outdoor studio strobes. even just having access to one light helped immensely, and enabled results i could not have had otherwise.
i’ve used the Canon flashes before, and it’s usually fine, but the standard staffer kit that Kelly so graciously let me use (gracias) worked MUCH better. granted, it’s bulkier and needs more power, but i honsestly think it took me shorter to set up than it would have taken me to mess around with the infrared receiver on the Canon flashes not being consistent. and the power of the lights enable some nice options.
still need to work on the occasional big reflection in glasses, but overall, technically had a good time of it.
