Photographing a Photographer
Creating storytelling portraits plus editorial photography has been my longtime passion. I like the kind pictures that tell a story without needing a caption. And my preference is always to capture the moment between posed moments, when my client is less unaware of the camera. Making storytelling portraits for Lee Ann Bartran was a blast – my favorite client photo-shoot of the month.
Of course I’ve loved working with all my clients this month. It’s hard to put one photo-shoot above the rest. When an art lover raves about a painting, the painter feel good. But when the same art lover buys the painting and then raves about it around town, the artist knows the compliment was genuine. Work done pro bono for friends and family is rarely appreciated as much.
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When Lee Ann first contacted me, we talked about making storytelling portraits and editorial photographs for her enterprises. Lee Ann is the US Executive Director and Founder for An Orphans Wish, a non-profit that operated a medical care unit China for medically frail children from Chinese orphanages. She’s also a writer and a photographer.
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Our photo-shoot started at her home where we did professional head-shots and lifestyle photography. I knew from the outset the session would yield good results. First, Lee Ann has an interesting looking face. More importantly, she has a big heart – warmth and friendliness flow through her gentle smile and soft gaze. As I set up lights, I was introduced to two of her daughters both originally from China.
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Now here’s a small-world connection. Lee Ann’s youngest daughter attends the same school as my son and in fact were even in a class together. Likely, they’re the only two kids at the school who wear some sort of prosthetic.
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The light softened as the afternoon sun moved west. We headed downtown for some photojournalism fun. Walking and talking for several hours, we found the good light and interesting lines in the architecture. The subject-photographer bought the other photographer dinner and then we shot some more.
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Now as you look through these images you’ll (hopefully) see a balanced collection of editorial action shots and story telling portraits. Of course, Lee Ann was aware of my camera and I did give direction. But the shots still have an unposed feel. The goal was to create active profile photography. And I believe we achieved that.
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