Portrait photography is one of the most sincere forms of capturing someone on film. If you are able to take an emotionally honest image so strong that it leaves the viewer practically breathless would be the ultimate goal in photography. I’ve always been very drawn to people. Ever since I was a child I recognized that people are very different and those differences translate to many aspects of their lives.
Making a photograph everything you want it to be relies on not only the photographer but the subject as well. I’ve been studying the concept of the person making or breaking the image and realized that it is absolutely true. You can take the same picture using two different people and each of those photos will read incredibly differently. What is it about the person’s inner spirit that transfers to film so specially?
When told to “be yourself” some people will go over the top and some will shrink into themselves. Not only can you not anticipate how a person will behave in front of a camera but you have no idea how their personality will actually look on film. I find this to be an absolutely amazing concept. I want to capture people in their natural state and also in a staged position so I have two emotionally honest pieces. Each person is able to provide a set of two very captivating images. The duality of the human personality provides limitless possibilities.
Portraits are an effective way to establish a connection between photographer and subject. They are the most direct route to accurately portraying the person and getting the photograph desired. I want to photograph people for who they are and also what they want to be seen as.