Just before I shot a wedding, I did a photo shoot with a Lauren L. on the Roberto Clemente Bridge. I have done a series of images involving the two rivers and other Pittsburgh locations, long exposures, and subject movement. (You can see a couple in my Fine Art collection.) The subject’s action is simple: stay very still for five seconds or so, and then rush out of the field of view, while the shutter remains open for another five seconds. The results can be ghostly. The inspiration for the series comes from the song by the group Boston, “More Than a Feeling”:
I looked out this morning and the sun was gone
Turned on some music to start my day
I lost myself in a familiar song
I closed my eyes and I slipped away
It's more than a feeling
(More than a feeling)
When I hear that old song they used to play
(More than a feeling)
I begin dreaming
(More than a feeling)
'Til I see Marianne walk away
I see my Marianne walkin' away
So many people have come and gone
Their faces fade as the years go by
Yet I still recall as I wander on
As clear as the sun in the summer sky
[Chorus]
When I'm tired and thinking cold
I hide in my music, forget the day
And dream of a girl I used to know
I closed my eyes and she slipped away
She slipped away . . . .
I trust that my viewers have had experiences of lost love, and remembrances of them.
Most of the other shots are of the stylish, slender Lauren on the Roberto Clemente Bridge over the Allegheny River. The sun was setting, and the light was golden. She knows how to pose. There are lots of pictures of pretty girls on Instagram and Facebook, and young photographers are putting up new ones every day. Some are worth looking at once. While, like most men, I find a pretty face and form appealing, “Instagram pretty” is charming but ephemeral. I am more interested in portraiture, capturing (or appearing to capture) something of the mystery of the person. I like images that suggest that more is going on in that person’s mind and life than you see in the image. And I like what light and shadow do to the human form. As a young guy, I thought ballet was silly. Now, many graceful dance images, well-lit, are really appealing.
I used my Lensbaby Spark and Velvet 56 lens experimentally, often not knowing exactly what I would get when I pressed the shutter button. There are a few of these in the gallery, too. They are a kind of “eye candy,” with colorful, brilliant specular highlights, just fun to view.
Here’s the link. Enjoy!