Booker Washington III
Your objects retain your personality even when you are not present in this space. They still sound like you, look like you, wait for your return… They do not define you, you define them.
Lately I have been thinking about a portrait as more than just a human figure or a facial representation, instead as a description of personality.
Well, it is no longer Autumn, but we had such a wonderful time wandering around my favorite forest preserve on a crisp but sunny day in (when was that again?) October. This was back when autumn was pleasantly reminding us that winter was right around the corner and soon there would be snow and cold, cold nights. When the only thing to do is sit by a fire with a cup of tea or, better yet, a hot toddy. What can I say, I must be an old romantic. Now it’s officially winter, but it is neither cold, nor snowy. I have to admit I’ve had some hot toddy’s anyway, but not in front of a fire. So I’m rewinding a little, back to Autumn, so that I can feel a crispness in the air and anticipate the charm of real winter that’s waiting for us.
Elizabeth is in the business of light as well, but she was still happy when she saw that I made her glow.
Here’s one more for the road. Hand this girl a grey card and say, “This is just a test shot.” This has been happening since I was 16.
The forest preserve is Peabody Estate in Oakbrook, IL.
Alas! Despite my love of film, I must set it aside for a more manageable medium for oh so many practical reasons.
I’ve been on a mission to get myself into a good digital workflow so that I can go ahead and make the transition from film to digital. Hearing that one can tether capture using Lightroom, I thought I would give it a try/teach myself something new. It was so easy! Nothing is ever this easy! I tethered my camera to my computer, opened my Image Capture program (conveniently already living on my Mac), and set up Lightroom to ‘watch’ the folder that Image Capture sends files. Voila! The photos come right into Lightroom allowing me to perfect my composition, exposure, white balance, and styling all before I get myself geared up to go. Tethering via Lightroom works surprisingly well as a more budget-friendly Capture One tether (I already own Lightroom, and will just have to wait to acquire Capture One). This is a huge step for me giving up some of my romantic, antiquated ways and if I can only figure out a good method of making my digital files look a little more film-like I will be wholly satisfied.
For this test I requisitioned my brother to be my model. He’s so incredibly cute. I love his half-smile because I’ve seen this look half a million times when dragging him out of a good book.
Life is so sweet when taking photographs is this easy. 
