Portraits
Author - Poet - Visionary
Every life creates precious memories accumulated from crossing paths with others. Wouldn't it make sense to honor those who's paths enriched ours? Photography is a wondrous key to humanity and a poignant witness to timeless existence. A portrait extends the memory of those who mattered most.
Two distinct glimpses of humanity
Portraits (Character)
My approach to a portrait is aimed at revealing the subjects passion or occupation, persona, character, heritage or a combination thereof. It forces the viewer to explore the image for clues and besides being more profound, I'm sure you'll agree, it's endlessly more compelling to look at than the common (cheese) pose, making it a great portrait alternative.
Artist's notes about this image:
My wife has a deceptively strong character and will readily defend her point of view in a patient, yet determined manner. I felt that her stance, "back against the fence" would project this trait. The warmth of the sunshine bathing her, makes a parallel to some of her other monumental qualities: she's a warm, giving and welcoming individual, her calm demeanor and open arms reflect this perfectly. Post-processing softening of the image and the use of a warm tone paper complete the desired effect. The fence post cap behind her is a fleur-de-lys, a fitting link to her French heritage. With uncompromising determination, she has an unusual ability to plan ahead and work diligently towards any goal, which was emphasized here by having her look away and down the street.
Artist's notes about this image:
My father in law is a jeweler by trade, but raced boats and snowmobiles on the weekends during the 50's and 60's. Judging by his endless 1st place trophies accumulated in both sports, he's done better than most! Boating was always his favorite, in fact, you can have endless conversations with him, as long as it's boating related! Remarkably, he designed, built and tweaked the many racing boats that crossed the finish line, without the benefit of a formal education. This sunset image of him at 85 years of age, standing on his boat and overlooking his stomping ground, is a great way to honor this remarkable man and his endless passion. Even though he's raced locally, provincially and internationally in varied venues throughout Ontario and Québec, many victories took place on this lake, where to this day, he owns a cottage and drives his current boat at full throttle daily, while people his age if able at all, are driving pontoon boats! A true conqueror's spirit!
(Artistic) Portrait
My objective for an artistic portrait is to capture fleeting emotion with the help of the setting's mood. It's reminiscent of the impressionist period. Special effects and specific clothing may be used to enhance the intended effect. Once on the wall, it's guaranteed to become a conversation piece, a classic.
The first part of manifesting a dream is to have one...let's see if you can be inspired to escape out of the box... even if, only for a moment...
Can you imagine the setting for your artistic portrait?
What type of setting do you see yourself in? Urban, country? What would you wear in this scene, classy attire, relaxed threads or nothing at all? Are there candles, flowers? Is it spring, fall? Is the warmth of the sunshine bathing you or is the heat radiating from a fireplace? Are you wearing a hat, carrying an umbrella or is your hair blowing in the breeze? Shoes, boots or bare feet? Is there a tub, a calm lake or a waterfall? Are you surrounded by dramatic structures or smooth flowing materials? Is the backdrop gently bathed at sunset? Is is swaying in a gentle breeze?
You're getting the idea, the possibilities are endless! This visualization process demonstrates how easily imagination can transport our minds and stimulate our emotions. Step out of the mundane and take part in this fun filled creative process. It will enrich your spirit and that's always a worthwhile investment, especially when recorded as a timeless piece!
FYI: If the personal nature of the image you want is not appropriate for public viewing, we can negotiate it's uses in our contract agreement.
Details...
Note: To complete a portrait project from A to Z, roughly 20 hours of meticulous work are needed. This invaluable time, materials and other overhead costs are included!
- $399 includes up to 2 hours of shooting
- up to 17X22 custom print (color or b&w)
What's involved:
- Up to 2 hours shooting session
- One subject
- One location
- CD with finished images (4X6 @ 72dpi) for your selection convenience
- Meticulous professional processing of each image
- Touch ups and effects as required (determined by artist)
- Custom Finished Print (Color or B&W) @ 360dpi - up to 22 X 17
- Top quality archival paper & inks used
- Additional customs prints are available, please see: EXTRAS for sizes/pricing
- Finished custom enlargements are unmounted/unframed
- Travel fee $1/minute applies to locations outside Ottawa city core
- Applicable taxes are extra
FAQs:
-Do you use a studio? - No! I prefer to work on location. It opens a larger window of variety for backgrounds and lighting conditions that are best suited to my style. As far as I'm concerned, natural light is the way to go!
-Can the shoot session take place at our home? - Of course, as long as it suits the desired effect. Once under contract, I invest a substantial amount of time in meticulously planning a shoot session. The setting and lighting conditions available must reflect the envisioned theme.
-Do you offer portrait packages? - The starting rate is $399 and includes one large print. Additional prints prices/sizes can be added to your package. Prices can be found on the extras page.
-Do you do "straight" portraits? - Of course! However, don't underestimate the value of a more creative approach by staying away from "cheese" poses!
-Do you do children portraits? -Yes and I would add this: as static subjects, I find that young children quickly become bored, frustrated and ultimately uncooperative as their way of expressing disapproval for having their freedom curtailed. The jittery types require even less intervention before acting up. I use either a candid or photojournalistic approach to maximize the quality of the results.
-Can we print photos from the included CD? - No, the 4X6 @ 72 dpi resolution you get on CD is strictly intended for viewing on a computer screen and intended for selecting enlargements. Their only other practical use is email to friends or relatives for their selections.
-Can we get the CD with high res images instead? -Considering that the bulk of the workload (20 hours) is up front, it wouldn't make any business sense! My time investment is aimed at getting additional orders for compensation. This also means that the quality of my work must be exceptional for that to happen and that's definitely to your advantage!
-Can we gather various families at a park for a shoot session and share the cost? Photographers who do business that way are using a cookie cutter approach and producing cheese poses. They're more concerned with making a few bucks while socializing, than creating art or improving their craft. It's an approach to photography that has never appealed to me. I'm motivated by artistic value! The time allocated is based on acquiring distinctive results for one subject.
-Do you do pet portraits? -Yes but, only if it's a horse!
I'm Curious !
I'm a Princess !
I'm Sweet !