Meet Osiris Wildfire. Taken October 28, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA.
By the time you see this post, I’ll be on a bus headed for New York City (yesssss!!!) with this guy, singer/songwriter Osiris Wildfire for a photo shoot. Remember the name, remember the face, because he is the truth!
Meet Larry. Taken October 14, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA.
I met Larry while shooting the Philly International Expo this past weekend for the Mt. Airy Patch. He and I talked at length both Friday and Saturday and I really enjoyed speaking with him because of his positive energy and knowledge. Larry is the founder and proprietor of Behind the Pen, which designs inspirational cards for families to send to loved ones who are incarcerated.
This image is part of the final photo set over at the Mt. Airy Patch website and can be seen here. It will also become a part of my ongoing entitled Portraits of Philly: Camera Therapy. If you want more information about Behind the Pen, contact Larry Hunt at 267-616-0888, send him an email at behindthepen(at)yahoo(dot)com or go to his website.
Peace and blessings.
I took this portrait on assignment Saturday at the Philadelphia International Art Fair of Saundra of In Your Face Painting. In addition to doing the face painting thing with her partner Rick, she is a spoken word artist and musician. It was a pleasure meeting her and I look forward to seeing her in action real soon. By the way, this image will become part of my Portraits of Philadelphia: Camera Therapy series….quintessential Philly, don’t you think?
Portrait of Saundra. Taken October 15, 2011 in Philadelphia PA, at the Philadelphia International Art Expo.
Taken August 25, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
In the latest installment of my Portraits of Philadelphia series, I have to say that this one was completely unexpected, and it all started with me heading up Germantown Avenue to grab something to eat.
One day, I’ll share the backstory…..It’s quite interesting. I’ll just say that all of the weeks I walked up and down Germantown with my camera paid off. As they say, the streets are watching, AND, sometimes you may not get lucky the first go-round when you approach someone on the street to take their picture. Sometimes with people, it’s about trust and comfort….which is completely understandable.
At any rate, I’m glad things worked out where I got the shot, along with some new information: I found out that Robert and I had something in common – we both share a connection to my hometown, Chicago!! Which is good, because I also found out that his restaurant, Fino’s Pizzeria, is the place where I should go if I develop a craving for Chicago-style deep dish pizza! On another note, I’ll have to talk to him about that Eagles cap he was wearing…. LOL
What a great way to cap off a pretty busy week. If you get a minute, go over to my Facebook page…I’ve added quite a few photos that you won’t see here on this blog. Or if you want to connect with me directly on Facebook, go here.
Thanks in advance and have a great weekend!
Taken August 19, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
Does this look like the face of a man who is happy with the idea that he’s being photographed by a vivacious and eager photographer? No.
He gave me the third degree, even accusing me of being put up to photographing me on behalf of his wife. (I have no idea why he would even suggest something that salacious…unless he had a guilty conscience about something)
Perhaps he was joking, but as I stated here, the camera doesn’t lie, and the truth comes out in the profile view. Despite his look of unabashed annoyance, I’m still glad to include this image in my Portraits of Philadelphia photo series. Why? Because I was persistent and didn’t give up and got what I wanted. I will not be moved, and I will not be stopped.
Besides. You can’t please all the people all of the time. And you can’t appease a guilty conscience.
Taken August 17, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
I’m pleased to share with you the latest installment of my Portraits of Philadelphia: Camera Therapy series. I met Toya as we were waiting for the 23 Bus to pick us up in north Philadelphia ( I was on my way back home, and I’m sure she probably was, too). She was looking round with child (seven months to be exact) and quite uncomfortable with the idea of having to stand and wait for the bus, and so I took a chance and asked her to take her picture.
I only snapped one photo, the one you see above. I showed it to her and she said she looked very pregnant, and we both laughed. The bus finally showed up and of course, no one cared to step aside and let a heavily pregnant woman on the bus first….
Taken August 12, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
He was a man of few words, Quentin AKA “Q,” was.
When he, a female companion and child were walking north on Germantown Avenue, I noticed his hair and immediately knew that I wanted to capture his likeness for my Portraits of Philadelphia: Camera Therapy series.
So when I saw him coming back down the Avenue, I jumped out my seat and flew out the door to catch him. I’m sure he thought I was a crazy person, the way I came at him all frantic and what not.
I almost thought that he wouldn’t allow me to photograph him when I approached him, or should I say I bum-rushed him, but when I offered him one of my cards, he relaxed a bit.
We chatted a bit, which I try to do to put my subjects at ease, and to find out a little bit about them to make for an interesting blog post.
Surprisingly, he stated that no one really asks him about his hair or stops him on the street to photograph him. I guess there’s a first time for everything, I suppose!
Also, check out one of the outtakes on my Facebook Page….as always I welcome comments and feedback!
PS. I’m kinda mad because I shot these images at 1600 ISO (long story), which accounts for the grainy-ness (is that a word?). But I’m learning to not be so hard on myself when these things happen.
Taken August 11, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
In today’s installment of my photo series Portraits of Philadelphia: Camera Therapy, I present Ron, another Mt. Airy resident and lover of photography. He told me that he purchased his first camera, a Nikon film SLR, in Okinawa, Japan in 1970 for $300! I remarked that I wasn’t even born (but quickly clarified that I was born not too long after that).
We chatted for about 10 or 15 minutes after I snapped some photos of him, and he explained that he was from Roxborough, but had been living in Mt. Airy for about 4 years and that he really liked Mt. Airy because of the people. He left me with this quote (as we were talking about how easily it is for children of different races to play together): ”Children are innocent, but adults are a$$holes! Had me cracking up! Only in Philadelphia….only in Philly.
Taken August 11, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
In my latest addition to my Portraits of Philadelphia: Camera Therapy series, Buddy is a local gentleman who does odd jobs around the neighborhood and gets around on his 10-speed bike. I had been seeing him around and decided to approach him for his photograph. He quickly agreed and shared with me that he was once a photographer himself (of course!) and that he had a roster of cameras he used to use. He made the experience very pleasant, particularly because he made sure to sign off on the captures, nodding his approval. I have to admit, I do plan to photograph him again…this time, on his bike.
Hey everyone, sorry I’m late with today’s post…this weekend was pretty stressful and I didn’t have time (or the energy, quite frankly) to schedule posts for the upcoming week. So we’ll see how things go.
At any rate, I wanted to share with you this black and white image of a local singer, Bethlehem Roberson, that I took while she was rehearsing one of her songs for last week’s Open Mic. This image is quickly becoming one of my favorites. I hope you enjoy it as much I as do. The rest of the photo set appears here.
Taken August 3, 2011 in Philadelphia, PA
