Your pictures are, as usual, exemplary. I entirely understand your
ambivalence towards your father. The details of my struggles with mine
are different, but very similar. He's the one that started me in
photography, and although he tried to dissuade me from engineering for
his own reasons, I was drawn to it for a lot of the same reasons that he
was. Interestingly, he got back into photography at 42 by purchasing a
Pentax, I got back into photography at 47 by purchasing a Pentax.
I don't remember a lot of feedback from him on my photos. I didn't ask
for a lot of feedback from him because he was the one person in the
world I was least able to take feedback from, no matter how correct it
might be. But I do remember his making comments about the way shapes
lead the eye around the page on a photo, and that is something that I've
kept in mind since.
He passed away a bit over 10 years ago and Thursday would be his 85th
birthday.
Bruce Walker wrote:
This is something of a Father's Day tribute.
I had a difficult relationship with dear old Dad, who passed last
November at 91. He could be autocratic and controlling, but he got me
started into engineering, around which my entire career was built. And
he had a way of pointing out uncomfortable truths. I will never forget
that moment when, after proudly displaying a collection of my early
best-of shots to him, with a note of disappointment in his voice he
said, "but there are no people in any of these."
That stung, but that implied question drilled into my head and refused
to be dislodged until I gave in and promised myself to try shooting
people. What a revelation that was! Unexpectedly it has made me a more
confident person, especially dealing with women, a major part of the
population I've never been able to look right in the eye for my entire
life.
So to get concrete: here are my latest retouches from my most recent
studio shoot with Dorrie Mack, an art/life model. I can honestly admit
that these were only made possible because of my father's blunt but
innocent observation a few years ago.
Introspection
http://off-axis.brucemwalker.com/image/122023112647
Extrospection #1
http://off-axis.brucemwalker.com/image/122023227947
Extrospection #2 -- NSFW
http://off-axis.brucemwalker.com/image/122023298972
Comments welcome.
--
Larry Colen [email protected] (postbox on min4est)
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