About
For my portraits of people, I believe, in being part of Boston's public life, and photographing it, that Bostonians create our city anew, every day, in interactions with each other. Our diversity, compassion for others, and concern for a better future are the best of us. As a photographer, I take photos of people in our public spaces to show this connection. These images are about our joy, our connection to our fellow Bostonians, and our empathy.
To take photos of people in public, the photographer also needs empathy and a sense of connection. I suggest that she or he should use respect, intuition and social intelligence, to read our photo subjects in the context of a moment; are we respecting that person, to take his or her photo? We try to “do no harm" in a public moment that is simply ordinary life; news story or crisis. What is that person's unique story, and how can that be shown, if only for a moment?
This is my working concept of “training my gaze,” using both art and technique. We photographers are, in the memorable words of Henri Cartier-Bresson, choosing the decisive moment. The image is now a moment of being, instantly in the past, and just as immediately, an interaction was created between the photographer and her subject. What does my photographic subject ask of me? To take a photo – or not – and to acknowledge her as a human being worthy of my attention, and kindness.
I invite you to view these images of Bostonians. If you would like to reply to me, I would ask you, "which photo, or photos, do you think you will remember, and why?"
Photography is an art form
Photography, literally "drawing with light" is a unique art form. It depicts the visual external nature of our species and our world, but also presents the mythic, the interior, the wordless soul.
What is photography?
As I pick up my camera, I am using both art and technique to “train my gaze.” We are, in the memorable words of Henri Cartier-Bresson, choosing the decisive moment. The image is now a moment of being, instantly in the past, and just as immediately, an interaction created between the photographer and her subject. What does my photographic subject ask of me? To take a photo – or not – and to acknowledge her as a human being worthy of my attention, and kindness.