Portrætfotografens popularitet er oftest på højde med tandlægens!
¨Du skal være advaret, jeg gør mig ikke så godt på billeder¨ siger den bekymrede medarbejder. Virksomheden vil gerne præsentere sine dygtige medarbejdere. Det styrker relationer med et ansigt på navn og telefonnummer.
¨Bare rolig!¨, svarer jeg.¨Det er mit problem!¨.
Det handler om at føle sig i trygge hænder, skuldrene sænkes, og gnisten tændes i blikket. Vi tager den tid og de greb, der skal til, så den portrætterede kan tage ejerskab over netop han/hendes portræt.
Iben lives in our neighborhood, and occasionally comes around to play with my children. One day she came to the door in this beautiful outfit. I asked her if she would like her picture taken, and invited her into the garden in the afternoon light. The other children were playing right next to us on the trampoline. She just adopted the pose, with no directions. I love her body language and her expression of contentedness; how she holds her hands, elbows bent to prevent her purse falling off her arm, the 'Mona Lisa gaze' - ignoring the camera, yet still fully aware of the moment - having her picture taken. This is the first of four quick takes, then she dashed on to play with the other children.
In that brief moment, with me and the camera, Iben turned her back to trampolines, playmates, sunny days and stick-on tattoos, and connected with the notion of greatness, a very old history of medieval silken dresses and secretive longing gazes...
