Smaragd's Photos

My first shoot with Mariya. We started out in my studio, then went to a church just down the road to shoot in front of their heavy wooden doors, and finally went across town to end the shoot in our local cemetery. Mariya is a strong collaborator in that she had a good idea of what she wanted from the shoot. But she was also receptive to my own ideas and input. I really believe working with a model should, ideally, be an equal creative partnership. This shoot was a perfect example of that -- an even combination of her ideas and mine, the synergy of two creative streams coming together.

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Miss Cat is a member of the Northwest Pinups 4 Troops.

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Tori in one of the old British-styele telephone booths in the Fairhaven area of Bellingham, Washington. I thought I'd post this one here on Zooomr before I put it on Flickr. :-)

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Lightning storm over Bellingham Technical College. I've wanted to photograph a lightning storm ever since I was a little kid. Last night was the first time I actually did it.

We only see a few thunderstorms every year in this area, and they generally come and go very quickly. Often they last less than a half-hour, and there are frequently only a half-dozen flashes before the rain starts and it's all over.

This one, however, lasted over an hour. And though a hard downpour started after 20-30 minutes, the lightning continued. After ten minutes or so, the rain dwindled and stopped. Another downpour -- this one a bit weaker -- came and went, and still the lightning continued. I stayed outside taking exposure after exposure until the storm had moved far to the northeast.

An unusually long and spectacular display. I hope there will be a few more opportunities before the summer ends.

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It's been quite a while since I took decent new self-portraits. Since I didn't have any shoots scheduled today, this seemed like a great opportunity. The camera is a 1959 Agfa Silette-LK, which is the most recent addition to my small collection of old cameras.

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Larissa Vanity is a rising model in Northwest Washington. She has strong presence, an equally strong personality, and is both a total knockout and a true professional. Although I've been aware of her for well over a year, this was my first shoot with her. We began the session with some shots around Bellingham Technical College before heading down to Squalicum Beach.

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Hail Dana! 'Nuff said.

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A dramatic sky of cirrus clouds over Mount Baker. Seen from the fragrance garden at Tenant Lake in Ferndale, Washington.

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Thinking about becoming a "Suicide Girl"? Think again! Sign up to be a model with Suicide Girls and you've just shut the door on other opportunities. SG requires you to sign an exclusivity agreement which forbids you from doing modeling work anywhere else that they decide to consider a "competitor" for as long as you are an active Suicide Girl plus two years. If you want to become a Suicide Girl, you are probably young. How long will you be an active Suicide Girl? How old will you be when you decide you want to advance your modeling career further than SG can take you? Add two years to that, and that's how old you will be before you can work for any "competitor." Now, remember how extremely geared modeling is toward youth. By the time you are free of the exclusivity and non-competition agreement, years of your youth are gone forever. Think about it. Sign on with Suicide Girls and you've just committed career suicide. Worse, read about the case of Suicide Girl Apnea and her photographer Lithium Picnic (Philip Warner). Sign on with Suicide Girls and you're going nowhere. And if you try to make something more of yourself, SG will do everything they can to ruin your life. Do you still want to become a Career-Suicide Girl? Really?

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My first shoot with Orpheus Faust. I first saw her in photos taken by Machine, and was stunned. I knew immediately that I wanted to work with her. It was months before I approached her about doing a shoot, but she agreed to work with me. After a couple of failed attempts to arrange a shoot, we succeeded today. Faust is even more amazing than I expected. Her personality is much more friendly, funny and relaxed than anybody is likely to guess from her photos. And when the camera points her way, she turns on like a spotlight. She lights up and gets straight to business, hitting great, dynamic poses like she was born for it. An amazing girl, and a fantastic model. I can hardly wait to shoot with her again.

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This shoot was my first with Elly. I had a clearer vision of how the shots should look than I've ever had going into a shoot. I also did more preparation than I've done for a shoot, including acquiring the props. This session is a big step in the direction I want to move -- toward shoots that are more conceptual, involve more props and costumes, and that involve more planning and work for a more sophisticated result. A big, warm thank you to Elly, who was fabulous, funny, and beautiful.

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My first shoot with Flannery. Like Faust, I first noticed Flannery in Machine's photos. I feel a little intimidated shooting somebody who has already been so beautifully photographed by a photographer whom I admire. In those cases, I'm always worried about whether I'll be able to do her justice, or if I will look inferior compared to other photographers. But photography is not a competition. And I'm gradually learning that my own style is different enough that it's hard to draw an immediate comparison with other photographers.

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Scenery at milepost 100 on State Route 20 east of Rockport, Washington.

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Tori on the public dock in the Fairhaven area of Bellingham, Washington.

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That's me.

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When she wants the swings at recess, she gets them, I don't care who got there first. Why is this in the "Macintosh" pool? Look closely. Yeah, she's definitely one of us. Cool, huh?

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Larissa Vanity is a rising model in Northwest Washington. She has strong presence, an equally strong personality, and is both a total knockout and a true professional. Although I've been aware of her for well over a year, this was my first shoot with her. Although it was raining — a downpour at times — she never balked, and even embraced the rain with enthusiasm.

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