Headshot Stories - Marco

When I lived in New Mexico I had the pleasure of meeting Marco, a handyman that could do everything. And he did everything with a smile. After doing some big projects in our house I finally persuaded him to take a few minutes and sit in front of my camera.

After a very few minutes of photographing  Marco his friendly smile began to show up. After a couple more shots his eyes began to light up. I like this image the best because this looks like the way Marco would greet us every time we were with him.

This is an example of Your Face Is Your Superpower; who wouldn’t want to work or be around a guy who looks so invitingly friendly.

Tech Notes:
Camera: Canon 6D
Main light: Paul C. Buff White Lightning 800 with soft box
Fill Light: Paul C. Buff White Lightning 800 with soft box - 2 stops less
Back Light: Godox Strip Box
White Reflector Card - Below

The main light and fill light were set at about 36 inches away from the subject and feathered. The strip box was used to catch a small highlight on Marco’s left side of his head and cheek creating some separation between him and the background. The white reflector card is located just below the camera frame and bounces light back into Marco’s neck, chin and beard.
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On Becoming An Artist

When I arrived in Las Cruces 15 months ago, I partnered with the Southwest Environmental Center to produced two photographic exhibitions of other artists works. That was the plan, to create an environment for photographers to exhibit. While producing these exhibits, I did not include any of my own work. In fact, over recent years I have not exhibited often or widely. 

But that has begun to change. Currently, I am exhibiting my work in the exhibit FIRE & ICE at the Unsettled Gallery here in Las Cruces, New Mexico. The gallery is small, but a really charming place to exhibit with its whitewashed adobe walls and wooden vigas across the ceiling. I got the opportunity to pitch an idea to have my photographs of Death Valley (FIRE) and my friend Alex Tullis’s work of Iceland (ICE) shown In the gallery. Each of us has one of the two major rooms in the gallery. Together the exhibit is a contrast in landscapes, colors, themes and styles.

I was recently pleased to hear that I have been awarded a solo exhibition in another gallery here in Las Cruces. The work is more current than the Death Valley work, and I believe a next creative step compared to the current show, FIRE & ICE.

So now I have to confront how I am going to present myself as an artist. How do I market my work, how do I find a wider audience for the work I do. There are a number of ways to go; I know many photographers that go to local fairs every week and they do O.K. I know some photographers are in galleries, but they only sell occasionally. And we have all heard of people in New York, L.A., or Santa Fe that have sold prints for thousands of dollars. I have a e-commerce web site, so with a lot of marketing online sales is a possibility. There isn’t one answer that fits all that I want to accomplish.

Since my latest series has not yet been shown, in fact not even completed, I have to make a decision on how I will proceed to present, market, and show my work. This requires a road map, a plan to get from where I am now to where I want to be a year or two down the road. 

So right now I am beginning to lean in one direction and with a little more consideration over the next few weeks, I will make the final decision and tell you why I chose that direction. 

Stay tuned!