The last few weeks have been a major shot in the arm for my film work, complete with the introduction of two brand new collections on my website and a renewed commitment to small format (35mm) black and white film. The main impetus for this latest step of evolution was a combination of a bad back and a new film scanner. In essence, lots of down time and a new toy to kill time with.
Many photographers are utilizing film in these ever digitalizing days and my use of the medium has changed considerably while orienting myself in the professional commercial photography realm over the past year. In previous years, when I had a job and moonlighted from time to time, I shot mostly film. I didn't have extreme deadlines nor did my livelihood depend on nailing frames. Film's slower and more costly workflow has taken a bit of a backseat in recent months due to the nature of my professional work, except for my cherished personal projects. These projects reflect my interests as a person and exploration of how I utilize my photographic skills in an ideal world. Like most creatives, these are itches that need to be scratched.
Two such projects were shot throughout this summer but the negatives sat untouched in their archive sleeves...
The final installment of my Meet a Subject series looks at the time I have spent assisting DC portrait/headshot/you name it photographer Moshe Zusman. It has been about a year since I took the plunge and committed myself to full time independent freelance photography as my sole source of income and I have learned more about portraiture and, more importantly, the business side of photography from a few months working with Moshe than years of handling a camera on my own.
The first few months of my entrepreneurial voyage were relatively busy. I was occupied with the multifaceted responsibility of establishing a business entity (just hire an account. Seriously), figuring out what it is that I would be doing photographically speaking, conceptualizing a brand, building a couple portfolios, growing contacts and generally adjusting to the strange ebb and flow of independent employment. I wasn't, however, doing a lot of photography. I heard that this was pretty normal in that pursuing photography as a business means running the business first and foremost with a bit of photography here and there. I also heard from a very trusted friend that the winter was coming, and the months can be slow.
