The Camera Dealer

'The Camera Dealer' may indeed be familiar to Southern Californians,

as he works for the West Coast's largest camera retailer, near, but

not in, their main store. (a puzzle which some of you may solve).

Your ratings and critiques are invited and most welcome. If you

rate harshly or very critically, please submit a helpful and

constructive comment; please share your superior knowledge to help

improve my photography. Thanks! Enjoy! John

great, great portrait!

regards!

I'm of the school that says that 'great portrait' may be standing across the service counter staring at you over a pair of glasses, with a wrinkled forehead.

'Wait', said I, 'hold it right there', to this guy who is known by half the LA area photographers or at least the salesmen who sell to them. 'I'd like to take your photo. And I took several, choosing this one for its focus and the way it filled the frame, but without fill reflection, flash -- direct of bounce of any sort -- just good old available light, accounting for the darker eyes (filled in somewhat by shadow/highlight filter in Adobe Photoshop CS2).

It was all over in a matter of less than a minute and about six photos -- I'm a speed photographer.

To take such photos, you can't stress out the subjects, they are not models and they are not expecting to have their portraits taken. Your photography exists by their good graces (and your willingness to show them the results of your photographic efforts now that there's digital screens for showing same).

Thanks Alfredo for the nice comment.

John (Crosley)

I know how it is with this kind of photos. I do have lots of fun talking with this people and just shoot! Normally they like to be photographed and I keep them talking as they arent models and like that I can capture the emotions, expressions. The human contact normally is great!

my best regards!

Yes, I keep them talking too, and shoot as they talk, which often ruins a lot of low-light shots, because of blurriness, so I often set my camera to fire at 'C' which used to be 'motor drive' or high-speed, in the hopes that one of several likely ones will be without that inevitable blur that happens when a jaw is flapping.

In this case, being a photographer himself, however, this guy understood how to pose (and keep still while doing so), though not for long, as he had customers.

Best to you (and I had lots of fun perusing your highly-rated photos of others -- what a treat with some real gems I'd missed.)

John (Crosley)