The Inspiration for most of my photographic work, I readily admit, comes originally from the great Renaissance painters who, with brush and palette, captured such hauntingly beautiful women on canvas. Although my medium is the camera, I have found that by adopting some of their techniques, and using muted murals or antique tapestries for backgrounds, my pictures can approach their mood of timelessness and tranquillity.
Like the old masters, I try to find natural beauties for my subjects--not among professional models nor actresses, who often tend to be too thin or too uptight, but among secretaries, students, schoolteachers, waitresses and housewives. Thus, photographing women has become for me both a search for beauty and a labor of love.
I've found, however, that my best work hasn't been achieved through my efforts alone. A model's cooperation and understanding of my photographic goals are as important as lensmanship. Since I use a Polaroid camera for all my work, the model can become as involved in the photo process as myself, seeing--picture by picture--the progress we're making.
Unfortunately, I've discovered that whenever a young lady arrives to be photographed at my sanctuary, a baroquely furnished apartment in mid-Manhattan, her face and bearing often show the strains of her personal daily struggles, her private fears and concerns--emotions that can color the countenances of even the most beautiful women. These strains must be erased before she will photograph at her best. But it takes time for a model to relax, and it's difficult for her to feel comfortable with me the moment she walks in the door. With this problem in mind, I ask a model to arrive in the early afternoon, so that we have about an hour to become acquainted before we start shooting.
The afternoon appointment not only gives us more time to feel at ease with each other and thus work better together, it's also the time of day for the best available natural light. Ordinarily, I'll start our session with black-and-white work about an hour before sunset, taking advantage of the fading sunlight that streams through the tall, unobstructed windows of my bedroom-studio. This softer light contributes greatly to creating a subdued mood in the final pictures. The light and shadow at this hour also enhance my subject's curves, resulting in more striking nudes.
Usually, I begin a color session in the evening, after the model and I enjoy a quiet candlelight dinner. Since I have a large collection of antique costumes, which can add to both a model's beauty and the picture's mood, I will often ask a young lady to slip into one of my Moroccan caftans or Oriental robes. Then I set her against an unusual background, frequently a Renaissance mural or tapestry much like those in the paintings of Raphael and Da Vinci. To create lighting effects similar to the great painters', I rely on a single light source, a clear photoflood bulb in a reflector mounted on a stand. I must compensate, however, for the somewhat yellow light of the bulb by holding a homemade screen in front of the light.
Although I've made concerted efforts to construct such devices to help achieve the artistic effects I'm looking for, my apparatus actually is very simple in comparison with the numerous cameras, elaborate screens and multiple-lighting devices used by most professional photographers. But the real reason I try to keep my work so simple technically is that I want to continue to enjoy camerawork as a hobby; I really couldn't consider going into commercial photography. I want this most rewarding pastime to remain more like a romance than a binding marriage.
