Best Pictures Ever

"Ok, Mr. Harris, one last question please." the reporter asked as we came to the end of my interview.

"What is the essential ingredient that makes a photograph an outstanding picture? A truly special photo?"

"That depends on what your subject is." I replied.

"How so?" she asked?

"Well, for scenery and objects, it's related to your composition and how you frame it. From my perspective, less is more."

"Less is more? I'm not sure if I understand that. What do you mean?"

"Easy. Keep the picture simple. Don't include too many things. Focus on what you want to capture. Make the subject be what the viewer sees. Less is more."

"Ok, I think I understand." She smiled back. "In other words, make sure your subject matter dominates the photo?"

"Exactly. Less is more. When you see a picture that you like, take a second look and see what makes it look good to you. I think you'll find that most of them will be focused on the subject of the photo."

"Just like your pictures?" she said with a merry twinkle in her eye as she tried to bait me.

"Well, I hope so; yes," I chuckled, "but don't take my pictures as the definition of what's a good picture. Look at every picture you see and judge for yourself what you like and what you don't like."

"I'll try to remember that."

"And then there are photographs of people."

"Yes?"

"Those photos are the most difficult to compose. I never know what I'm going to capture until I meet the people and spend a few minutes with them."

"Is it because people are more difficult to position and frame?"

"No, that's not it. Most people are quite accommodating as far as that's concerned; except for young babies."

She laughed, "Ok, I understand the challenge with young babies, but other than that, why are taking photos of people difficult?"

"Because it is difficult for me to gauge the depth and emotional content of their psyche until I meet them and spend a few minutes with them."

"Ok, you lost me on that one also. What do you mean by a person's depth and emotional content of their psyche? And how would that affect a person's picture?"

I sat in my chair and starred at my interviewer. She must be in her early to mid-thirty's, on the slim side and nicely proportioned, strawberry blonde hair, and a beautiful smile.

"Difficult question to answer. Let me respond by using an example."

"Ok."

"Let's use you."

"Me?"

"Yes, you."

"Why me?"

"Because you're here and I've already spent enough time with you so I feel that I have a reasonable assessment of who you are."

"So what do you think?" she asked.

I looked directly into her eyes for about a minute before responding, "I think that there is a lot more to you than you let others know. I think that you're not necessarily happy, but then again, you're not sad either."

I could see that she was taken back by my observations.

"Are you a psychic?"

"No, that I'm not."

"Then how can you tell how a person is feeling or thinking?"

"I can't tell what a person is thinking, but your eyes, your face, your body posture tell me a lot."

"Huh?"

"Yes. Look at how you're sitting. You're slouched over a bit. That tells me that you're not comfortable about something. Or it could also mean that you're hiding something. Or you're anxious about something. That combined with my observations about your intelligence lead me to believe that you're cautious about opening up to others."

She looked at me as if she were lost for words.

"Am I right or wrong? Close or not?" I asked.

"I don't know." She replied.

"I understand." I replied.

"You understand?"

I chuckled softly, "it was very uncomfortable for me the first time I realized some truths about myself. It took me awhile to be open enough to agree with the person who gave me the same sort of feedback that I just gave you."

"I don't know what you mean." She replied, almost flippantly.

"Perhaps you don't know now, but you will later."

She sat on her chair at a loss for words. Just staring at me with her mouth slightly opened as she absorbed and processed our conversation.

"Miss Garin, are you ok?" I asked.

"Oh, sorry......... You're deep. Really deep. I don't know....... can I...... that is, um....... shit, you're right about me, you know."

I nodded my head.

"Ok, I think we got side tracked a little. So how does knowing that mumbo jumbo stuff about your subject help you take a better picture?"

I looked at her for a few minutes before replying; "it helps me place the person in a setting that suits their mood and complements their emotional state at that time."

"So, if a person were happy, you'd choose a setting that would be a happy one?"

"Something like that. But happy people are easy to photograph. It's people who are like you that are difficult to photograph."

"Well since you know me to some degree, how would you photograph me?" she asked out of curiosity.

I paused to give it some thought and replied, "I'm not sure if you'd agree to being photographed the way that I think would work for you."

"Oh? And why do you think that?"

"Well, for one, my feeling is a picture capturing your moods would be most striking. Like when you are sad or feeling melancholy. Or when you're feeling extreme pleasure or happiness."

"Ok, well using me as an example, how would you position me and frame the picture to capture my mood that I'm in at the moment?"

I paused again to look at her, trying to sense her present mood. "Miss Garin," I began.....

"Juliette." She interrupted.

"Pardon?"

"Please call me Juliette."

I smiled, "only if you call me Neil."

She smiled back, "Neil it is."

"Now then Juliette, I feel as if your mood right now is one of curiosity and apprehension, a little pensive perhaps, wondering what it is that you're getting yourself into."

She laughed softly, "you have gauged me well."

"Thanks for confirming that. Now getting back to a photo of you.......... I think I would place you in your home, sitting on your living room floor next to a coffee table, leaning against your sofa, magazines and newspapers littered on the floor by your side. A coffee cup filled with a favorite beverage, and a cat lounging on the table with one of your hands rubbing its side."

"You know, that sounds like me." she said with wonder in her eyes.

"You would be dressed very comfortably; perhaps sweat pants, and a tank top without a bra."

"What? I can't do that? People would see my..... well, you know what they'd see."

"Perhaps, but wouldn't that be the real you?" I asked.

Juliette blushed, "yes," she said softly. "But how did you know?"

"As we talked this afternoon, I was struck by your beauty and poise. I took a risk that you might be very comfortable with your sexuality and might be ok with letting people see the barest outline of your nipples."

She blushed, "Neil......"

"I can tell that you're a very sensual person."

She blushed again, "you have me unbalanced."

"Am I wrong? If so then I apologize."

There was a pause to our conversation as Juliette looked away, "I am embarrassed to admit that you are right about me."

"There's nothing for you to be embarrassed about. Actually, I think it's an example of your inner strength and beauty."

"What?"

"Yes. You are quite comfortable with how you look. Actually, I think you love how you look and would willingly share it with the right person."

She blushed again before getting up to walk over to a window, "it's been a long time since that was true. We both shared ourselves with each other but that's gone for me."

"Perhaps for now, but it's within you to do so again when the right person comes along."

"And you? What about you, Neil?"

"You will need to come out to my studio to find the answer to that question."

She raised her eye brows at that response. "And what are you hiding at your studio?"

"I hide very little. I'm a very transparent person. I have nothing to hide from anyone any more. It is just me, my life's work and a handful of pets now that my muse is gone."

"Your muse?"

"Yes."

"Was she........."

"Yes, she was my reason for living. Now I exist. I am comfortable with that."

"I'm sorry for asking."

"Don't be. I'm not sorry that you asked. Her passing made me much more sensitive to my feelings towards others around me."

"I'm so sorry Neil. I feel as if I'm intruding on something very personal."

"Don't feel that way Juliette. It happened several years ago and I've gotten over it. And as I just said, it's made me a better person."

She smiled tentatively, "Ok, I'll risk it. Tell me when and where your studio is."

"Any time works for me so long as you call ahead. And my studio is located at the address on my business card. It's a short distance from town but definitely in the country."

Juliette concluded our interview shortly after that and said that she would give some thought about coming out to my studio and give me a call later if she decided to take me up on it.

We finished up with some niceties and I made ready to leave her office.

"Neil," she asked as I reached for the handle on her office door.

"Yes Juliette?"

"I'd like to visit this afternoon if that's possible."

As it was about 3 pm already, it would leave me without much time to take a proper photo of her. "Juliette, there wouldn't be much time to take a good photo of you."

"Then we don't need to take a photo of me. I'd just like to visit if I could."

I looked at her and she looked at me. "Ok. What time do you think you could make it?"

"How about we leave right now and I follow you back to your studio?"

"That works for me. Where are you parked?"

"I'm in the building garage so it'll take me a couple of minutes to liberate my car. Where are you parked?"

"I'm in your visitor parking area in the front."

"Ok, see you there in, say, ten minutes?"

"Right." And I left her office to return to my vehicle. I waited next to it until Juliette pulled up in her maroon Saturn. I gestured to my car, then got in and drove off with Juliette following.

Traffic was beginning to build as we left her office building so it took us a little longer that I expected; about forty minutes to reach my home and studio. But it was otherwise an uneventful trip. We left the main road and took my drive way which looks more like a private road as it's long and narrow and one can't see where it goes. Just barely wide enough to enable two cars to drive down it side by side. But it works as there is normally just me coming and going.

My driveway is protected by a remotely controlled gate, and the driveway is fairly long as we wanted our home to be set back and hidden from public view. My muse and I. Not that Linda and I had anything to hide. It was just that we valued our privacy. Our home was our refuge; our fortress of solitude where we were free to be ourselves and not worry about what others thought about us and our lifestyle.

We built our home out in the country and set it back as far from the main road as we could and hid it behind a hill and a large grove of evergreens. If not for our drive way and mailbox, no one would ever know that a home was back there.

I pressed the remote gate opener as I slowed down to make the turn. As the gate opened, my two dogs were barking and yapping as they welcomed my return. Buddy is a mixed terrier of some sort. No telling what's in him but he is a very friendly little dog. Full of energy and happiness. Ralph on the other hand is a full grown rottweiler. Strangers are usually apprehensive when Ralph approaches. He is a rottweiler after all. But he's a complete wimp. Loveable to a fault. He'd roll on his back and beg you to rub his tummy.

The driveway is about a quarter of a mile in length and it curves back and forth with the natural contours of the property. Stands of trees and large bushes randomly dot the landscape. The driveway then follows the base of a small hill till it ends at my home and studio. The dogs ran ahead of us as they took shortcuts through the fields and trees.

My home and studio were originally built as stand-alone buildings and were later joined together to provide more room as well as to make it easier to get from one building to the other in inclement weather. The home is a simple design with two bedrooms, and a large open area that accommodates the kitchen, dining area, living room and a breakfast nook.

There is a porch that runs the length of the building in the front and a roofed patio in the back of the building that likewise runs the length of the building. We installed a hot tub in the patio years ago and it became a favorite place to relax.

The studio is a large warehouse structure. Several lockers for equipment line the walls while three walled stages take up most of the open space. The stages are used for photo shoots, and can be decorated and outfitted as needed. They are on rollers so I can move them around as needed.

Two large roll up doors are on one side of the building to enable me to move large objects in and out. The opposite side is a solid wall; no windows to allow outside lights to affect whatever was being photographed. Climate controlled as needed; otherwise just several dehumidifiers are left on 24/7 to keep the moisture and mold out.

I gave Juliette a tour of the place pointing out items of interest as we walked through the buildings. In the studio she saw the stages and inquired about how they were used. So I showed her some of the shots that I have taken over the years using the stages.

I have a workstation in the studio where most of the raw photo data is captured and loaded onto a server that I can access from my home office computer workstation. The studio is also equipped with a sixty inch HD monitor that makes pictures pop.

I loaded my promo file and thumbed the first photo series up onto the monitor. Juliette gasped as the picture came to life.

"That's incredible." She said as a picture of a smiling baby's face brightened the screen. The baby's toothless grin and big blue eyes filled the screen.

"As you look at the picture, does it make you feel anything?" I asked.

"Yes. Definitely. It makes me happy. Makes me want to kiss that baby."

"We had a great time taking that photo. Did it on one of the stages with a crib and pastel sheets. Sheets on the walls allowed us to bounce subdued lighting onto the baby. I used a ladder to get above the kid and shot a bunch of shots that way."

The next picture was of a naked woman whose back was faced at an angle to the camera. Seated on a black velvet covered riser against a dark background, her right leg was bent knee up as she leaned her elbow on it. You could see the curve of her breast but only that. A partial side profile of her face could be seen but little else.

I looked at Juliette to gauge her reaction.

"There seems to be some sadness with the model. Perhaps disappointment? A feeling of melancholy?" she shared.

"That's my sister-in-law about a month after her divorce. She was feeling down and Linda wanted to do something to break her out of her funk."

"You're very emphatic," I observed before we ran through several more pictures as I explained how the stages were setup for each shot along with lighting.

The next shot was of an overcast day at the beach. The waves were crashing violently against the beach that day. The water dark grey with white caps as you looked further out to sea.

"Does this evoke any emotions?" I asked.

"Dark, gloomy, sad, pensive." She replied.

My last picture was an early morning shot of a layer of fog as it hung over a lake that was surrounded by mountains. The day was still very young so the mountains appeared to be a mottled dark blue. The sky was overcast and the clouds looked heavy with moisture; as if it could begin raining at any moment.

"Mysterious, foreboding, ominous, almost ethereal." She commented.

"These are samples of what I do. I try to understand the emotions that run through my mind's eye as I take in what I see."

Juliette was silent for a moment as she internalized the pictures and the discussions.

"Neil, you have opened my eyes this afternoon. I don't think I'll look at another picture the same way again."

----------

The next time I saw Juliette was about a month later at the opening of a photo exhibit at a gallery in town. I had been invited by the photographer who was a friend. I was there to support him. His photo's were really meant for a portrait studio. He took nice portraits but that's all they were.

"Fancy meeting you here," Juliette said as she laced her arm through mine as we ambled through the gallery.

I smiled, "It's nice to see you again Juliette."

"This doesn't seem like the type of exhibit that you might frequent." She mentioned.

"No, you're right. But he is a friend and he invited. And there are a couple of photos that are good."

"So I've been thinking," she started then paused.

"Thinking is always a good thing to do," I kidded.

She nudged me in my side, "be nice." She said as she smiled.

"Ok, so you have been thinking," I continued.

"About your offer to photograph me."

"And?"

"Well, I think I'd like to do that."

I looked at her for a moment then asked, "For whom would the picture be for? Yourself or for you to show to others?"

"What do you mean?"

"Would this be a picture that only you would see and enjoy or would it be on display for anyone to see?"

"What would be different between the two?"

"I think that the photo that is meant to be seen only by you would show your inner most feelings and thoughts. You are a very complex woman and sensual. It would be putting your heart and soul on display. Not many people would be willing to share that with everyone."

"The other would have a more conservative construct; less out on a limb, but still some elements of what we talked about."

We walked from portrait to portrait as she thought through the question and at the end of the evening she still didn't know what she wanted.

"Neil, on one hand, I think having a very personal photo of me would not be something that I would probably like to share with others. But at the same time, I'm thinking that a portrait wouldn't do either. I mean, these are nice but they are flat." As she pointed to the pictures that we were in front of at that moment.

"I want a picture of myself that shows who I am. But I don't know how personal to make it."

I took her hand, "Then don't make a decision right now. Sleep on this and let the answer come naturally to you."

We walked along in silence for a few more minutes until she stopped, stepped in front of me and took both my hands in hers.

"Neil, thank you for being you. Whenever I have had the opportunity to spend time with you, I come away with a feeling that you understand me and genuinely care for me."

I smiled, "And I do."

"Thanks. But I am also thinking that you are a very private person also. Not many get to be in your orbit."

I smiled again, "I'll reserve comment on that. But.... perhaps I am."

"So you care for me then?" she asked.

"Yes. But that term, care for, can convey a wide range of thoughts. Don't you agree?"

"I'll..... agree. I see your point. Well, how would you define your care for me?"

"That's a definition that continues to evolve each time I have the pleasure of being in your company."

She smiled, "evasive as ever."

I smiled back, "Yes."

"Ok, let me be blunt and transparent. I'd like to know you better."

"In what manner?"

"Perhaps by spending more time with you?"

"I'd like that. Juliette, you must realize by now that I am, by my nature, an introspective person. Not an introvert by any means. Just that I tend to analyze and try to understand why things and people are the way they are."