Environmental Portraits Class at PNCA

I was just looking through the new Pacific NW College of Art catalog for Winter 2008. They included a photo of one of my studio lighting classes (I'm the blue chest on the right), and a sweet little quote from one of my student evaluations.

This January/February, I'll be teaching my Environmental Portrait class. Here's the scoop:

The Environmental Portrait places a person in the context of their natural surroundings, and communicates more about them than is possible in a studio or simple headshot. Photographers use environmental portraiture to document figures in popular culture (Annie Liebowitz), make social commentary and documentary (Dorothea Lange), and more. In this class we will look at master location portrait photographers; review and critique each other's work; and discuss how location portraits say much about the subject, as well as the social and political context in which they live. We will be working with models, available and artificial lighting, composition, camera and media choices, output and presentation. Both film and digital are welcome. The class will culminate with a portrait series as a final project.

This being one of my favorite subjects in both my artistic and commercial work, I enjoy this class a great deal. If you share this passion, and want to push your work further, consider signing up for this workshop. Spaces are limited.

You can find out more here.

See more of my Portland environmental portrait photographs at www.fritzphotographic.com.

Skeleton at DaVinci

Selected images from the series Skeleton in the Closet will be on display at Portland's DaVinci Arts Middle School from November 13-December 8. These photographs (including new work recently completed) will be in the Library, and in display cases around the school. It will also be on display during the annual DaVinci Arts Fair.

During this month, I will be teaming up with their counselor to host 6 different small group discussions about eating disorders, art, and whatever else their brilliant adolescent minds come up with. Should be interesting!

Interview on Eagle and Child

Jeffrey Overstreet is a film critic, author, and connoisseur of and commentator on the arts. He has several very popular blogs. And on one of them, Eagle and Child, he's posted an interview he did with me recently, on my series Skeleton in the Closet. You can read the interview here.

I also noticed another blogger commenting on my work, and on this interview, at The Walrus Said. I've been quite moved lately by how this series is affecting those that view it, and Janet's thoughts are no exception. I'll post more on this subject soon.

Scott and Leigh, Up a Tree

This past summer, Scott and Leigh hired me to photograph their wedding next summer. These two like to plan ahead, which is a good thing when planning a wedding. They told me today they're having an Italian duet--accordian and violin--play at their wedding, which sounds delightful.

The weather this week has been splendid here in the Pacific Northwest. We went out on the Portland Eastside Waterfront and photographed their engagement portraits, which was a lot of fun, especially when they decided to climb up into a willow for some shots. Scott told men, after climbing up into and down out of the tree, "You make me feel so young again!" I'll have to work that into my advertising....






These guys make being a Portland wedding photographer so enjoyable!

Bright Shining Stars

Photographers often pack a lot of goofy goodies in their bags: sewing kits, vaseline-coated filters, Lensbabies, old video camera lenses, kleenex, rubber bands and 3x5 cards. All useful things for shooting creatively. I like to pull out the Lensbaby sometimes, and play around with some fun apertures. Here are a few photographs from this lovely Northwest week.

While photographing for another project today, a gorgeous autumn day at Portland's Riverview Cemetery, I took a few other images as well. Here's a portrait of Amanda:



And a portrait of Stephanie at Peninsula Park:


See the best of this creative Portland portrait photographer at www.fritzphoto.com.