This photo was problematic from the beginning. It wasn’t the subjects. It was the tones. I didn’t like the image in color. I thought I liked it in contrasty monochrome but when I revisited a few days later, I changed my mind. I added some digital Tri-X grain and changed the contrast and now it finally worked. Or at least, I’m happy with it now. @samsanchezphoto
The theme is boots and a jacket. They’re actually my boots I no longer wear and a jacket I still wear. Amanda made them sexy. I couldn’t have done that. @samsanchezphoto
I normally don’t do portraits because I don’t get asked. I’m guessing most people don’t think of pinup or fetish photographers to shoot photos of their families let alone portraits of themselves. This is an exception. Liane and Carina are mother and daughter. I booked a shoot with both of them on the same day. Before Liane left the set, I asked her to pose with Carina. This is one of the photos we created. Both of them look great. You can feel the connection between them. I thought this one worked best in monochrome. @samsanchezphoto
This was one of my best shoots ever. Ali was a lot of fun to work with. We created a number of great images. Unfortunately, she disappeared. I showed another photographer my portfolio and he zeroed in on Ali. He also worked with her once and said he would offer her a contract if he could find her today. She showed up on a couple of sites for a little while but never again. I wonder what happened to her? @samsanchezphoto
I decided to go dark on this one. Vivi was lit with natural light coming in from a floor-to-ceiling window. There was soft light everywhere. It was boring. The image got interesting when I darkened the exposure. The red shoes add a nice pop of color and it doesn’t hurt to have a beautiful model to work with either. @samsanchezphoto
The great Eric Kroll recently commented on my photo of Gwen. I mentioned how her photos always stop me in my tracks even after 14 years. Here is his reply: “I always felt Gwen was able to project such a complex feeling in one stare. Most people say little with their expressions. She was able to send complex sentences with a glance.” Eric is so right. I can see that same trait in certain models I’ve worked with. They can convey so much feeling and emotion in just a look. Carina has that power. I’ve been accused of over-gushing about her talent in other photos. Now I know the reason why. This makes editing her sets so difficult. There are so many selects with different emotional content and complexity. This photo is one of them. It was shot in a room with fluorescent light. The connection is still there. @samsanchezphoto
