In 15 years as a photographic artist I have worked with many more women than men, it is no mystery. Based on my experience, it is more difficult for a man to willingly pose, in a laid-back manner, in front of a camera! And in some ways it is a pity, not least because, when I reviewed these shots (dated July 2013) to publish them on the blog, I realised that this guy looks real good on them!
I did not know whether to name this post Poldo & Martina OR Martina & Poldo. Then I went on for putting the 4 paws little devil’s name first, as he definitely was the shining star and a determined drama actor during our shooting! In April 2013, Poldo was 5 months old (Martina had taken him a couple of months prior) but his connection with Martina was already incredibly strong. He was really protective towards her and feeling quite possessive. He hid a big personality in a tiny body. I have always liked Dachshunds: they are clever little warriors that can defend themselves forcefully, they are quite stubborn and fierce and…they live in a completely horizontal world! Enjoy their memories!
Marti, you are beautiful!
His inquisitive glaze
Spoilt momma’s boy!
I want to show that you can have fun and have purpose, be respectful and speak your mind. You can be both elegant and a provocateur. You can be curvy and still be a fashion icon. I wish this freedom for every person – Beyoncé
The connections between and among women are the most feared, the most problematic, and the most potentially transforming force on the planet – Adrienne Rich
My great hope is to laugh as much as I cry; to get my work done, to try and love somebody and have the courage to accept the love in return – Maya Angelou
She has her dignity, a soft heart and she is such a sweet soul
There is no weapon in the feminine armory to which men are so vulnerable as they are to a smile – Dorothy Dix
In October 2012 I flew to Hamburg to catch up with friends. This was also an occasion to spend some time with the family I had been Au Pair girl. The father of the little one shares a passion for photography and he created his own little studio in the living room (a principle which I cherish and is one of my plans in a near future). He offered to take some portraits of me. Find below the results, yes, it went a bit crazy with the very wide angle lens!
I met Francesca at university, we were on the same German course and hung out together for a while. She is a sweet, sensible, playful and artistic soul and has always had a connection with dance. You can detect that, thanks to a couple of extra pictures (showing Francesca as a young dancer) that I have attached to this article with her permission!
I wanted to take portraits of her in the nature. I opted for an unusual location where I had never worked before, a poplar grove adjacent to the bank of the River near Viadana. We decided that the theme of this shooting would be “Sonnentanzerin” (meaning “Sun dancer” in German) and it was a fitting choice: we wanted to capture dance steps, free body movement in an open space and…Gosh! it was S U N N Y!
To be a late September day, it was hot and the light was overwhelmingly bright and sharp. Too much of a strong, whitish light, everywhere, to put it mildly. Back in these days, overexposure was my photographic signature (with a couple of other weird stuff, that I won’t be mentioning there 🙂 so honestly I don’t know how I managed to handle that!
Enjoy these memories that I am happy to share!
1st location: poplar grove
The photo below shows how bright and sharp the light was that morning
These 2 pearls say something about Francesca’s connection to dance (her gentle concession):
Medal winner, yep!
2nd location, the beach, also know as “i sabbioni”:
Mysterious and pretty!!
Merle is a German friend who came to visit me in Parma at the beginning of summer 2011. Back at those days, I considered the camera a toy, so we played with it! Two mini (relaxed!) portrait sessions emerged. I have attached some of her pictures. I think that she has a very sweet, delicate smile.
27/06/2011
Thank you Merle for this shot…I don’t know why I was hugging the tree!
Here are some of Verena’s portraits taken by me. I have always been fascinated by big, blue eyes, possibly because they are the opposite of mine, which are tiny, almond shaped and deep brown. It was a lovely June afternoon (not too warm, if I recall correctly) and Parco Ferrari was the perfect location for this shoot.
“I should’ve known the eyes. Wide, bright blue, and something about the delicate arc of the lids: a cat’s slant, a pale jeweled girl in an old painting, a secret” – “The secret place” by Tana French
It was Kilian’s birthday. He had invited some of his friends at home to celebrate it together. His parents (who are friends of mine) had prepared something tasty to eat but the kids were just interested in playing. For sure, it was a lively, lovely bunch of pals! They started at home and eventually moved on to a local park, finishing with a rugby match.
I babysat these two beautiful sisters for a few years, many years ago! If you look at them now, you would not be able to recognize them, as they look in this old collage (dated May 2011). I had a soft spot for them at that time, as well as I root for them now (we are still in touch!). Weirdly enough, I can confess that the most difficult task for me was to be sure that they had their homework done 🙂
Love you girls!
It feels strange to look back at these photos and realise that they were taken 12 years ago! It was the 30th May 2011 and my grandmother passed away a year and a half ago and in these snapshots she was celebrating her 80th birthday (well, as you see, chocolate cake has always been a big family hit!). Still, it’s reassuring to see that Grandma had fun (yes, she always loved dressing up and taking the role of an actress!).
I am very happy to have kept these visual memories and I know that she would be glad to see them posted on my blog!
This is an old shoot from my early years in photography (dated April 2011), so technically speaking, you might find that the quality and the editing are not that outstanding 🙂 however I really love the spontaneity and the freshness of the pictures..as well as the subjects!! Enjoy this memory!
and now that’s what has always been my nemesis (driving me crazy!)…aka getting the subjects prepared for a group composition!!
Thanks for this shot, Cri, as a good recap of a lovely afternoon!
Elena Arvasi Portrait Photographer 