Avedon

 In this photo I experimented with having Leyla walk away from the camera and then turn towards it at the very last second.  I found that giving her less time to 'pose' was effective in capturing a natural looking photograph.  I think this picture channels Avedon's focus on the eyes of the people he photographed as well as the serious expression that many of his models had.

I especially like this photo because I was able to incorporate movement into the portrait.  As I mentioned in the photo above, I think one of the hardest things about taking someone's portrait is that people tend to try and mold their expressions for the camera.  What I found really interesting is that through taking what can be considered an action shot, it was much easier to capture the genuine expressions that Avedon looked for.

One aspect of portraiture that is difficult is that many people don't like the photos that are taken of them.  Eva wasn't the biggest fan of this picture, but it's one of my favorites because I caught it right as she looked up, which I believe gives the viewer immense insight into her authentic emotion at the moment the photo was taken.  Also, the intensity of her eyes interact with you when you look at this picture - a characteristic of many of Avedon's photos. 

This was the last photo of quite a few that I took of Sydney.  In the documentary about Avedon, I found it interesting that he told his models stories and was in many ways as involved in the photograph as his models were.  When I was taking these pictures, I tried to keep talking the whole time to keep my model relaxed and I thought it worked well.  At one point I pointed out to Sydney that I thought she was posing, which made her laugh and it was at that moment that I took the photo. 

 This photo was taken in a similar way to the one above.  It was the very last photo I took and yet it is the one that I think demonstrates the most sincere emotion.  I was inspired by Avedon's portrait of Marilyn Monroe after a long day of work, which shocked the public because it presented her in a light that the public had never seen before.  I especially like the portrait because it shows a more subdued emotion that isn't caught up in falsely appearing cheerful.