Having been treated to breakfast in bed this morning by The Artist (since the weather was horrid outside and he couldn’t go out painting), I tentatively brought up the subject of T189 and the concept of ‘comfort zones’ which we discussed for some time over mugs of tea.
I explained that I had come to the conclusion that photographing people was definitely outside my photography comfort zone. Apart from immediate family, where I tend to use photography as a sort of visual diary, I very rarely point my camera at people unless they are a reasonable distance away. The complications and implications of photographing people, especially children, has been discussed in the T189 conferences. It was felt that female photographers were more accepted when it specifically came to photographing children whereas male photographers found themselves subject to considerable suspicion. This is sad because children are fantastically photogenic.
Personally, I dislike having my photograph taken and I know The Artist feels the same way. This is despite me having taken quite a few photographs of him painting ‘en plein air’ with his easel, small adjustable sun brolly, Tilley hat and rucksack. He hates the ones that show his face and much prefers the ones taken at oblique angles that cast his face into shadow or obscure it completely. (This is not to say that he is ugly – on the contrary, he is handsome and distinguished with strong features, pepper-and-salt hair and beard, and ready smile ….)
Not that I’m going to be photographing people today because the weather is wet – in fact, it’s just started pouring down again – and there are very few people out and about anyway. So it’s a morning for getting on with Gallery tasks while The Artist is restocking a local outlet that sells his giclee prints and our range of cards.
I feel a cup of coffee calling me ….
