This is Amber, I can't even begin to share how wonderful this woman is.
She's a found art curator, writer, inventor, artist, collaborator, catalist, and dear friend.
Follow her on Twitter, @ambermeetsrobot and Instagram, @ambermeetsrobot
Yesterday morning, did some headshots for a good friend Les Rorick.
He's a great actor, he actually went from one facial expression to the next. It was a fun shoot because he was really easy to work with. Here's a quick animation of part of the shoot.
Don't stare at it for too long... its in a loop. :-)
Last year, I submitted this piece to Pictory for consideration. Pictory is an online magazine curated by Laura Bruno Miner. Laura liked it and used it to close the showcase that month. The showcase was called "Platonic Love Stories." So here's the original scanned shot, barely edited:
Here's an excerpt from what had been published:
Though we only talk every now and again, I still consider her a close friend. We used to hang out and talk about life, love, God, photography, and silly things. I still pray for her often.
- Aaron Delani, I am a dream traveler in California.
In three weeks, it's Valentines Day once again. As I'm thinking about the people I love and the people who love me, I don't feel quite lonely about this coming Valentines. It may not be a romantic love, but these friendships have meant more than any romantic relationship I've been in. So, maybe this coming month, I'll be posting my favorite portraits of my closest friends. I may just call it the "Platonic Love Series." Or maybe not.
Do you have platonic love stories?
Last night I got to briefly see this beautiful, engaged couple!
Which reminds me... I need to post a few other photos... to be continued...
Update: Jacque and Jeremy Pfaff Wedding
I had the honor of taking their photos right after their engagement, shooting on the spot and holding a camera I'm unfamiliar with. It was a great afternoon, with sneaking, proposing and sneaking. {special thanks to Jacque, for letting me borrow her Canon 7D, a camera I'm currently saving for.}
It was a fun morning, there was a slight overcast and some haze but that didn't prevent the light from shining right through.
It was a fun and quick shoot, we may do another session because of the time but in any case, I'm really happy with the way these turned out.
Did I mention fun? It was a fun and awkward shoot. Kat is somewhat uncomfortable in front of a camera so it was a learning experience for me to take photos of her.
She's a good friend and I hope that these photos at least capture what I see.
After walking out the coffee shop. Jared and I were somewhat dumbfounded because we saw another famous person. We walked passed her and close to the corner. I guess I was still elated as to my encounter with Danny Pudi, that I jumped at the opportunity to get a photo of her. I didn't want to "stalkishly" take her photo like the paparazzi. So I walked toward her and her mom.
I met Haylee McFarland and her mom. She looks really young, and I felt somewhat like a creepy person approaching them and saying, "hello." They looked at me with a startled gaze and I almost froze up. I realized so much at that second how I appreciated the way she portrayed her character in the T.V. show "Lie to Me" alongside Cal(Tim Roth), as his daughter Emily. I guess it was kinda creepy to approach a mother and daughter to ask if I could take a picture of her. Under the context of "famous," I guess it was somewhat more tolerable... understandable for a stranger to ask for permission to take a photo of her.
Not even a second after that gaze and a stream of nervousness, I asked her as a precaution, "Are you that little girl in that T.V. show... umm... 'Lie to Me'?" I didn't know her real name but I knew her character's name, but I just forgot at that moment because I realized that she is actually really cute in real life, not just in the show. She seemed down to earth and said, "Sure!" Then her mother offered to take the picture with me in it... I hessitantly said, "yes." (but didn't show it, tried to play it cool.) After briefly showing her mom how to use the camera, she gave it a try and took a shot. She said, "Oh, it came out blurry." I just replied, "ah yes, it's a tricky camera to use." Then I just asked if I could take a photo of her daughter alone. Hayley replied, "Sure, what do you want me to do?" I really didn't know what to say to that so I just replied, "Just stand right there." I smiled and she smiled right back, I took two shots, and thanked her.
It was definitely an awkward situation.
I shook her hand and introduced myself, and she introduced herself. Thanks again Hayley. :-)
I met Danny Pudi today, he is part of the main cast of Community, a T.V. comedy that revolves around a study group within a community college. He plays Abed, who, on the surface seems to be a person with an affinity for T.V. and Movies. Danny has such great comedic timing with this character that he's such a quotable character within the show. Actually, after evaluating who my favorite character would be... I'm realizing more and more that I really like Abed, followed by Troy, Britta, Pierce, Jeff, Shirley, and Anne. (Actually, this list gets refactored based on the episode, but Abed and Troy remain my favorite characters on the show.)
So I asked him if I could take a photo of him, actually, I've never really met a celebrity before him. Moreover, an actor who I actually appreciate in their art. My friends and I were at a coffee shop and he was there on his computer with his headphones on. After ordering our coffee and hanging out there for a few moments, I told my friends, "I'm going to ask if I could take his picture." They replied immediately, "Wait till we leave." I think that implied that they did not want to be embarassed by me, asking for a photo. Asking a stranger for a photo is quite an awkward situation in itself, but asking a celebrity is on a whole different level. My friends finished their coffee and left me. I thought to myself, as I was sipping on my cup, "why do I want to do this?" I realized immediately that I was just a guy who appreciated this man's work. I wanted to show my appreciation to him, but also ask him a few things...
I stood up, returned my finished cup on the bar counter, stood next to him. He was sitting intently, watching something on his laptop. After a few moments, I waved into his peripheral to catch his attention and said, "hi." He responded with a smile and shook my hand. It felt like an awkward situation to be in but also somewhat normal... as there seemed to me, to be no other alternative to get his attention. If he didn't want to respond and have a small conversation, he could have waved and ignored me. He didn't and I really appreciated his willingness to indulge my curiousity of him.
I immediately asked him if I could take a photo of him. He said, "Yeah, it's okay." I also mentioned that I had a few questions...
I asked him, "how does it feel to be on an amazing show?" Danny just smiled and enthusiastically replied, "It's great!" I asked him, "...about your character's development, Abed to me started off as a one dimentional character, through the past two seasons, he's been getting more depth. Did you talk to the screen writers about this?" He mentioned that it was the screenwriters that developed the character; "Having eight main characters to develop is tough when you have only so much time. With the introduction of Abed's father and some situations, they've (screen writers) definitely built up my character." Then I was curious about his comedic partner Troy, played by Donald Glover, "About Donald..." Danny: "Yes?" ..."you two have such great comedic timing... where does that come from, how does that happen?" He smiled and said, "It's the job." I laughed and I appreciated such a straight-forward answer. He's a professional that's courteous, and welcoming. I really appreciated the conversation we had. I stood up and gestured my arm into a hand shake and upon recieving the grasp of his palm, introduced myself, so did he. I think he thought I didn't know his name, I just didn't want to say "Abed" over "Danny." I didn't want to assume what to call him, because I didn't know him as a person all.
I lifted my camera and my friend Jared was there and he shook Danny's hand and said, "I'm a big fan of your work." Then Danny asked if I wanted to be in the picture, so Jared offered to take the picture.
That's the photo you see up there.
Then I asked Danny if I could take his photo alone. He said, "sure." So I did. I wish I was a little more calm to take that picture in that low light.
Thanks Danny for being a great guy and engaging in an awkward moment. I really wish this portrait came out better, it doesn't do him justice.
