We decided on this neighborhood a day in advance, but the specific locations depended on how the light was in the morning. This made her professionalism that much more valuable. We used this location once in 2018 and never again. These prints were made in the darkroom yesterday, and toned in selenium this morning.
It was so early that the grass was soaked with the morning dew. Nonetheless Tamy was kind enough to walk onto the baseball field without hesitation, even with the animals in the distance. While these images are normally made in the city, to bring her unparalleled talents into the countryside made me proud. Dance after all is for everyone, from city dwellers to farmers.
I do miss the days in the waters of Cuba, and with the talents of that island. Hopefully one day soon we will see the other side of this pandemic and get back to these waters.
Estábamos haciendo un video esa tarde, moviéndonos de una plaza a otra. Después de terminar esa parte del video, estábamos a punto de pasar a la siguiente plaza cuando le pregunté al equipo por unos minutos.
Cuatro de los bailarines se quedaron atrás e hicimos una docena de fotografías. Esta es una de las bailarinas y esta es solo una de las fotografías realizadas. Fue una tarde mágica y estoy agradecido a la compañía por esta imagen memorable.
¡Iberodance, hasta nuestra próxima vez juntos!
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Tonight in my apartment I am scanning the rolls from the past summer in Cuba. One image has been selected to share this evening, a reminder of a special afternoon with Iberodance.
We were making a video on that afternoon, moving from one plaza to another. After we finished that part of the video we were about to move to the next plaza when I asked the team for a few minutes.
Four of the dancers remained behind and we made a dozen photographs. This is one of the dancers and this is just one of the photographs made. It was a magical afternoon and I am thankful to the company for this memorable image.
Iberodance, until our next time together!
De vez en cuando, un fotógrafo se enfrenta a sus iguales creativos, una persona que les ayuda a elevar su arte. Esta ha sido mi experiencia con la magnífica Tamy. Ella me desafía en todos los niveles, y por eso estoy eternamente agradecida.
En seis meses espero estar en ese espacio familiar con los talentosos bailarines y modelos de Cuba. Hay una rara combinación de seriedad y comedia que hace que nuestras colaboraciones sea tan hermosa. Todo interesado en ésta colaboración envíame tus sueños y hagamos un gran verano!
El año pasado fue maravilloso por muchas razones, y especialmente porque me dieron el honor de fotografiar a tres hermosas compañías de danza. De una de esas compañías vienen estos dos bailarines increíblemente talentosos.
Después de ver su actuación una noche, me inspiré para fotografiarlos. Gracias a mi querida amiga Tamy, esta colaboración fue posible. Acordamos una mañana y fuimos a las canchas para nuestra sesión.
Su profesionalismo fue impresionante, ya que estaban listos casi de inmediato. Tenían una visión maravillosa, y fue un placer ver su colaboración detrás de la cámara.
¡Gracias a Tamy Glez, Jorge, Jessica Gómez y Juan Alberto Reyes Perez por permitirme el privilegio de colaborar con ellos... hasta este verano!
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This night in my apartment I am scanning the rolls from last summer in Cuba. An image has been selected to share tonight, a memory of a special morning.
Last year was marvelous for many reasons, and especially because I was given the honor of photographing three beautiful dance companies. From one such company come these two incredibly talented dancers.
After watching their performance one evening, I was inspired to photograph them. Thanks to my dear friend Tamy, this collaboration was made possible. We agreed on a morning and drove out to the racquetball courts for our session.
Their professionalism was impressive, as they were ready almost immediately. They had wonderful vision, and it was a pleasure to watch their collaboration from behind the camera.
Note: This image was made with a Hasselblad 503 CW/180 mm combination onto color positive film.
Hoy fue un día maravilloso en el cuarto oscuro, con los rollos cubanos del 2018. Hace dos años hicimos estas imágenes, pero siento que fuimos a Santa María del Mar apenas ayer. Gracias al Prof. Gysleda, conocí a esta magnífica bailarina. En menos de dos horas, Luis Miguel cambió muchas veces y me ayudó a crear algo especial. Los recuerdos de ese día siempre estarán conmigo, y ahora están en esta foto para que todos los vean también.
¡Gracias mi querido hermano Luis Miguel, y Idiovel por su apoyo!
Note: Proof enlarged from the 120 roll to 16x20 Ilford fiber paper, tones in selenium and washing for the next two hours.
In light of the difficulties the young girl face in other parts of the world, an image of a dear friend Cami McCullough is shared. We made this image during the windiest day of my extensive experiences at this magical space. It was so windy that we were unable to hear each other speak, and so just used hand signals most of the time!
This image is being shown to demonstrate the possibilities in the midst of such difficulties. Rather than allowing the wind to get the best of her, Cami used it to her advantage. My hope is that the young girls in rural India, for example, will be able to overcome their more than considerable difficulties. In reality, my wish is that the communities in which they live can provide them with a level playing field, so that they can achieve their fullest potential!
Thank you Cami for sharing your strength with the young girls around the world... it does make a difference!
Ese día estábamos haciendo un video para Iberodance, y de vez en cuando me dieron la oportunidad de usar mi cámara antigua. Mientras la compañía de baile descansaba, le pedí a esta joven bailarina, Katia Cespedes, que caminara hasta el lugar donde la cámara ya estaba esperando. Pasamos un minuto para hacer esta imagen, y ella regresó con sus amigas para tomar un poco de agua fría.
Espero que ella está bien y que la compañía se mantenga segura durante estos tiempos difíciles. ¡Pronto nos reuniremos y haremos más imágenes!
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There are those times when an unintended person strolls through the frame. Normally I wait for the person to pass, but sometimes I appear to wait and depress the shutter while looking through the lens. This was one such instance, and nothing fooled this man. Regardless of my attempt to look innocent, the man knew the truth. Oh well, at least he chose to walk into the frame!
On this day we were making a video for Iberodance, and I was given opportunities now and then to use my film camera. While the dance company was resting, I asked this young dancer to walk to the spot where the camera was already waiting. We spent a minute to make this image, and she returned to her friends to have a snack and some cool water.
I hope that she's doing well and that the company is staying safe during these difficult times. Soon we will reunite and make more images!
A big thanks to Romy Drouby for her patience on that beautiful afternoon in Zahle, Lebanon!
En esta imagen vemos a uno de los profesores, Douglas Espinoza. Fue muy amable con su tiempo, como fue el caso durante mi primera visita hace tres años. No solo fue fotografiado, sino que también dio su tiempo para ayudar a sus alumnos en otras ocasiones.
Esta imagen pertenece a un rollo donde Douglas expresó libremente, y luego de ver la imagen hace apenas unos minutos, me escribió esto: "el sentimiento que se ve es humano."
No es necesario escribir nada más.
We connected online and made plans to meet in between Las Vegas and Los Angeles. To have someone willing to do so and in this most remote of spaces is incredible. I am privileged to have met this young woman, and to have had the chance to document her unmatched talents. The fact that she brought her wardrobe along, giving us so many choices, made these images that much more beautiful.
Note: this frame was exposed with a Hasselblad V system.
This was my third time with Cami, and the windiest of our sessions in Southern California. The wind was blowing so hard that when we first opened our door the daily pass flew right out of the car. We knew then to hold onto everything tightly!
Rather than being intimidated, Cami did her best to make use of the wind. We could barely hear each other and communicated with hand signals at times. So there we were, at the mercy of the wind, and she persevered for the sake of the images.
This is what amazes me about my dear friend. She accepts the reality in front of us and makes the best of it. In the end the images are that much more valuable, more memorable.
Note: this frame was exposed with a Hasselblad V system.
