Many times when I travel for headshots I have some random nights free in some pretty random cities. That means random shoots on random nights in random places. Always fun playing around in front of a camera... and raiding the costume shop, or putting on something sexy, or putting on something crazy... no rules. no plans. no guidelines.

Getting a chance to play in front of a camera can be a very liberating experience. Especially when the photographer is playing with you. There's something about gaining a better awareness of your body and how it moves that is key for folks that utilize their bodies for storytelling - performers, dancers, actors... and play is the key to learning and betterment. play play play. something good always comes of it. or not. but hey, it's play :]

seek the joy

eric

Last year, you may remember, I spent a week naked taking pictures of naked people. If you don't remember, you can read about it HERE. It was a life altering experience that has changed me and my shooting style and how I go about telling my stories both as an artisan and a craftsman. I view what I do as a craft and a very important one. When I think what defines a culture, their history and stories are right there at the top of the list. I truthfully, from the bottom of my heart, believe that what I do is profoundly important and I have the Roots crew to thank for much of it. It's so much more than taking pictures.

This year I was back at Roots. Per request of emilie I was to document the ins and outs and goings on for the week. I must say it was sch a treat to be around Greg, Tyler, and Jennifer again and so great to hang with my friends Rachel and Mark from LaCour who were the new mentors this year. I know the incredible students from this year had a wonderful experience... can't wait to see what happens next year! Shooting people shooting is a really interesting experience. There were many times when I knew when and where the shot was but if I had moved to get it, I would have been in the student's shot. So I had to do a lot of improvising. Kept me on my toes!

here, in slideshow form, is Roots through my eyes.

if you want a day by day recap, you can check out the following links on emilie's blog ::

Roots Workshop Day 6
Roots Workshop Day 5
Roots Workshop Day 4
Roots Workshop Day 3
Roots Workshop Day 2
Roots Workshop Day 1

seek the joy

eric