@joelgrimesworkshops’ journey to becoming a #CanonExplorerOfLight: “It may surprise those who follow my work to know that I started my photography career strictly shooting landscapes. I was a staunch student of Ansel Adams and his Black and White Zone System, spending thousands of hours in the darkroom honing my craft. I was determined to master the art of capturing the perfect B/W landscape image. After receiving a BFA in Photography from the University of Arizona, it became clear that if I wanted to make a living with my camera, I needed to choose a subject matter that would be a bit more lucrative.
It was at this point, I began to turn my attention to photographing people and soon began working in the commercial advertising arena. Little did I know at the time that I would spend the next 40 years traveling the globe as a portrait photographer. In retrospect, I think shifting my attention to photographing people was the right and natural thing to do. I truly fell in love with capturing people and relished in the challenge of capturing a dramatic portrait. For me, it took the same disciple, hard work, use of light, form, and composition that I studied with my landscapes but now with a different genre.
One thing I set out to master as a portrait photographer was the use of light. I am a bit embarrassed to say, it took me a long time to finally crack that code. Part of the problem was I looked at lighting as a technical process. I was obsessed with finding the perfect formula. As it turns out, lighting is more than ratios, inverse square law, or some mathematical formula. It is an artistic, emotional, intuitive process. It is about making your subject look like a superhero, a beautiful super fashion model, or taking an old weather-worn cowboy and making him look larger than life. Once I understood that my images took on a whole new life.”
📸 #Canon EOS R
Lens: RF24-70mm F2.8 L IS USM
Ciao, Nihon.