INTRODUCTION
This
site features my photography. My subject matter, has
always been women. I've been privileged to shoot for some
of the world's leading magazines including Playboy,
Penthouse, Vogue, and Bazaar (American, and foreign
editions). My advertising, and promotional accounts have
included Clinique, Cover Girl, Maybelline, and Valentino.
I've worked with some exceptional talents, and mentors.
There are several individuals without whom I would not
have enjoyed the measure of success that I
had.
They
include: Bob Guccione, and Joe Brooks at Penthouse;
Rochelle Udell, and (the late) Alexander Lieberman at
Vogue; and Lizzette Kattan at Bazaar Italia. Each told me
to shoot for myself...to shoot my way; not to try to
fulfill my idea of an art director's needs. I was told to
make the best picture that I could, then to leave it to
the capable hands of the art director.
I
shoot all disciplines from 35 mm to 8X10. However it is
the 35 mm format which I prefer for its extensive array
of ultra-fast optics, and innovative body designs. I've
used Nikons (from the days of the SP), Canons, Minoltas
and Leicas.
In
the early 70's I had marveled at the quality of images in
the French magazine LUI. The photographer was Francis
Giacobetti.
What
followed was more than a decade of trying to emulate
Giacobetti's quality using Kodachrome, and every trick
that I could think of but to no avail.
One
day while shooting an assignment for Bazaar in Morocco
(1983), I switched from my system camera to an expensive
camera that I carried (a Leica), vowing that I would
finally use it...at least for snapshots. Returning to
Chicago I found, as I edited the film, that certain
images were far more vivid than others including some,
otherwise, nearly identical fashion photos.
Voila!
I
phoned Jim Larsen, a photo editor at Playboy. "I've
discovered Giacobetti's secret!" I told Jim, "He shoots
with Leica!". Jim merely replied, "He (Giacobetti) uses
another brand of German camera." Nonetheless, my search
was over. I had at long last attained the quality of
images that, here to for, belonged only to
Giacobetti.
Soon,
more than a handful of photographers chose to emulate me
and all switched to Leicas.
Today,
with digital photography well established, I have chosen
to use the Canon 5D. It is, for me, a better choice than
the superlative, EOS-1Ds Mark II. That is because it is
lighter in weight and being arthritic (70th birthday: NOV
02.2006), it is not so tiring to carry as would be the
Mark II.
Though
I love the versatility and the intuitive functions of the
Canon, I also look forward to trying the Leica M8 ... a
rangefinder model.
Herewith,
I present a retrospective of my photographic work, and
include a few recent images.
