Stretching

Candice Simpson, c. 2025 by Dan Browning

It’s time to stretch. The photography business is changing. Artificial Intelligence is elbowing its way into the headshot space. I suspect most consumers will find it worthwhile. Those who value the experience of working with a professional photographer might not. But human input has a cost, and photography gear isn’t cheap.

Fortunately, I’m in a place where I can continue doing what I want. I’ve been working on an environmental portrait off and on for … let’s just say for too long. The photography is done. I now must decide how to incorporate the work into a display. A book? A wall display? An album? Or just a few of my favorite prints? The printed image has so much more power than the what we see on our tiny screens.

The subject of my project is Candice Simpson, a Minneapolis artist who works in multimedia paints. She also teaches individuals living with developmental disabilities to explore their own creativity through art. I went ahead and submitted my favorite image of her — a composite of several photos — for display in the members’ exhibition at the Praxis Photo Arts Center in Minneapolis. You can see it above. I also got two copies printed on fine art paper, just to compare the printers’ work and the different media that I chose. One print was made by White House Custom Color in Eagan, using metallic ink to simulate the artist’s metallic paints. The other was printed by Printique in New York City. I prefer the latter, though it’s a very close call. Honestly, I’d be happy with either.

Below are some other images that I like from this project. Click on the left and right arrows to scroll through them.

Changing the subject: I’ve been trying to get back into my coffee shop project. For those who are new here, I had been photographing patrons at my favorite coffee shops around town. This winter I’ve been visiting them regularly, but I haven’t felt compelled to photograph nearly as much as when I started. I suspect it has more to do with me than with the clientele. I’ll keep going for a while. If I’ve played out this subject maybe I will try to mount a small display somewhere. Meantime, you can see examples on my earlier blog entries.

I’ll close with an invitation: If you appreciate my work, give me a call and let’s get something going. I would love to make your portrait.