About Robin

 

"I longed to arrest all the beauty that came before me,
and at length the longing has been satisfied."
~Julia Margaret Cameron

 

Since the beginning of humanity, looking at and contemplating portraits has intrigued us, whether they are in the form of figurines, statues made of marble, paintings, or photographs. From earliest historical times portraits have been a means to immortality. What is it that compels us to leave portrait legacies? Why do we find them incredibly evocative? What is it about human representations in art that conjures up so many thought-provoking emotions?

Photography is a very important means to observe and record the celebration of life around me. Having been drawn to capturing the essence of human life from the beginning of my relationship with the camera (25 years ago), I proceeded to develop and nurture the intuition needed in securing the images that showed the subject's true spirit. I have become a fine art portrait photographer in San Francisco and San Jose (including Los Gatos, Saratoga, Palo Alto, Los Altos, San Mateo, and Burlingame) who specializes in black and white film images, while maintaining my own darkroom for hand printing on archival paper (just like Ansel Adams!).

With the advent of digital photography and Photoshop came the ability for portraitists to correct the flaws in the image. My concern with this technology is the high level of manipulation that has taken over the photography world in the last fifteen years, making it almost impossible to know if a photo is an authentic representation. This is one of the reasons I prefer to shoot with black and white film: to preserve the integrity of the original image. The photo shoot itself is also different: I do not see the images come onto a screen for clarification. I have to trust what I hear from the camera and film as I press the shutter release.

For the past 6 years I have been focusing on the reluctance of women wanting their portrait taken, and their prevalent disapproval of their images. While obtaining my masters degree in Women's Spirituality (psychology), I pursued the research and skills necessary to begin a new approach to photographing women that would help them with their poor body image. This culminated in a therapeutic photography process I call Femography. Click here to see my recent video. I am excited to also offer a way for women to collectively make a social statement about women's images through my Women on the Wall campaign. One way to raise up female energy in our world is by displaying all women in prominent places. What are we leaving as lasting legacies for future generations of women to use as inspiration and guidance?

The biggest reward I have in being a portraitist is in creating portrait legacies of people that will last hundreds of years. Just how valuable are photographs? When a house is on fire, the first thing people rescue is the family photo album. What does this say? Photographs tell us about the places we've been, the people we've known and loved, and the lives we've lived.

 

"The thing that's fascinating about portraiture is that nobody is alike . . .
I couldn't stay with the mountains, and I couldn't stay with the trees,
and I couldn't stay with the rivers. But I can always stay with people,
because they really are different."
~Imogen Cunningham

 

 

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