Toni

Twelve weeks ago I began a basic photography class at the local community college.  Around the third week of classes my professor announced that we would all need to start taking pictures of people – the more people the better. 

While I wasn’t surprised by the assignment, I was a bit nervous.  Up to that point, the pictures I took of people, for the most part, had been of close friends and family…not strangers or people I barely knew. 

You can imagine me walking around my office (during a lunch break, naturally), holding my trusty 35mm camera with a “what have I got myself into” look on my face.  Who came to my rescue, but my amazing co-worker, Toni.

 

Toni is one of those people you just feel blessed to meet.  She’s upbeat and positive with a hint of sass.  She always seems to know the right thing to say to any given situation.  She is one of those people you just can’t help but look up to. 

 

Seeing the look on my face, Toni told me that she wouldn’t mind having her picture taken.  And in fact, she offered to let me take them the next day during her lunch break!  So the results...some of the first people pictures for my class. 
 

So thank you Toni, for giving me the confidence to go beyond my comfort zone and take pictures of people outside my immediate family .  I’m sure my grade in my class wouldn’t be the same without you.  J

 

Lesson 1: Help can come from those you least expect it; keep your ears and your heart open.

Lesson 2: When working with people, make sure you have enough depth of field so that if your focus is a little off, you can still get faces (especially the eyes) in focus.

Lesson 3: Props help with all ages…at the very least, if the prop doesn’t work, it’ll give you something to talk about during the shoot.