My dad

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

I made this portrait of my father, David Crawford, back in June and finally
got the negative scanned. Unlike his father, my grandpa that you have all
seen my photos of, my dad doesn't like having his picture taken. So, I have
never really gotten a good one until now.

Shot on Tri-X in D-76 1+1 in a Leica with 50mm Summicron latest version.

 

[Leigh Youdale]

That's a nice, honest, portrait. He looks like a man of substantial character who has been through quite a lot in his life - not all of it easy.

 

[reiki_]

Taking portraits of my family members is the hardest thing to do sometimes.

 

[Pickett Wilson]

As honest a portrait as I've seen. Folks that are camera shy often reveal a lot about themselves when they allow themselves to be photographed. No pretense in this photo!

 

[isorgb]

Taking portraits of my family members is the hardest thing to do sometimes.

Not sometimes. Always.
I recently talked about this with a friend. Portrait of a person from family that I know very well is impossible for me.

This one is very good and if Christopher said that this is good I can't say different. He knows better.

 

[raid]

The image of your father is a good one. His eyes make it.
I have very few images of my dad, and I have very few images of myself.

 

[paulfish4570]

Nice shot, Chris.

 

[robklurfield]

Chris, a great image as always. The tension in his jaw seems to be saying "must I submit to this?" The piercing stare says something that probably only you and he know and I'll avoid invading that intimate father-son bond. Glad you got him to sit for you.

 

[Benjamin Marks]

Great image, Chris. It really seems to convey a lot of what you feel about him and what he feels about having a portrait made. And there is a seriousness to it too. On a technical note, it shows what a photographer in command of his medium can do. Nice presentation.

Ben Marks

 

[israel_alanis]

Great shot Chris, the rain light over him looks great and his personality jumps up.

 

[Out to Lunch]

Very nice!

 

[crawdiddy]

Excellent portrait, Chris. I agree with the comments others have made about its honesty.

 

[dfoo]

Great shot. I choice of a black background is great.

 

[robin a]

Excellent..............

 

[mwooten]

Great portrait of your father Chris.

My father died decades ago, and I wish there were more photos of him. I can't go back in time, so I can only urge you, and others, to take all you can.

--michael

 

[DNG]

Very nice Chris
I can relate.....
My Father in Law has taken me several attempts at candid images to get one that shows his character and age..
My Wife has also taken several attempts to get a representative one.

I live the detail of the Tri-X in D76, of course the 50/Cron helped a lot 🙂

 

[wintershrooms]

That's a fantastic portrait. Could you talk a little about the lighting for it? The black background is perfect. How did you get such a perfectly lit subject with pop? I'm new to the process of controlling available light.

 

[Chriscrawfordphoto]

Thanks everyone for checking out the photo.

The light is just overcast sky. I never photograph people on sunny days, the light is too harsh. This one required some dodging and burning on the face because the light was too high in the sky. I darkened the top half of his face and dodged the eyes to retain detail in them Thats about it!

 

[Sonnar Brian]

Very nice portrait, a real keeper.

Can't believe my Dad passed away almost 20 years ago. It was easy to get a good photograph of him: just put a GrandKid near him. Worked every time.