summer

earlier this year, i heard about the santa fe photographic workshops summer-themed contest featuring some phenomenal jurors and felt obliged to submit.  i knew i didn't already have images that inspired a terribly summer-y feeling, nor did i want to make images that stank of summer cliches.

i used the theme as a springboard for a series of atypical summer moments.  lives are lived every day of summer that have nothing to do with silly fat women with zinc noses at the beach, or washing oblivious dogs with a hose on the lawn.  i wanted to show the ordinary and the sad, beat on by the sun and the heat.

i'm pretty sure that the first set i shot, Summergirl, successfully slapped around that giddy bitch season until she looked like armpit razor burn in winter.

while i was very happy with the results, i felt i should go easy with my next subject, an adorable 5 year old wonderboy.  we shot Summerboy on the hottest damn day of the year, in the cockpit of hot - the inimitable san fernando valley.  we got a lot of lone hero, sad boy shots, as i had planned.  but in the end, i decided to include some of the more hopeful, carefree moments to provide some balance with Summergirl and assure my audience that i'm not a total masochist.

these sets are now part of an ongoing seasons series and i'm very grateful to santa fe for providing the inspiration.  even better is that the image above was awarded an honorable mention in their contest!