It all began innocently enough.  I walked around the block on Saturday to the home of photographer Richard Khanlian and his wife Ann Alexander, where a swap meet of the photographic sort was taking place under the auspices of the ASMP, the American Society of Media Photographers. Richard was a great photographer who worked for the New York Times from Paris before settling in New Mexico.  He was a much loved and admired person and member of the ASMP, who passed away on 11 November 2019.  This was a gathering of his friends, professionals, and those who wanted to sell or buy assorted photographic equipment.  There were a few familiar faces, even masked, but more familiar names in the group, some I had heard mentioned or whose work I had seen.  My usual unobtrusive self decided not to bring a camera because I though it might be disruptive.  As it turns out, many people had cameras and were using them at will.  After familiarizing myself with numerous items for sale, including a plethora of camera and lens bags, and finding one I liked, I returned with money to pay for it.

My official introduction to Nevada Wier came earlier when I walked up to the driveway where a jumbled pile of camera bags were located.  She loved the shirt I was wearing.  After I told her where I bought it, etc., I went into the garage to look at what other tools of the photographic trade - paper, matte, back board, tri-pods, cameras, and lenses - were for sale.  But I knew the name Nevada Wier from the times I was drooling over the wonderful workshops offered by The Santa Fe Workshops.  She leads photography tours around the world, has worked extensively for National Geographic, Outside Magazine, and Canon Photography Safaris.  So what do I do?  I ask if I can take her photograph.  She may have thought I would take one or two shots.  It is a good thing she didn't know how involved I get in environmental portraiture, especially since she was preparing to leave.

As we walked into a small patio area, Nevada said "Don't ask me not to smile.  I smile a lot."  Fair enough.  Me too.  Then I said something about me not being particularly comfortable having my own photo taken.  To that, she said "Since I am photographing people, I have to be willing to have my own photograph taken."  Good advice I will try to absorb.  

Here are some of the resulting images taken of Nevada on a bench from above, below, and around.  

My thanks to Nevada Wier for allowing me to photograph her on a moment's notice, and using some of the photographs here.  I encourage each of you to tour her website and view her amazing work at nevadawier.com.  Her stunning "Collections" circle the globe in color and her "Fine Art" section, including "Invisible Light" 1 and 2, feature some of the finest selective coloring and modifications I have ever seen.  You can also find information about her photography workshops, lectures, seminars, and photo tours.  

Kudos to Ann Alexander and ASMP for conducting the sale and bringing people together, and to Richard Khanlian for his inspiration.

And thanks to Barbara, Lisa, Jean & Sam, Marilyn, Debbie R., TPLue, Claudia, TTT, Steve, Wayne, and Geula for your comments on last week's blog.   

until next Monday,

DB

a passion for the [email protected]