1. Photography - Elements of Trust
Destiny Captured
It is said that “beauty is in the eye of the beholder”... Mix beauty with art and something to
wear, and it becomes Fashion. I have been attracted to beauty and art as far back as I can
remember, having worked professionally as a photographer for approaching twenty five
years - and previously I was taking pictures as a hobby for 20 years. In college, I played
the piano in a rock band and then I graduated with degrees in economics and business
administration, before becoming a Naval Aviator and landing jets on aircraft carriers.
Photography by Charles Martin © 2008
M y father, a graduate of the Horton
“When it comes to taking pictures School at the University of Penn-
of people, it is a privilege, and sylvania was a very good photogra-
they deserve our respect.” pher in his own right. He showed me
- Charles Martin how to make a black and white print
in his darkroom when I was in college,
and I then began taking pictures of my
girlfriends.
In the 1980s I started taking pho-
tography more seriously I studied the Photography by Charles Martin © 2008
books of Ansel Adams, The Camera,
The Negative and The Print. They
gave me a good foundation for the
fundamentals. In about 1985, I bought
a Hasselblad ELX. I used that camera
exclusively for twenty five years. I
loved the Carl Zeiss lenses. I knew
every spring and lever on it. I did my
own repair on lenses, main springs
and effectively rebuilt it three or four
times by hand. Around 2001, I added
a computer to my process and about
Photography by Charles Martin © 2008
2006 I started using a Cannon 5D.
I became Vice President of a small Ansel Adams said that the first place a picture appears in the mind of the
airline in the 1970s, and later a man- photographer. The camera, film, lighting, subject are just a means to an end.
agement consultant for a private firm. Richard Avedon, arguably the most important influence in American photogra-
I used the same principles working phy , said that a good picture will make you pause.
with clients for photography as I had In my opinion, Avedon changed the focus of advertising and fashion
used in management - help the client, photography from being about the product to being about passion, desire and
define the objective, develop a plan, possessing the product. Good fashion photography celebrates culture and
Photography by Charles Martin © 2008
and follow through. reflects our passion for life
It is my own opinion that you get Ultimately, you use your imagination. If it all works out, you will create
the best results with people with posi- something worth looking at. I have taken pictures of a fairly wide range of sub-
tive motivation. At the completion of a jects, from terminal patients undergoing chemotherapy , a man having fun with
shoot, a subject should more enthused his dog about who was going to get to eat a sandwich, a model being battered
and confident than at the start. I only by the waves of the ocean in an expensive gown, National Monuments, actors,
give compliments, never criticism. If models, corporate executives, nudes flying through the air, and much more.
I want to change a pose I suggest When it is all said and done, for me it is about beauty and things that inspire
something positive. I have never used people positively.
the words, “That looks terrible, never Beauty and inspiration are there within your subject, you just have to look
do that”. to find it. It may be in the luminous flesh tone of a young model with exquisite
The first picture that an aspiring make up, an act of courage by someone dealing with a great challenge, a
odel does to try and start a career, young child doing one of the things that only young children do, a man with his
may be just as important to her, as dog, or things done purely for the sake of art that is beyond description.
one that another model is doing for her
tenth magazine cover.
Tel +1.703.472.4400
www.CharlesMartinPhoto.com
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Photographer Charles Martin Photography by Charles Martin © 2008