I Have a Secret!

 I have a secret!

Mamiya RB67, Mamiya-Sekor127mm f4.5 lens

I loved working in my commercial photography studio in Chattanooga. It was a great space with high ceilings, a large darkroom, and an office and display room.

One of my strengths as a commercial photographer was finding "real people" models. Clients loved this, because it saved them money and I was able to deliver results they were happy with. My "secret" was that most of the people I recruited were from my church. The two little connivers above were the daughters of church friends.

One of my clients was a manufacturer of small rugs called Playrugs, which were very popular in the 1990s. I photographed many of the rugs for their advertising and worked with a number of different child models, but this photo has always been my favorite.

The setup for the playrug shots was simple. I would position the rug on the studio floor, set up lights and camera, take light readings to determine proper exposure, then place my little models on the set and let them do their thing. I did very little directing because I found that by letting them interact and play they would often spontaneously assume poses that were better than any I might have thought up.

Photograph and text copyright 2021, David B.Jenkins

I post each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday unless life gets in the way.

Soli Gloria Deo

For the glory of God alone

Tags: photography, film photography, Dave Jenkins, commercial photography, Mamiya RB67, Mamiya-Sekor lens