In the studio with Shelby

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Christi

I photographed my friend Dave’s younger sister, Christi, back in the 90s (during my romantic-vaseline-on-the-uv-filter days). I had some images scanned with ScanCafe recently and this was one of them. I love the painterly light on this one—I’m thinking I might need to turn this into a real painting.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

Teresa

I shot this of my friend Teresa when we were in college at Pan Am in Edinburg, Texas. I was definitely on the Renaissance-romantic-princess-fairytale-vaseline-on-the-UV-filter kick in those days. Oh, and I always had to fashion headpieces of flowers out of mom’s flower arrangements to complete the scene. Teresa was a beautiful subject for my lens!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

A very different Nicole

I photographed my friend Nicole several times many years ago (in fact, one photo of her ended up as one of two selected by American Photo magazine in their 2nd Annual Readers Photos Contest—I had two out of the 146 published!—in the early 90s. That photo had her in her “natural state,” with gorgeous Rapunzel-like hair (all hers) in a flowy golden gown. For this session several years later, I brought out my bag ‘o wigs and we decided to totally switch it up. I thought she looked like a mysterious French actress. I did a soft-focus technique with vaseline smeared on a UV filter and also upped the ISO of the film (slide days) to create the grainy look.

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In the studio: Elise

Elise is the youngest daughter of my friends James and Irma Williams. She is as equally sweet, funny, and smart as she is beautiful!

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Random re-post: Nicole

Originally posted 12.12.2009

One of my favorite portrait subjects—Nicole. 35mm slide scanned by ScanCafe.com

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio: Marisa

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Marisa

I photographed Marisa a few days ago and we just finished converting one of our favorite images to b&w using one of my actions from Florabella. I like the warm tint to this particular action. More shots to come…

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Re-post: Portrait of Nicole

Originally posted 12.12.2009

One of my favorite portrait subjects—Nicole

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Vintage Laurie

While Laurie was in town to see my show and be photographed for the Hearing Loss Magazine, we also had a fun modeling session one night. For this vintage look, I used the Musette filter from the Florabella Luxe Collection, with a few tweaks. For the gown underneath her shrug, I wrapped her with this cool bubbly-texture throw that I bought at IKEA, of all places.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Mandy Harvey: Musically Inclined

Mandy Harvey, a jazz vocalist and songwriter from northern Colorado, was one of the feature articles in the January/February 2012 issue of Hearing Loss Magazine, published bimonthly by the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA). I met and photographed Mandy at the Harley-Davidson Museum in Milwaukee, WI, host to HLAA’s Convention 2010. Mandy was the guest entertainer at Friday night’s Rumble event at the Museum.

Barbara Kelley, editor-in-chief of Hearing Loss Magazine and deputy executive director of HLAA, interviewed Mandy for this issue of the magazine. Learn more about Mandy here and listen to her music and buy CDs here.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Mandy showed an early talent for singing, but also had infrequent periods of hearing loss. At age ten, her family moved to Colorado. Her vocal talent blossomed and she won numerous school awards, notably Top Female Vocalist of 2006 as a high school senior.

After high school, Mandy went to Colorado State University. During her first semester, Mandy noticed she had to move closer to hear recordings. Hearing aids helped at first. Six months later, she had no hearing left. Discouraged, Mandy returned home to take American Sign Language classes and pursue Elementary Education at a local community college.

Once she returned home Mandy decided that she would take a year off from singing, but continued to play the guitar with her father. One day, while searching the Internet, Mandy and her father discovered a song titled Come Home by One Republic. Mandy’s father suggested that she learn the lyrics. Mandy thought this would be impossible but she gave it her best effort, and to her surprise she was able to learn the lyrics. She realized then that she didn’t have to give up singing.

I met Mandy in 2010 in Milwaukee at the HLAA Convention where she sang at one of our events at the Harley-Davidson Museum. HLAA photographer Cindy Dyer photographed her at the Museum before her performance. We were pleased to catch up with her recently to ask her a few questions.

Tell me about your hearing loss.
My hearing loss is due to neurological damage and the last it was tested showed it around 110 dB in both ears.

Do you use any type of assistive technology?
I had hearing aids when I was first losing my hearing, which was around winter 2006 and the beginning of 2007. Once my hearing loss progressed to a specific stage hearing aids didn’t help much. Because of the nerve damage, a cochlear implant was not an option for me. At this point I rely mostly on lip reading and American Sign Language.

Talk about your aspirations to become a music teacher.
I went to Colorado State University in the hopes of becoming a vocal jazz teacher. In all honesty I wouldn’t feel right about giving my professional opinion to students wanting to study voice. If I cannot hear them to give advice or to teach 100 percent, I would end up just getting frustrated and feeling as if I was wasting their money. Instead, I have turned my life to performing jazz as well as working in the medical field.

What about your personal life and family?
I currently live in Denver with my hearing service dog, Annie, and my love, Travis. My family is extremely supportive and they have learned some American Sign Language. My sister, Sammi, is fluent in the language now. It helps a lot to be able to communicate with your loved ones. Travis is currently learning the language for me.

Where is your singing career right now?
My singing career is in a beautiful place right now. As things stand I work a regular 8-5, Monday through Friday, job. The weekend is mine for performing. Having the regular job mixed with weekend work relieves the pressure of having to do a bunch of gigs just to be able to pay the bills. Instead I am able to do gigs that inspire me and that bring joy.

I have two albums, Smile and After You’ve Gone, which are both full of jazz standard, though the latter contains some original work by myself and Mark Sloniker. I am currently saving up to make a Christmas album this year.

Tell me something about yourself you would like people to know; something that would surprise people.
That’s a hard question. I used to be fascinated by insects and toads and non-girly things like that. When I was a child I wanted to travel the world and discover amazing finds on archeological digs.

You have a fascination with the 40s. How has this genre influenced you and your music?
I have been fascinated with the 30s, 40s, 50s and 60s my entire life. I grew up listening to The Beatles, Doobie Brothers, and classic jazz. I love everything in those eras from the clothing to the inventions. It truly was a beautiful time in history…seems to have had lots of details that were not as obvious as things are today. Back then, there could be a song about someone’s smile and how it would capture the imagination. I feel music today has lost some of that mystery and has become far too blunt.

What are your favorite songs?
My Funny Valentine, Someone to Watch Over Me, Come Fly with Me, Over the Rainbow, and of course, Smile…this list is never ending. I find passion in the music and it makes you feel something different every time you sing them.

What music don’t you care for?
I love most everything but I am not a huge fan of most Rap or R&B. I will admit I do enjoy a few songs here and there but in general they all tend to feel the same.

Who is your favorite artist and why?
Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Blossom Dearie, Frank Sinatra, Nat King Cole, Thelonius Monk, Duke…oh my goodness, my list could go on and on. They are brilliant and the work they have done inspires me every time I think of them.

What one place in the world would you like to visit?
I have always had a dream to live in Scotland. The country has always called my name. My goal is in the next 10 years to have been there for at least three months continuously. If you are there for only a week you cannot understand the culture.

To find some of her recordings, go to YouTube.com and search for Mandy Harvey. You will find several videos, including her rendition of Smile.

Barbara Kelley is deputy executive director and editor-in-chief of Hearing Loss Magazine. She can be reached at bkelley@hearingloss.org.

Join the Hearing Loss Association of America!
Do you have a hearing loss or know someone who does? Consider membership in the Hearing Loss Association of America. Student annual dues are $20, individual annual dues are $35, and family/couple annual dues are $45. Fees outside the U.S. are slightly higher. All memberships include discounts on hearing-related products, convention and special event early bird discounts, AVIS and Alamo car rental, Costco membership, and the award-winning Hearing Loss Magazine. Sign up for membership here.

In the studio: Barbara

On my long-term wish list: a huge, light-filled studio with skylights, a wall ‘o backgrounds, furniture settings, racks of clothing, a make-up and styling station and ample room to back up so I can get full-length shots of my subjects. Yes, I do well with despite the small set-up I have in my studio now, but I’m always tripping over something, losing something or constantly shifting piles of stuff from one place to another when I need to spread out to shoot. I work with what I have, but a girl can dream, can’t she? If I lived in Texas near my family, I could probably afford it. In the D.C. area, fugetaboutit!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio: Barbara

Just two of my favorite shots from this evening’s photo session. I love using this new (pleather) chair! My friend Karen’s daughters call it my “James Bond girl chair.” We were shooting updated photos for the Hearing Loss Magazine, which I design and produce bimonthly for the Hearing Loss Association of America. Barbara is the editor-in-chief of the magazine and deputy executive director of the organization. I changed the banner on Barbara’s personal blog, Kelley Hospitality, with an updated photo as well.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio: Anna

Anna (as herself in photo #1 and playing with wigs in #2 and #3). I used my Spiderlite TD5 cool lights for this session.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Margot

I was going through my archives to find stock photos for a client and found this photo of Margot that I had overlooked during my initial editing of the session in April 2010. I want to get her and her sister back into the studio for some shooting play time—they both take direction well and are very photogenic.

See more photos from that session in the links below:

https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/17/margot/
https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/sisters/
https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/17/hannah/
https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/margot-again/
https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/this-ones-for-karen/
https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/18/and-finally/
https://cindydyer.wordpress.com/2010/04/17/karen/

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Holly

I shot this portrait of Holly with a Nikon D300, Nikkor 105mm micro lens, and a Nikon Speedlight SB-800 with a RayFlash ringlight attached.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Isabel & Holly

I had a fantastic mini-vacation with my friend Gina this past weekend. We flew to Dallas early Sunday morning, then drove to Bossier City, Louisiana to surprise her mother for her 69th birthday. It was a whirlwind, spontaneous three days and I shot lots of photos of people, places and things. This photo below was from a quick session on Monday evening. I photographed her cousin Greg and his family at their home—below is his wife Holly and daughter Isabel. It was an impromptu shoot with just my D300, Nikkor 18-70 lens, a Nikon Speedlight attached to a RayFlash ringlight and a bare office wall serving as a background—but with lovely models like these two, I couldn’t help but get a few good images. In many of the photos Isabel is a deadringer for a young Reese Witherspoon! More photos from their session to come…

In upcoming posts, I’ll have some photos and stories gathered on our road trip. Our three-day adventure concluded with an awe-inspiring tour in Shreveport of CRM Studios, a video and audio production company where Greg is the Director of Broadcast Production, as well as Moonbot Studios, the home of Bill Joyce, whose latest project is the short film, The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore (which, as a self-admitted biblioholic, I cannot wait to see—the short will be available as an iPad download next month!). Joyce is an author, illustrator and leader in the digital animation industry and was named by Newsweek Magazine as one of the 100 people to watch. Projects based on his works have been translated into feature films and television shows, including Robots and Meet the Robinsons, and the Emmy-winning series Rolie Polie Olie and George Shrinks. Wish we could have met Joyce during our tour, but we did get a brief glimpse of the studio where all the animation magic happens! (Thanks so much for the special tour, Greg!)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Portrait from the past: Teresa

I met Teresa in an art class in college. She modeled for me many times and despite no professional modeling experience, she was a great subject to photograph! I was studying old Hollywood glamour photos and was aiming to replicate that look during this session.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Kristen in blue

Mamiya 645J medium format negative; very minimal digital retouching (yes, her skin was that flawless, lucky girl). I did her hair and makeup and the “shrug” is just a few yards of textured satin fabric!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Mamiya 645J archives: Kristen

I shot this photo (original was in color; I converted to b&w digitally) of Kristen back in the 90s, using my Mamiya 645J medium format camera and Kodak VPS film. I worked with Kristen when I was doing freelance graphic design and photography work for the Visiting Nurse Association, but lost track of her a few years later. She was just as sweet, funny and bright as she was pretty—and she was the consummate model, even with no experience. If you’re out there, Kristen, give me a holler!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Margot, b&w conversion

Earlier this summer, I posted the color original of this portrait of a friend’s daughter. This one is on my top ten list of favorite portraits I’ve shot recently. When I shot film, I shot mostly Ilford b&w and loved the results I got with portrait shoots. I converted this image using b&w actions from a Totally Rad Actions set. Which image do you prefer—color or b&w—and why?

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Lauren

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Regina

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