Hearing Life Summer 2022 issue

I photographed HLAA’s Director of Public Policy, Lise Hamlin, and her hearing dog, Shine, for the cover of the summer issue of Hearing Life magazine, published quarterly by the Hearing Loss Association of America. I met up with Lise and Shine at the Schwartz Peony Garden at Seneca Creek State Park in Gaithersburg, Maryland in May.

Lise writes about over-the-counter hearing aids for this issue. You can view this entire issue in pdf format in the link below:

https://hlaa.ygsclicbook.com/pubs/hearing-life/2022/summer-2022/live/index.html#p=1

In the studio with Michael Powell

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

Siberian iris

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

May is one of my favorite months in the garden because it’s iris time!

Daffodils!

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro

Tulip ‘Lady Jane’

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro

Tulips

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850 with Nikkor 105mm micro lens

In the studio with Lisa

This past weekend I had a new subject in the studio—Lisa! We did some Alphonse-Mucha-inspired conceptual shots with wigs, headpieces and goddess gowns, and I captured some “regular” portraits such as this one. I’ve got a lot of photos to go through, but wanted to share this pretty one of her. Special thanks to my friend Gladys for doing the makeup and helping with styling!

Westcott FJ400 strobe with softbox, Westcott Spiderlite T6 with softbox, V-flat for bounce/fill; images shot with my Nikon D850 and 85mm Nikkor lens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Joe’s senior portraits

Joe is the son of my studio partner and friend, Anna. I photographed him last month in a local park that had gorgeous fall color. Special thanks to Michael Powell for assisting!

Nikon D850, 85mm lens, Westcott FJ400 strobe with softbox

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Saucy gardener

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Here’s another of my “experimental” portraits of Shawna in her wonderful desert-inspired garden. We wanted to do something sophisticated but contrast the look with those fun gardening boots. Shawna added the (mock)tail for a bit of panache!

Shawna is an accomplished author and a passionate anti-inflammatory wellness lifestyle advocate.

Check out her website here: https://shawnacoronado.com/

Check out her wonderful books here: https://shawnacoronado.com/books/

Check out The Wellness University here: https://shawnacoronado.mykajabi.com/

Shawna of the desert

These are just a few of the shots I did of my friend Shawna Coronado when I visited her on my “Arizona or Bust 2021” road trip that began on Thursday, October 8 and ended when I returned to northern Virginia on October 25.

So before I embarked on my long road trip, Shawna texted me, “How do you feel about Annie Leibowitz? Would you feel comfortable doing something over-the-top creative?” She wrote the magic words every artist wants to hear.

(Behind-the-scenes notes: The velvet dress was purchased online for $30; the fabric was $4 a yard and I bought it just a few hours before I drove over to her house…I had no idea what I would do with it, but with that sunset-southwest-ombre palette, I knew I had to have it. Shawna brought the cool lattice chair from her house and we shot just after sunrise in a local park. Shawna calls her curls “wild child hair” and I thought it mimicked the wild cholla cactus behind her quite well.)

I did lots of promo shots for Shawna for her business and then we spent this day doing more “fantasy/experimental” shots for fun. These are two of those shots.

Isn’t that ombre fabric just perfect for this shot?

Who’s next? 

© Cindy Dyer. All right reserved.

American lotus

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro

Blue Dasher dragonfly

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850, Tamron 180mm macro

In the studio with Michael Powell (in action!)

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

When Michael P. and I were doing our fun portrait session last month in our shared studio, we decided to “loosen up” and get some silly shots. We were trying to decide how to show up the shoes (especially the soles) and not just by him sitting down. So the ever-energetic Michael came up with jumping and I must say I tired him out after about 20 shots! I told him to pretend he was a Rockette dancer and he should be very proud that he can kick his leg up THAT high at 66 years old (and in a suit, no less)! We knew the background wouldn’t hold his tall frame (especially when jumping that high), so we decided to share these anyway—consider them behind-the-scenes studio shots! Also, I’m not known for action shots, so there will be a technical learning curve if I pursue this type of portraiture…but we sure had fun creating the silly ones. Now if we could only build a cyclorama in the studio…..

In the studio with Michael Powell

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

In the studio with Michael Powell

In the studio with Michael #ConversePride

Michael P says: I am celebrating Pride Month 2021 with sole. T-shirt from the Converse 2021 Pride Collection, hightop Converse All-star Sneakers 2020 Pride Edition, and white Levi’s 501 jeans.

Michael is an accomplished nature/wildlife photographer as well as a gifted storyteller. Check out his blog here: https://michaelqpowell.com/

In the studio with Michael Powell

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Irises at Green Spring Gardens

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Bleeding hearts

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

(Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro lens)

Japanese Roof Iris

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro

In the (traveling) studio: Shawna, Eric, and baby Ian

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved.

 

 

 

 

In the studio: Barbara Kelley (installment #3)

Model: Barbara Kelley, Executive Director of the Hearing Loss Association of America

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. (Nikon D850, Nikkor 85mm lens)

In the studio: Barbara Kelley (installment #2)

Model: Barbara Kelley, Executive Director of the Hearing Loss Association of America

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. (Nikon D850, Nikkor 85mm lens)

 

 

In the studio: Barbara Kelley (installment #1)

Barbara Kelley, who is the Executive Director of the Hearing Loss Association of America, was the first “model” in my new shared studio space with friends Anna Davalos (Alejo Media) and Michael Powell (Nature Photographer). We relocated to the larger space in August and Barbara was our first official portrait shoot there last month. Of course there was social distancing and we were wearing masks (except for our model during the shoot). It is so nice to have a large space to be able to spread out during a shoot!

It’s always a pleasure to photograph Barbara because she’s very photogenic and up for any pose, background, etc., and because of that megawatt smile, too! We did many wardrobe changes and different backgrounds, so I’ll be sharing this session in a few installments.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. (Nikon D850, Nikkor 85mm lens)

Hearing Life: Katherine Pawlowski

I photographed Katherine Pawlowski for her cover feature in the July/August issue of Hearing Life magazine, a bimonthly publication that I design for the Hearing Loss Association of America (www.hearingloss.org).

Katherine was named the first Walk4Hearing ambassador in 2014, and she and her mother traveled to many Walks to represent children with hearing loss. A few months ago, I visited with Katherine, now 14, to catch up on her life and learn about her continuing advocacy efforts.

I photographed the family in 2014 for a Walk4Hearing cover feature, and was happy to catch up with them again for this feature shoot. Thanks to my friend Michael Powell (see his wonderful blog here), for serving as my trusty assistant, holding the diffuser and reflector during the shoot.

You can read my interview with Katherine here:

https://www.hearingloss.org/wp-content/uploads/HL_2020_4_Dyer.pdf

 

Daylily

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro

 

Rudbeckia

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro

 

Tiny Daylily

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro

 

Crocosmia

Crocosmias are part of the Iris family. Originally from South Africa, the name comes from the Greek words for “saffron” and “smell.”

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro

Bumblebee on Coneflower

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. (Nikon D850, Nikkor 105mm micro)

Daylilies

For this shot, I diffused the light shining directly on the daylilies, but allowed the bright dappled sunlight to filter through in the background.

© Cindy Dyer. All rights reserved. Nikon D850 / Nikkor 105mm micro