"Taking bad photos is important." ... interview with DAN HAYON.

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?
This photo was taken in 1967 or 1968. 

At that time I was a student at the Art Academy in Bucharest and, just because I had a camera, a friend of a friend of a friend, got me a summer job as a stage photographer during the shooting of a feature movie. One of the things I had to do, was to take the pictures of those who wanted to be hired as extras for the film. It was almost like a police procedure: they were brought to me, I put them in front of a black wall asked them to look at me and I pressed the button like a firing squad. One of them was the man in this photo. Didn't know his name, didn't know his story. I suppose that the expression on his face would have been the same if he had a real policeman in front of him. Later I was told that he was a Jew who wanted to emigrate to Israel and was waiting for years to get a visa. I wonder If he expected me to give him one.

Anyway, I didn't think then of my self as a real photographer. I still don't.

"My photo bag is heavier than me!"... VALENTINA VALLONE.

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

I took this picture a couple of weeks ago. I adore the seaside so i decided to go there with my friend Ludovica and shoot some pictures. I took her aback and just clicked! I love to improvise and it’s a very natural thing to do so with her … 

ALEXEY DEMIDOV... Interview with professional portrait photographer.

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

This was a warm day. We were out in the city walking with my wife, so this is spontaneous photography, without any planning.

"Challenge yourself every chance you get!"... interview with SHANDI-LEE COX.

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?
This is me, going through a huge personal transition in my life. I was incredibly upset about multiple things and I couldn't hold back having a complete meltdown. It was something like 4am, and I thought if I'm going to be up this late, this upset, I may as well make something out of it. So, I captured those painful moments, but was able to release and move on from it. It pains me to look at the photos from that night, but I smile when I think about where I am now, and how I am proud of all the decisions I've made to get to this place. I took it in my bedroom, in horrible tungsten lighting, with my tripod and remote, (I think it's hidden somewhere under the tissue).

Portrait of Dominguinhos... interview with professional photographer DARYAN DORNELLES.

Daryan Dornelles (also known as Fotonauta) is an outstanding professional photographer from Rio de Janeiro. He shared with us amazing portrait of famous musician Dominguinhos.

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

This guy is one of the best Brazilian musicians. His name is Dominguinhos. I took this photo for my book about Brazilian musicians.

Story behind the portrait of Questlove from The Roots... interview with HILARY SOL ALLEN.

1Q)Can you please tell us something about this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

I was hired by The Roots to document their week of practices and album listening parties for the release of Rising Down. Throughout each day, I would pull members to the side to take their portrait. This was taken on the roof of Legacy Recording Studios in Time Square in New York City.

"I like reality"... interview with DAN OARA.

Dan is artist from Romania, currently living in London. He contacted me and asked if I'm looking for photographers. His portfolio is amazing so i chose him to be the featured on Mad about Portraits blog today.

If you want to be featured here as well please contact me! You can find my email on the right side of MaP blog, or you can leave comment under this post. 

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

This photo is a part of a series of portraits that I'm preparing on for my final exam. I took this photo while I was on holiday in my native country Romania. These two girls are friends of mine which I start to photograph this year. Most of my works are double portraits so I like to use different female expressions to create an atmosphere.

All the light in the photo is natural. IT is in an old house with high ceiling which makes the composition more complex.

"Spend time with your subject"... interview with MAREK WYKOWSKI.

Marek is a talented photographer from Poland, currently living in Munich. 

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?
This picture was taken last summer in Casablanca. After a couple hours of shooting I was already on my way back home, but started talking with some people I met and I found this guy intriguing. It was already late, the light was low but I thought I will give it a try. Well, the result isn't technically perfect, but the overall atmosphere of the picture is nice.

"Fall in love with your model"... interview with DMITRY PAHOMOV.

1Q)Can you please tell us something about this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

Well, it isn't one of my serious works. We were enjoying my short stay at my friends place and decided to do make some portraits. Lightning setup wasn't anything special, large umbrella above the camera, just like in most of my portraits. As to the choice of subject I always try to find people who will trust me. The rest is up to me.

Family and child photographer... interview with ANNIE TAO.

Annie (San Francisco, USA) called herself a lifestyle photographer. She is famous for family and children photography. You may find some of her articles in Digital Photography School.

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

I love editorial images – images that tell a story.  Many of my favorite images were taken when people weren’t expecting to be photographed. 

I took this image at the end of a family photoshoot.  We were saying our goodbyes in the parking lot, and my clients were putting their kids in the car.  When I noticed Ian was being mischievous by climbing into the driver’s seat instead of his carseat, I knew this could be interesting, so I was ready to take the shot even while I was talking to Julie, Ian’s mom. 

This image was taken the moment Ian realized his mom spotted him!  In a matter of a couple seconds, I stepped back and composed the shot to capture Ian through the window and Julie in the reflection.   

Interview with fashion photographer... LAURA SALGADO. 7Q.

Laura Salgado (Colombia) if a professional photographer who is focusing her career on fashion photography.

She is also connected with production agency called Les Recolletes specializing in fashion and everything about it including photography, catalogues, books etc. 

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person? 
This photo was taken almost 7 years ago. I had a vintage clothing project and this was a way of showing it. This picture was taken with an analog canon. I chose Juliana because i thought that she looked timeless.

Interview with addict photographer... THOMAS HAWK. 7Q.

I had a great chance to interview remarkable person of photography community- Thomas Hawk (San Francisco, USA) is a real addict photographer. His portfolio on flickr contains over 50,000 pictures and this number is growing quickly every day. His goal is to publish 1,000,000 pictures before he dies. 

Portrait we have here is a product of another interesting photography project by Thomas. Enjoy this interview!

1Q) Can you please tell us the story behind this portrait? How you took it and why you choose to shoot this person?

 This photo is part of my $2 portrait series. I've taken over 100 of these now and offer to shoot portraits of people and pay them $2 whenever I'm asked for money. This was just some kid sitting on the street. His more specific story is in the description on the photo page that you linked.