Chaddy Dean Smith
Chaddy Dean Smith
The Pinhole Portrait Series was started several years ago when I became fascinated with those straight-faced, expressionless portraits of the 19th century. It seems that when a person has to sit very still for a length of time, 30 seconds or more, they let their guard down. It is very hard for anyone to “mug” for the camera or even keep an expression on his or her face for an extended length of time. I decided to take that methodology of portrait making, using long exposures, and mix it with the influences of Arnold Newman, August Sander and Edward Weston, photographers who made the environment as important as their subjects. These images are made with several different 4X5 pinhole cameras using Polaroid Type 55 film. Images are approximately 6.5” X 8.5” and printed as duotone inkjet prints.