CONCLUSION

As you look through this book, you will find all kinds of portraits. Some are formal, some are candid, some are informally posed—and while no contributing photographer shoots just one type, each has a style and vision that is uniquely their own. How they have developed this style varies from photographer to photographer. Some look to comtemporary portrait artists for inspiration, others look back to the great portrait painters.

For my part, I would encourage you to study the work of the great pre-digital portrait photographers when searching for ways to enhance and expand your repertoire. Study the work of Joseph Karsh, who had a very successful way with celebrities and world figures. His lighting techniques might have been a bit formulaic for contemporary tastes—but what a formula!

Another terrific portrait photographer I’d recommend studying is David LaClaire. Although he is no longer practicing, David did a book of his own (self-published), a beautiful compendium of a life’s work starting with his father’s early 20th-century photographs. David developed an affluent clientele in Michigan and was also a friend of President Gerald Ford, whom he photographed often. His classic imagery is just what his rich clients wanted—and just what he loved to do.

Maybe I’m just nostalgic about classic portraiture. If so, it’s just a counterpoint to the marvelous examples of more contemporary images that illustrate this book. Portraiture, in one form or another is as old as history. Make the most of it for yourself in your 21st-century business.

PORTRAIT OF MAN RAY BY LOU JACOBS JR.