I created these two images as some of the last in the series. I had gone through my mess-ups and test shoots and everything falling apart with the set and putting it back together. And then, like magic, these two images came together so easily.

When I started the series I had begun collecting dead moths. I would search everywhere – literally – anywhere I went to try and gather them. It was a difficult task that was taking a very long time. Eventually I realized I would not be able to gather enough, and they were each so unique that I didn’t want to shortchange the image by manipulating it later in post. So, I gave up on the image (for now) and I set my sights on another picture.

They may not seem connected, but these two images were what I thought of in place of my grand moth image. The keys satisfied my desire to fill the room with 1,000 moths. Instead I ended up with 4,000 keys. The branches were my ode to nature which was missing from the series thus far and I felt was needed to satiate my natural tendency toward the great outdoors.

The keys were an interesting dilemma. I knew that, over time, I could procure enough keys to make the image happen. What I did not have, however, was the budget for it. At anywhere from $2-5 per key I found, and calculating enough keys to cover the space I was filling, my estimated cost for production would have been about $8,000+ (on the less expensive side!). It wasn’t an option for me. I was already breaking the bank creating this series that I didn’t know if anyone would even care about. I knew I did, but it isn’t always easy to justify an expense if it appears frivolous and self-serving.

I used five keys instead of 4,000. I photographed them in many different positions all around my frame and then edited them together in Photoshop until my computer wanted to lay down and die.

The sticks were much easier and I was very in my element. I went running down the street and began gathering every stick I could find. I brought some from my favorite spot in the forest and others were discarded in piles at people’s houses. Getting them arranged inside the box was difficult, but I made it out with only a few scratches and bruises.

I found these to be some of the simplest in the series not only for the visual component (the sticks) but for how quick the shoots were. They exemplify perhaps one of my greatest joys in the Fourth Wall series, which was combining how I naturally work with where I wanted my photography to go. These were images that felt very natural to me and simple in their thematic planning. After all, I have used sticks and keys extensively. The difference was the application. When I look at them, I can feel the forward progression of my work this past year, and that is priceless.

I hope you enjoy this new series which is on display and represented by the JoAnne Artman Gallery until February 18th. It is showing in New York City (Chelsea).

Very limited editions. Each print is offered at 42×42 inches with an edition of 2, and 8×8 inches with an edition of 3.

You may contact the gallery for purchase requests. Each print has been proofed, signed, and numbered by me, and comes with a certificate of authenticity.

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Photographed with a Sony a7ii and a 25mm Zeiss lens.

Models: Kyna Lian (keys), self-portrait (nest)

Assistance: Kelly McGrady

I used to light images with bare bulbs covered by paper lanterns to diffuse them. This provided a very inexpensive way to light an image when I had nothing else at my disposal. But then I remembered something that even films use from time to time, and that is called a practical light. Think of a movie scene where a lamp is on in a house and it looks like the lamp (or candle, or flashlight, etc…) is lighting the subject. Usually that light source is not actually doing much of anything, and in fact there are bigger lights outside of the frame doing most of the work. The lamp becomes a practical, or motivated light source, making the viewer believe that the light is coming from said lamp.

I thought more about this practice and figured that it made sense in films, where people would be moving around and that amount of light just might not be enough. There is a lot to be said for the quality of light that comes from a larger, more powerful light source. However, in the kind of photography I do, very often shooting in low light and dealing with grain, why not simply use the lights that are already in my house? So the other day I experimented with that. I placed myself and my little black backdrop behind me in a spot where I would be lit from a distant window as well as an overhead hallway light to the other side of me. I really liked what I was seeing in camera and could immediately envision how, if contrast were added, it could look really moody. So I shot the entire image that way.

I loved the look of it, and how little fuss it was to configure, so I shot another image like it when I was visiting my hometown, photographing my sister-in-law in her parent’s house. The trick, though, is to understand light and not see it as a nuisance, or something we can haphazardly throw around in an image. The problem with using a lamp in a film is that people move. Shadows will dance where they want to when an actor moves even slightly, whereas in a still frame we know where the model will be placed, and can adjust the light accordingly. In the example below of Stephanie posing for me at her parent’s dining room table, I placed her in a position so that the main light source (a chandelier) would light her face evenly. Behind her was a kitchen light that I turned on which allowed the back of her to be lit, albeit only slightly. Yet, when I turned that kitchen light off, her back was completely black.

Lighting with practical lights, or lights that already exist in a certain spot, is not the same as just lighting someone with a lamp. You must place the subject carefully and determine light ratios so that you are aware of if you need to move your subject for optimal detail where you want it. In Steph’s case, I moved her around a couple of times and adjusted the brightness of the lights until I liked how lit she was.

I used to get so frustrated with not fully understanding light ratios or apertures and things of that nature. But now I realize something very simple, at least for the type of work I do – if something looks good, it probably is good. If you like what you see in your camera, go with it! And if you understand how you can enhance something later, you’re probably on the right track. Granted, this is all pertaining to the type of work I do specifically – editing and whatnot, but can be applied to many types of photography and art in general. The point is simple: even if you feel like you are not technically up to par, do what works for you. You will learn a lot in the process. Find light however you can, and create art no matter what. There is no reason why an f/stop should hold you back.

If you have ever created with practical lights, share your imagery below!

I hope to finish the image of Stephanie at her parent’s house soon! I’ll follow up with the finished product.

Floor in final image provided by WHCC.