“Hello, Nathan,

To begin with, I found your portraits quite expressive and to some extent intuitive. Artistic expression sometimes has to be simply intuitive. At least in part. It is evident that you love Portraiture and the way you approach the subject shows off great care and passion about what you are doing. Speaking from a purely technical standpoint, the work looks very good. You have managed to capture great light in almost all your pictures. You seem to be mindful of any technical issue involved in the process, and your concentration on composition and lighting allows you to produce high-quality portrait photography. I also like the way you utilize the background. A great portrait is the one that can easily draw the viewer’s eye to the subject without distracting background elements and from what I see here, you are well-aware of that rule. Whether you work with abstract backgrounds or natural places, you know how to make it work in favor of the main subject. What makes me happier though is the fact that, besides the technical efficiency, you are showing great care about capturing the essence of the personality that stands in front of your lens. Your approach shows off your ability to impart the right message about the person you photograph.

Some portrait photographers claim that they try capturing the true self. A good portraitist knows though, that, when we talk about still images, there is no such thing as the true self. A human being is a constellation of objectivities and subjectivities and it is not that possible to capture all those elements in a two-dimensional, still image. What it’s possible though is to capture an honest aspect of the subject, one of the many that synthesize what we call Personality. I feel that you are moving in that direction. Your images do really bring something essential up to life, something that perhaps refers to the essence of the personalities you selected to photograph. Your Pictures prove my point. The way you have captured the persons feels honest and the result speaks to the heart. It is as if you have managed to illustrate an important aspect of their personality and character. That said, my answer to your main question is Yes: to some extent, your pictures are indeed about the essence of the subjects.

Nathan, I believe that the black-and-white format fits better your approach. Color contemporizes a picture. It brings it into the realm of Now. Black-and-white photography is more emotive and abler to bypass the present moment, approaching the essence of the subject. I appreciate your dedication to Portrait photography and I support your endeavor to evolve it further. Keep on the good work ”