Will (New York)
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Garrett (New York)![]()
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Rory (Toronto)
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James (Toronto)
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Ryan (Toronto)
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Bobby (New York)
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Mark (Toronto)
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Greg (Toronto)
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'The funniest thing is that he cannot watch me edit. I am ferocious. An image has to be exactly what I am looking for to survive the selection and editing process. He can't watch as I delete what he considers wonderful image after wonderful image. In the old days of contact sheets and pictures, he used to rifle through my garbage can to "save" the images. '
The 'he' photographer Greg Lindeblom refers to in the quote above is his husband Michael. When I read the sentence, I could totally relate to Greg's process, as well as Michael's reaction to it. When I'm putting together a piece for FH, sometimes an artist has sent me 400 or 500 images to choose from. In addition to supporting my choosing just the right images for a story, it also reduces the amount of images that require final editing for the piece.
It's always stressful however, to delete or omit images that I love. Sometimes, some of the best images remain unseen, as they just don't flow with a stories direction. I usually use about 12-15 images per piece, and when it gets down to about 20 or 25 that the images choices taken on a painstaking and dramatic Sophie's Choice as I'm editing out those last few shots. Silly as it may sound, there are just some captured moments you struggle not to include.
Garrett by Candlelight
I guess regardless of when a shoot took place, the struggle to choose favorites, images that both capture the best from a model, and the best from the artist, has been something all artist's struggle with. A few years ago, I started a series called, 'First Crack At It.' It focused on some of the very 'first' shoots from some of the photographers I've featured. Although Greg currently lives and primarily shoots in Florida, these images were all taken at the beginning of of his photography focus on the male form. All were taken in the nineties during Greg's time in both New York and Toronto.
I reached out to Greg about another piece, after seeing the shot of Rory (above) that he posted on Instagram. I loved the image and Rory's nineties supermodel look and the retro vibe that Greg had captured. Greg was fully on board with a shoot, but given it was an older shot, had only a few images of Rory to share. He did however, have two or three shots of many of the men he shot in those early days and suggested putting them all together.
Greg sent on about 30 images and it took me about 3 days choose which images to use.. It was especially difficult to whittle down the set thinking that these images were some of Greg's favorites shown decades ago, and that possibly some of these edits, may have came from a last minute save by Michael.
'My first camera was my father's hand-me-down Brownie Hawkeye which he gave me in 1966 at the age of 11. I was thorough captivated by the fact that I could create wonderful images from the world around me. Ever since, my camera has been a constant source of joy and discovery. For much of my life, my subjects were architecture, landscape and editorial work. In the early 1990s I began to enter my photos in competitions and actually started to win a few prizes. I took courses at Parsons School of Design (which was right across the street from my coop in New York City).'
'My husband, Michael, became a full-time artist in 1992. He encouraged me to pursue my photography even more and suggested I start working with nude male models. Most husbands would find that a source of friction in a relationship, but I became a photographer of male nudes at the suggestion of my husband. To this day, Michael has been my greatest supporter. He greets the models when they arrive, then retreats to his studio during our shoot, and only emerges to say good-bye. '
'I started shooting with male models in the early 1990s, when we lived in New York. It was quite a process to set up a studio in our dining area. So I didn't shoot often. But I certainly enjoyed myself immensely. I started shooting with friends, but then graduated to models I found through ads in the Village Voice or postings on the bulletin board at Parsons. It's interesting to remember how difficult it was to connect with models back in the pre-internet days.'
When going through the images Greg had sent on, I was struck by his use of both form and fabric. I was especially drawn to the 'triangle' of light behind the models in the Toronto shoots. I loved the 'tent' appearance, with the models almost appearing they were being shot in a heavenly sea of billowing white fabric and clouds.
'The shoots in New York were for gallery exhibitions. I showed at both MultiMedia Arts Gallery and the Leslie-Lohman Gallery, both in Soho. (I showed twice at each gallery in the period from 1992 to 1995) You will notice that I was experimenting with different light qualities, and I was especially fond of very low-light photography.'
'In 1996, we were transferred by my employer from New York to Toronto. We bought a wonderful Edwardian duplex in Seaton Village, just northwest of the university. My studio was in the third floor loft. I loved that triangular window that framed the loft and my studio. Michael even designed (and we had built) a custom triangular window that opened to allow ventilation through the loft. I didn't shoot often because my career was going full throttle. '
'Photography was my creative release, but I had little time for it. Nonetheless, I was able to create some lovely images with a wonderful array of models. Toronto has an amazing art scene and the creative community in that city is world-class. While Michael showed extensively during our Toronto years (1996-2001), I was consumed by work and didn't show at all during that period. It's only recently that I showed my first piece from Toronto -- Garrett in Candlelight. I am so pleased that I have rediscovered this early work and I thank Tye so much for his support and response to it.'
