Inspired.

Every photographer is inspired by something: life in general, weather, paintings, fashion. My biggest influence is from older photography. I have a love affair with Victorian and Edwardian era photography as well as old Hollywood starlet photography.

Wedding season is winding down. After a busy October I have some time to breathe and unwind. I hope to take that time to soak in some inspiring images and incorporate what I find so amazing about them into my own work.

Edward Steichen: He had a number of art-related talents, but his portraits of Hollywood starlets were amazing. His portrait of Gloria Swanson here incorporated the use of texture that is experiencing a bit of a popularity resurgence lately via Photoshop. This look was achieved with black lace. It's amazingly simple but beautiful.

Annie Leibovitz: Not older but remarkable. Despite her recent financial gaffes no one can deny she's our generation's photographic legend. Her use of light here is just awe-inspiring. Her images look like paintings.

Julia Margaret Cameron: Probably my top favorite, because of her legend. Cameron didn't begin photography until she was in her 50s and was harshly criticized by her contemporaries for ignoring the general rules of photography. In a word, she really didn't know what she was doing....she was completely self-taught. But she created some legendary images with her novice eye.

Henri-Cartier Bresson: The master at photojournalism. The way he captured people just being themselves is something some photographers never seem to figure out. I hope to get there someday.

Lewis Carroll: Okay, so he was probably more than a little inappropriate in his dealings with his young models. More than likely anyway. Which makes his inclusion a bit controversial, but his portraits of young ladies were just gorgeous. They had an intimacy to them that is inspirational. Maybe he was a product of different times....but his work has to be acknowledged.